Why is Swedish influencer Matilda Djerf being cancelled on TikTok right now?
Matilda Djerf, aka queen of all things soft glam and Scandi-inspired, is currently being cancelled all over TikTok for silencing micro-influencers. Confused, and now wondering if you’ll need to bin your Djerf Avenue dressing gown? Don’t worry, we got you. Let’s run through this messy situation.
Who is Matilda Djerf?
Djerf is a 26-year-old Swedish fashion influencer, designer, and model. The creator quickly rose to fame on Instagram and TikTok due to her minimalistic and chic aesthetic, gorgeous mane of hair that served as a reference picture for many gen Zers on their way to the hairdresser, and, of course, her flawless styling videos.
In 2019, Djerf co-founded the clothing brand Djerf Avenue with her boyfriend Rasmus Johansson. The New York Times described Djerf Avenue as “a multimillion-dollar lifestyle empire catering to the TikTok generation” that has amassed a social media following of over one million so far.
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Nevertheless, the brand has come under fire recently for copyright-striking the content of smaller creators, who’ve posted videos with dupes for Djerf Avenue products. Djerf’s clothing brand is no cheap feat, so it’s natural for influencers to share less costly alternatives with their followers. However, it seems as though this is a big no no in the 26-year-old’s eyes.
One of the creators who fell victim to this was Aliyah Sumar, who accused Derj Avenue of filing a trademark claim on two of her videos.
@sumarslays #greenscreen the way that immediately changed after waking up in my djerf avenue pajamas today #fruitpajamas #amazonalternatives #djerfavenuehaul
♬ original sound - aliya
One of the flagged videos presented an alternative to a Djerf Avenue’s pjama set, whereas the other one recreated one of Matilda’s viral looks with a $5 Amazon top, according to Sumar. “Your account has multiple IP Policy violations and is at high risk of being banned from TikTok,” the content warning stated.
Interestingly, Sumar stated in a later video that she actually criticised the Amazon dupe and went on to clarify that the pyjamas set was not an alternative for Djerf’s as the quality differed massively.
Influencer Isabela Karwatowicz also posted on TikTok on Saturday 7 October, stating that Djerf Avenue reported one of her videos too. The creator noted: “I am trying to gain a following and make this a part-time thing that I can do, and because of these copyright claims, my videos are no longer being pushed out.”
“It’s sad to see that someone who used to post very frequently about designer dupes that they were wearing, is now doing this to other creators,” Karwatowicz concluded in her video.
Users naturally sided with the creators on this controversy and critiqued the actions of Djerf and her team: “Uh, her designs are super basic and are literally just H&M but 5x the price?? It’s like if you wear a pair of jeans and then have Levis come after you,” one commenter wrote under Karwatowicz’s video. Another user voiced similar concerns and noted that Djerf Avenue frequently recreates items from Djerf’s closet that other brands made.
Things have clearly gotten too dicey for the company, as Djerf actually deactivated her TikTok account over the weekend.
@thejackieaccount silencing microinfluencers for doing EXACTLY what she did when she started is so backwards. #djerfave #dupes #matildadjerf #greenscreen #fashion
♬ original sound - thejackieaccount
On Sunday 8 October Djerf Avenue posted a statement on its Instagram story noting that “there has been a recent surge in websites selling products with our design and owned prints/artworks.” As a consequence, the firm employed an external intellectual property firm to monitor and flag copyright infringements.
The statement continued: “However, we realise that this has inadvertently impacted individual accounts. We have promptly instructed our IP firm to halt reports from individual accounts and focus on third-party sellers of these items. Instead of reporting the individual accounts, we will reach out to the responsible party behind the accounts when we see suspicious pirate copies and have a dialog with the content creator.”
