i wonder

The Tory Burch vs. Chris Burch battle has all the makings of a really good Lifetime movie–minus a murder and/or abduction.

For those folks who have no idea what I’m talking about, a brief Cliff Notes rundown….

This golden-haired designer–born Tory Robinson–hailed from Philly, graduated from Penn, headed to NYC, worked at Harper’s Bazaar, followed by Polo Ralph Lauren, and then Vera Wang. In 2004, along with her husband, financier Christopher Burch, she launched her own fashion label–a Hamptons-meets-Manhattan look complete with an instantly-recognizable geometric logo. Oprah raved about Tory’s tunics on the air…and I needn’t tell you what happened after that, as a word from Winfrey virtually guarantees instant superstardom.

So the line took off, but the marriage failed. In ’06, Chris and Tory parted ways (maritally speaking); though he remained, until last month, on the Burch board.  He also got busy starting his own fashion brand, C. Wonder.

As in, I wonder how much I can make my products look like Tory’s without pissing her off.

Rumor has it, she’s pissed. And after doing a side-by-side comparison of the two lines, understandably so. But here’s where my moral dilemma comes in: As a person who hates paying top dollar just because something has a big-name logo on it, I find myself (how best to put this?) empathizing with Chris’s desire to launch Hampton’s-meets-Manhattan goods at non-Eastern-seaboard prices.

Have a look and decide for yourself….

Copyright infringement?

Disgruntled spouse?

Brilliant marketing?

Cool-affordable-fashion-so-who-cares?

I wonder what YOU think….