Beige-off: Social media influencer suing her rival for stealing her ‘beige aesthetic’

12 December 2024, 10:41

A social media influencer has filed a lawsuit for $150,000, accusing a rival influencer of stealing her ‘beige’ look in a case that could redefine the influencer landscape.

Two social media influencers are embroiled in a legal battle to decide, once and for all, who the most boring person on the internet is.

Sydney Nicole Gifford, 24, is suing Alyssa Sheil, 21 for copying her 'neutral, beige and cream aesthetics' in a first-of-its-kind legal battle.

The two women are part of the ‘clean girl aesthetic’, a specific social media look based on seeming effortless, natural and refined.

Clean girls usually have elaborate haircare, skincare and makeup routines, and live simple lifestyles in minimally decorated houses.

In short, they aspire to be the human representation of the colour beige - no wonder, then, that these influencers are fighting each other over the aesthetic.

The two women met in Austin, Texas in 2022, to ‘collab’ on social media content, said Gifford in court papers.

But following a photoshoot in 2023, Sheil blocked Gifford on all social media platforms, after which she allegedly started copying her social media content.

In a lawsuit filed earlier this year, Gifford accused Sheil of copying her "neutral, beige and cream aesthetics", mimicking her product recommendations, poses, outfits, tattoos, hairstyle and even her way of speaking.

Sheil denies the charges, and has counter-argued that Gifford is the one ripping her off, not the other way around.

Gifford claims she is owed up to $150,000 (£117,000) in damages for mental anguish and lost income.

“Ms. Gifford’s goal is to protect her work from being infringed upon by an imitator. This case is significant because it asks the court to apply long standing principles of the law to modern day challenges surrounding online content creation,” said her lawyer, Kirsten Kumar.

Sheil “vigorously denies all the allegations,” her lawyer Jason McManis said.

“These are two influencers who live in the same area being asked to promote many of the same products and storefronts. When a store asks multiple influencers to promote it, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that some posts may look the same. That doesn’t make it infringement or misappropriation,” McManis said.

He added: “Things like ‘look,’ ‘feel,’ or ‘vibe,’ are not protectable and we look forward to vindicating Ms. Sheil from these false accusations.”

If the lawsuit is successful, it could redefine the influencer landscape - an industry set to be worth £500 billion.