Inspiration vs. Imitation

Well design is design. But from the perspective of Strategic Design, a piece can be considered as an imitation of another when several different comparative points are met: form (how it looks), texture (how it feels), target market (sold to whom), purpose (rtw, couture, runway, exploratory work?), price point (from a merchandising POV), and talk (what has been said or written about the piece).

So, if a design looks like another's but is "experienced" differently and is for a different target market -- inspiration. A mass-market product that is re-worked to be high end and of good quality and ultimately sold to a high-end target market -- inspiration. The converse of that is true: a high-end product remade to be more accessible to the mass-market -- inspiration. A design that has some thick cultural context to it but remade for another culture -- again, inspiration. Same material, same form, same texture, but cheaper (or more expensive) -- could be imitation, unless it is introduced and positioned [talked about] differently.