Please make all your posts in ONE post.

Here's the deal.

I started this thread.

I have 3 mermaid companies. www.halifaxmermaids.com www.atlanticmermaids.com and www.canadianmermaids.com and if the mernetwork members will let me toot my own horn here for a second, I'm one of the more well known mermaids with 32,000+ followers on facebook and a huge client base.

We're up for a $10,000 business grant so I have been researching who I can give my constant business to for fabric tail makers. We plan on buying a bulk order of tails to rent, and we want to get in touch with someone about being official resellers. So I have been contacting all the fabric tail makers online. THERE IS ONLY ONE FABRIC TAIL COMPANY IN CANADA AND THEY DO NOT FILL THE DEMAND. So there is a huge market here.

So for me, a well known, well versed, large company and potential client...

THIS DOES NOT LOOK GOOD TO ME. I have made LOADS of posts on mernetwork over the past 5 years about the issues of ripping off other tail makers. I refuse to support any company that does it. I have blacklisted loads of people. And it MAKES A DIFFERENCE. As a very well known mermaid I am asked at least 10 times a day "do you recommend ____?" on here, on facebook, on twitter, on instagram, on youtube, and on our website. YOU DO NOT WANT SOMEONE LIKE ME SAYING NO I DONT RECOMMEND THESE PEOPLE BECAUSE THEY STEAL TAIL DESIGNS... BECAUSE YOUR POTENTIAL CLIENTS WILL LISTEN TO ME.

So here is the deal. You've been researching the mer-community. You've come into it and your first official acts as a company have been to alienate a huge portion of your market.

The good thing for you? YOU STILL HAVE TIME TO FIX IT.

Instead of joining mernetwork and acting INCREDIBLY UNPROFESSIONAL and arguing with people (FYI this forum is for discussing anything in the mermaid world and most especially tail makers. So get used to it) and ruining your reputation before your business has even gotten off the ground... (cuz I promise you mermaids are like elephants... we NEVER forget)

Simply remove the designs, move forward, and never copy someone else again. If you take inspiration from someone else's design simply message them and say "hey, we'd love to have your permission to do a version of your design". THE COMMUNITY AND YOUR CLIENT BASE LOVE TAIL MAKERS WHO GO OUT OF THEIR WAY TO BE FAIR TO THE COMMUNITY AND THOSE TAIL MAKERS GET MORE BUSINESS AND ARE SPOKEN HIGHLY OF.

You have a REAL chance here! Do you realize how awesome people will think you are if you just take accountability and do the right thing and move forward into the future? WE ALL MAKE MISTAKES I get it. And you may not have realized how big of a deal this is to people. Tail designs are so personal and people put so much of themselves into it.

So those are your options at the moment:

1.Recognize you just made a big mistake in the community, even if you dont feel like you did you have to at least recognize that by community standards you did. Maybe you were ignorant to that, maybe you weren't. It doens't matter. Just recognize you made a mistake, pull the designs, be sure to change how you do things in the future, and people will respect you for it and recognize you as a tail maker with standards who are willing to own up when they mess up. And they'll give you a chance.

2. Or, you can argue, lie, defend, play the ignorance card, AND THE COMMUNITY WILL NEVER FORGET YOU DID THAT AND MAKE IT THEIR MISSION TO MAKE SURE EVERYONE KNOWS IT. I guarantee you it'll affect your business and reputation.


It's not a threat, it is just what happens! If you don't believe me you should look up the companies that have been black listed. Guess what? They're all bankrupt with horrible reputations.

You seemed so eager to be my tail providers! But I can't in good conscious give loads of business and money to a company that has stolen designs from my friends, and come on our forum and insulted them. You may not care about my personal business. But you'll care about what I and others have to say about it

So please, reconsider all of this. Take some time. Think on it. YOU HAVE EVERYTHING TO GAIN AND EVERYTHING TO LOSE.