I've wanted one of these chairs for ages. I will eventually purchase a reproduction, because the price for an original is insanely and needlessly high. Especially in these troubled economic times.

The only thing that is "wrong" with it is that it's not an original, or to be exact, not a licensed reproduction. If you don't care about that, then just make sure the measurements and guarantees satisfy your needs and go for it.

There are tons of copies of famous designs out there. If you neither plan to resell it as an original, or care that it's not a 'true original' - again, go for it.

If you honestly just love the chair, not because it's from Eero Saarinen or anything like that, again, go for it.

I will say, though, the website provide quite a bit of historic info on Saarinen making it seem like it would be an original, but at that price, no way.

I do not own this Evinco Womb chair knock-off but I have seen one in person. There are two main differences between this knock-off and the Knoll chair.

The first difference is the dimensions. The official Womb chair is 35.5"x40"x34" and the Evinco knock-off is 40"x33"x40". If you have seen/sat-in a Knoll Womb chair and like the look and feel/comfort of its dimensions the Evinco might seem "off" to you. Do you have an opportunity to see and sit in the knock-off in person? That might help with your decision.

The second difference is in construction quality. I noticed the biggest quality difference in the stitching - the stitching on the Womb chair being perfect with tight seams while the seams on the knock-off were somewhat sloppy looking. There was an apartment featured on this site recently and the person had a knock-off (possibly this Evinco knock-off) and I recognized immediately that it wasn't a Womb chair. It is especially noticeable when viewing the chair from the back.

Overall, I don't think there is anything wrong with the knock-off, I just wanted to point out the two differences I noticed. $3000 for the Womb chair (not including ottoman) is a lot of money. If you want something a lot cheaper that looks close enough this knock-off definitely does that.

If it's that cheap, then it's probably just that: cheap. I have never purchased from them, but I read that they are one of those companies that shamelessly rips off copyrighted design and manufactures everything in China (that's why items ship from a warehouse in Los Angeles) with inferior materials to keep the price ridiculously low (you know, slave labor, "The Story of Stuff," etc.). Have you googled reviews, and read beyond those on the company's own web site? If all you care about is how something looks the week it arrives, you'll probably be happy with your purchase. If you want it to last, save up to buy the real deal new or used. "Buy the best and you only buy once," or this case, "buy the best and you only cry once."

Carol, if you really love the design of the chair, don't buy a knockoff that you "settle" for. Save up for a real Womb Chair and you will always cherish this design icon for decades to come.

There is probably nothing wrong with this chair (you get what you pay for). But there are usually differences in quality from the original. The biggest difference would probably be one of materials. The original chair base is made of thick fiberglass, cheap companies often exchange this for plastic or a thinner fiberglass base, either of which makes for a more fragile chair. The most noticeable difference would be in the fabric. Again the cheaper the fabric the more likely it is to wear and not last as long. Then there are the fittings. Another place the chair (or most likely any chair) would be the fittings or joinery. How is the metal frame attached to the upholstered base? Is it different from the original? The problem is these questions cannot be easily answered unless you actually see the product and compare it to the original. And since these knock off companies are almost always online, a proper comparison is impossible. The next issue is resale. The fakes will not resell as well as an original, should you change your mind a few years down the line. The final issue with knock offs is one of morality. These companies are stealing these designs. Although they may justify making the product cheaper and bringing it to the masses, you are essentially dealing with thieves. I would expect once you give them your money, should any problems arise with your chair, they will behave like thieves and cut and run.

"they are one of those companies that shamelessly rips off copyrighted design and manufactures everything in China "

First of all, furniture designs are excluded from obtaining a copyright. They can receive protection in the form of a patent or trademark, but most of the iconic furniture pieces are not patented (some, like the Eames lounge chair, receive a "trade dress" , i.e. a trademark on a design).

With the exception of a few pieces, heavy lobbying by rights-owning companies has tried to convince people that knockoffs are a threat to intellectual property. Sometimes the courts side against these companies, sometimes in favor. The Eames chair is the most famous examples of a case that was ruled in favor of Herman Miller against those who made a knock-off (originally the court ruled against HM and then reversed on appeal). It's hit and miss really. Many of the most egregious cases have involved companies that literally stamp an HM or Eames logo right onto a knockoff, which is clearly illegal and unethical. The courts have ruled in favor of knock-off companies many times though.

In my personal opinion, I see nothing wrong with knock-offs. The companies that own the trade dresses and other rights to famous designs are merely profiting from a business relationship with a designer that effectively expired when the designer died or stopped producing work. While the craftsmanship may be superior, usually the price tag is enormously inflated so as to be disproportionate to the increase in quality. On the other hand, knock-offs allow great designs to be enjoyed by many, as they were originally intended to be enjoyed, instead of by a small, wealthy elite.

Side note, I looked up the dimensions of the chair on Knoll's site and they are 40" W x 34" D x 35 1/2" H.

So the knock off seems to be close to the original. Possibly different measuring points were used? (eg. measure the front of the chair vs the back to get the height?).

Also, the ottoman measurements seem to be spot on.

Scoot--

I take it you don't do anything creative for a living?

And as far as owning a knock-off, if you're comfortable carrying a fake Coach bag or wearing fake Gucci sunglasses, then go for it. And yes, I understand the difference between "counterfeit" and "knock off."

I have 2 knock off Eames chairs, and the one made in the U.S/ is a dead ringer for the original. The one made in China is cheap and way off. So my advice is to buy American if you want quality.

I agree with Scoot, especially on the last point. For example, Charles & Ray Eames never meant for their chairs to be sold to the elite, but at the prices Vitra and Herman Miller sell their "authentic, fully licensed product" for, who else could afford them now? I remember, twenty years ago, our school cafeteria was all Eames' 4-leg base chairs in cherry red. I imagine only upscale retro restaurants could do that today.
As far as quality, I've seen many of the Eames-inspired chairs and they look amazing, even more so considering the prices. Remember that Herman Miller has some of its products made in China as well. Online price for licensed Eames chairs are $200-$500 apiece. The Eames-inspired chairs go for $50-100.
And then there's the flap with Modernica, which still makes the chairs the way the Eames' made them in fiberglass, and even uses the original molds, but can't use the Eames' name. If you want the chair the way it was originally made, then you have to go with the Modernica Eames-inspired.
I wish more designers today wanted to bring beauty to more homes and didn't price their work out of reach.

My advice for knock-offs is to always see it in person. I've seen some baaaaad knock-offs, and some good ones too. Good lighting and photoshop can really save a tragic looking knock off. The fabric, to me, is one of the key factors. That is something you can't always see in a small picture. It might be a cheap-feeling, loose weave fabric that will pill and sag easily. You can only determine the quality of the fabric in person, and to me that is too much of a risk ordering online unless they have an excellent return policy.

snob much, people?

I think the return policy is important, too. If you've seen one in person, sat in it, etc... then go for it. As a design professional, I have no problem buying knock-offs of furniture that was intended for the masses but is now priced beyond what the masses can afford. I own a knock-off Wassily Chair, in fact, and mine, fortunately, looks exactly like the original, and has held up perfectly over the past 5 years (and I bought it used!). With an upholstered good, though - particularly a Womb Chair - I would say don't buy it unless you've seen one in person and are satisfied with the construction.

@the polish chick --

No - Just a respect for diesigners and their work as well as the jobs of the people here in our country who make the real thing.

When your job gets sent overseas or you get "downsized" because of the "bad economy", you'll understand.

patrick -- I do commercial and editorial photography, and before that, graphic design, so I do have intimate knowledge of the creative process.

Despite this, I still believe that great designs were meant to be enjoyed by as many people as possible, especially if that was the intent of the designers themselves who, by the way, are no longer benefiting financially from royalties on their works.

On the one hand, I support knock-offs because I cannot afford originals :) On the other hand, I take issue with a companies that charge exhorbitantly high mark-up for products based on a creative collaboration that effectively expired many years ago, and those are companies I'd rather not support unless I can afford to do so. Just my opinion.

If you recall, HM has rarely tried to stop companies that create knock-offs other than via written requests. They do take an aggressive stand against companies that use the HM or Eames trademark, which I agree is unethical and probably deceptive.

I always love the hating that happens when people bring up buying a knock off. Who wouldn't want to save some serious money as long as you're satisfied with the quality of whatever you're buying?

Personally, I would save up and buy the real deal.

Flames aside...

Check how it's built. Not just what you can see, but what you can't. Think about how something had to be made, and what was involved (people, machines, time, etc.)

A good example is to compare a $400 sofa (non-IKEA) to an $800 IKEA sofa to something more around... $2000. Whether you'd go to IKEA or for the more expensive piece ends up on your budget, but once you look at the splintery pine stapled together in the $400 one and realize the cushions will deform after a month and that the springs are going to stretch all over you'll quickly realize that it's *not* a bargain after all and it'd look like rubbish after 2 years.

Some things are expensive because of insane production processes. The amount of steel present in a Barcelona chair isn't that high, but the process to produce the frame from that steel was ridiculous for its time, the amount of steel is started from is WAY, WAY, WAY higher, and is still brutally expensive to produce today.

Sometimes you really do get what you pay for. Not always - but sometimes. Check that you are getting your money's worth and buy the best overall value for your dollar.

A last example is 6 years ago my sister gave me a Ralph Lauren Polo for Xmas. It was probably $70, which I thought was ridiculous for a shirt. It's white. I've worn it every week since. It's still white (not yellow or gray tinged). It looks better than shirts from Old Navy and Aeropostale that were bought less than a year ago (the Aero ones are actually falling apart!).

I purchased my knock-off Ligne Roset Mama Lamp from Envico.

it's a bit off, but I am sure that I am the only person that will notice it as I don't travel in interior design circles. but if I did, I am 100% sure someone would spy my "deception". I covet the original but I can't afford it and I can't prioritize it (I just bought a complete fixer-upper and a new roof ranks higher). PLUS I am having quite a time with interior design (I'm a Landscape Architect by trade - outsides I know, insides, meh I'm only OK). I figured if I hate the lamp in 3 years it's not the end of the world and I won't feel guilty about it living in the basement playroom. not tooooo spendy mistake (compared to $1100 for the original)

the differences are the pins / hinges are plastic on mine, the real ones are metal. the shade is smaller and less gracious and not diffused on the bottom! (GAH didn't catch that in the photo). the real shade has options for materials and is diffused on the bottom. it is also a bit larger. the bases are the same and the uprights are close enough I don't remember a difference. it is sturdy, but I HATE the plastic pins.

It was delivered in 3 days even though the estimate was 4 weeks! i found an online coupon so I saved an additional $100 or so - google one for yourself.

there are a number of negative reviews about people trying to make returns. that wasn't an issue as I was satisfied with my purchase.

I call it my "fake lamp". like my "fake art" but that's a story for another time!

do I have buyers remorse about my purchase? not one bit! but I do have remorse that I'm not rich and fabulous, only fabulous! :)

I was contemplating purchasing the Womb chair as I like the knock-off's color options better. I would be curious about how you like it if you end up ordering it.

From my experience here are a few things to keep in mind when buying a knock off:
a.) Make sure that Evinco has this piece available (the representative will never say no). If not it can take them upto 1.5/2 months as they send the order to china where it is manufactured and it gets shipped to you.
b.) Check the return policy. The items are packaged carefully and sometimes get dented, damaged, while in transit. This adds additional days for them to review the damage via photographs, approve the replacement, ship it back, and then for them to send a replacement after they have received the damaged part.
It might be worth exploring furniture stores in your city who make these knock offs, see the floor sample, and have one home delivered for a minimal charge.

Correction:
b.) Check the return policy. The items are NOT packaged carefully and sometimes get dented, damaged, while in transit.

The argument that "these designs were originally created for the masses" is sort of a dated argument, as methods of production have significantly changed. What were once, in the times of Eames, vast improvements in the construction process, allowing faster, more efficient production, have become methods (and materials) not necessarily translated to what's most efficiently made (or assembled or shipped) now.

Besides, I don't think the Womb chair was ever in that camp anyhow. When some of the elite furniture designers made "design for the masses" it was a rather Utopian "masses" they had in mind.

Scoot-- Surprising, then, your stance on where the value of an idea or design lies, given what you do for a living... would you duplicate the layout of a Irving Penn still-life for a client who could not afford to hire Irving Penn? Would you put the image in your portfolio, with your name on it? Not trying to argue, just trying to crystallize some of my own takes on the whole topic.

But I understand your points (and the one you make about using the HM logo is a HUGE component of what's at issue here) And I have always agreed it is a topic FULL of gray areas.

The problem with the original womb chair and (possibly) the reproduction is that the upholstery eventually comes loose from the underlying foam, creating blisters and wrinkes. There's nothing more disappointing than a $5,000 chair that looks like trash. The leather version might work better since leather is stiffer and won't wear as much. Still, the foam cannot be replaced once it wears out. The cheaper version might not hold up at all. Also, off-gassing.

patrick -- photographers emulate the style of others all the time. Though there is polarity among photographers about this in the same way that there is polarity among interior and industrial designers regarding knockoffs. Everyone wants to create their own unique style.

If a client approached me and wanted the look of Irving Penn or Richard Avedon or contemporaries like Platon, then I would try to deliver that product. The alternative would be what? To turn down the job, citing as my rationale that I did not want to harm the creative intellectual property of living or (in the case of Irving Penn, non living) photographers, or to negatively impact their wages? Is someone who wants to spend $100 on an Irving Penn still life reproduction really harming Irving Penn, whose works fetch tens of thousands at auction? Is his work being devalued?

Now imagine a company that has "purchased the rights" to Irving Penn's "look" and has hired contractors to reproduce the work, dot for dot. How much are those reproductions worth? Are they worth many times more than my own reproductions, if the "look" is exactly the same?

Definitely some interesting questions to consider. :)

To get back on the topic of the chair, I agree with the others in that I have heard some quality issues regarding the upholstery in that it does not hold up as well as the originals.

"Save up for a real Womb Chair and you will always cherish this design icon for decades to come."

It might be more like one decade to come. I've heard from a few people with authentic womb chairs that they actually wear very poorly with regular use (especially the foam), despite the absurd price. If you're looking for something that will hold up well and not require costly restoration/repair, you might want to avoid the womb chair altogether, whether it be real or a knock-off. Just because an item is authentic and expensive does not mean it is inherently well-made or deserving of your hard-earned cash.

There's another perspective here with the cost that I think has been somewhat overlooked. This is effectively a fiberglass chair, with glued on foam cushions overlaid with fabric, that sells for over $4000 on the DWR website. When compared with traditional furniture, I would imagine very little workmanship or supply expense goes into the creation of this chair. A several ton press forms the chair bodies, a pipe bender forms the legs, while an electrolysis bath chromes them, a robot sprays appropriate levels of upholstery foam on the body, and some hapless person goes about stitching upholstery fabric together on this menagerie. When compared with a similarly priced high quality down and spring chair with oak or maple frame, where yards of fabric and hours of work go into its creation, it is hard not to conclude the Womb chair is an enormous ripoff. If you can find a well made knock off chair, why not buy it?

I wonder if Scoot and Patrick are single because I sense a love connection here... :)

Regarding the chair, I have the original (thanks to a very generous father-in-law as a housewarming gift) and I can't think of any material item in this world more perfect than it.

If someone owns a framed poster of a Warhol/Matisse/Van Gogh does that constitute knock off or counterfeit? If I have furnishings that mimic Wright does that infringe on his artistic heritage? I'm not talking about where the money goes, since they're all dead. I respect the right of designers/artists to not be ripped off. But at some point it seems to me that there is a point when techniques and the products that were once unique become part of the popular dialogue. Public domain, in essence. These copies are not being sold as originals. There is, imo, an implied death to new ideas if they are not to be copied. Art students sit in galleries copying masterworks in order to better understand the process. Where did open space design home design originate? Does no one here own a piece of furniture that might or might not be Danish modern? Copying in order to profit from it isn't particularly laudable but the opposite idea that new creative ideas aren't constantly becoming an active part of the conversation, or that they should be stifled or controlled, is equally disappointing as well as unrealistic.

And I agree with Scoot that there is something a bit repugnant about a company making obscene profits with a design they purchased the rights to. They are not the designers. They are manufacturers. High quality, yes. But with mass produced items high quality should not be as expensive as a made-by-hand artisan creation. That becomes ripoff.

@John brings up another good point.

Knockoff or original... 25 years from now, what's your situation? Are they both holding up well? Are you looking at a restoration? Have you done repairs, and if so for how much? Has one had to have been outright replaced (more than once?!)?

I'm biting the bullet on an Eames lounge the next Herman Miller sale <I>(I'd buy used, but used Rosewood is nearly as expensive as a new one, and Palisander is too new to find used)</I>, and BOY did I research the heck out of it. Did you know that the ears are glued to the seat pan, whereas the rest of the chair is secured with bolts? Yep. It's possible if it's abused to have that eventually fail -- with the whole back of the chair falling off! I only found one salesperson who was aware of it and could explain (in great detail) to me how to check to see if it was occurring.

But 25 years from now... it needs new foam. What'll that cost? At least now I have an idea based on current prices. I also know what it'll take to keep the veneer in good shape.

TCO (Total Cost of Ownership). It's always something to consider.

Why does it look like there are 30 responses to this post, but when I click on it, there are none?

Get the knock off. I have a real Knoll table and I just got two knockoffs for $140 each. In the end, I like copies better for our family room because 1) I care less about damage by dogs or grandchildren, 2) the copies are actually prettier in this particular case, and 3) you can't see the construction quality difference unless you turn the table upside down and inspect it.

Upholstery is a lot different than casegoods, so the points about stitching, fabric, foam & batting, etc are well made. However, if you're not wealthy and you won't have monkeys jumping on your chair, then save your cash.

I have a $2000.00 hand-made HickoryChair armchair (it was an extravagant gift from my mom, I didn't buy it). I absolutely adore the chair. But you know what? I wish I'd flippantly asked for two arm chairs from Room and Board instead of flippantly asking for a single chair from Hickory Chair. It will last me a lifetime and I will be able to leave the chair to someone after my death, but I would really have preferred two chairs and a coffee table for the same cost.

Another good source for knock offs is www.inmod.com

Can someone explain the difference in cost of the DWR Womb chair for $1200 and the OfficeDesigns version at $3000 ? That's an astounding mark up and they both seem to be claiming the chair as the authentic item?

At DWR the ottoman is $1200. The chair starts at $3000.

Buy the copy. The Womb chair is insanely expensive. Unless you have money to burn--it's so not worth. I import furniture from China, and just because it's made in China, doesn't mean it's poorly made. In fact, we've compared product from the same company (Broyhill) that's made in the US vs. China, and the same items built in China are BETTER made than the product the comes from the factory in Mississippi. And BTW, most furniture you buy is a copy from some source. As long as they don't claim to be the original, it's just business.

Saarinen designed the chair for Knoll. Knoll OWNS the design! They invested in the design and knock-offs are theft--plain and simple.

Many modern designs were designed specifically for Knoll or Herman Miller (for money) and the misinformation I see about them being meant for the masses is coming from someone who fell asleep during art/design/architecture history and only caught part of the story. It is hilarious and ironic to read that some people think the owner of the design is greedy for charging whatever they want, yet they think they themselves deserve to have the design free just because they are entitled. Wow!

China steals our movies, our music, our art, our technology, etc. and sells it back to us and we greedily aid and abet the theft.

Why should they pay someone to design something great, when they can simply STEAL someone else's work and immoral, greedy consumers don't care. If you value innovation, design, originality, or quality, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE find an original of something you can afford.

There are thousands of designers out there who are doing great work and are barely able to survive.

By the way, the Womb chair comes in more than one size. I know from experience that DWR, one of the main distributors, can get it in at least 2 sizes and in other Knoll fabrics that are not listed in their literature. You have to ask.
I would guess the other retailers can do so, also.

People who like a purse for the look of it (and not because it is made by Gucci or coach) don't mind that they are carrying a "fake". People who like the look of a piece of furniture first and foremost should not take into consideration "who made it". I personally think it's more fake to willingly spend extra money just to have an original if it's merely the design you love.
Why would someone who doesn't usually buy or own $3k quality of furniture make and exception in this case? Just because of thee designer name? I'd assume whatever "knock off" the poster bought, would be no less quality than the rest of the furniture that they bought at similar price points.

Also, I agree with whoever said that the price almost never reflects the actual quality. It probably costs no more than a few hundred dollars (at warehouse supplies cost) to make the chair. The majority of the money is in the design. Well, how long does it take before a design is no longer "innovative?" How many times over should one reap the benefits of out of one design? The very word innovative means "new". This design is certainly not "new". Maybe we can consider cheaper productions as the depreciation of innovation. It's great, but not new. And what's greater is being able to get the look at a fraction of the cost.

Oh yeah, and the original dies with the creator. Or was created BEFORE the creator died. Anything else was made by an opportunist (including the "original" manufacturers). If merely using the same materials and same process were enough to deem something "original", than conceptually, we could begin making ancient Grecian urns in Indiana.

" some people think the owner of the design is greedy for charging whatever they want, yet they think they themselves deserve to have the design free just because they are entitled"

@ moderngirlie. Who thinks they are entitled to the design for free? I don't believe anyone said that here. I do believe people are entitled to enjoy great design at whatever price they can afford, whether that be a used original, an "original reproduction" (e.g. Plycraft, Thonet), a modern knockoff, or even a six inch scale model (which DWR sells for $400 if you're interested).

We are all observers of the same history, no? Eames said that a design does not address itself to everyone, or to only a priveleged class, but to those who need it. In this sense he wanted to design his products for those who needed them while ensuring they were not shut out because of exhorbitant price. Eames and Sarrinen were both pioneers of mass produced furniture. The LCW and others were designed to be mass assembled. Why would a designer make such a choice?

At one point, Knoll was suing knock-offs of the Butterfly chair, a design which Knoll acquired (in addition to many other designs they acquired, not commissioned). Knoll ended up losing its claim to copyright infringement and stopped producing the chair altogether. You'd be surprised at the number of court rulings that are on the side of companies that make knock-offs. I believe such risks are one reason that HM, Knoll etc are not suing knock-offs so often. They understand that it's incredibly difficult to secure exclusive rights to an iconic design.

I think the concept of an "original" is largely lost today, long after the designers have passed on. Obviously, if I saw an early 1960s LCW on Ebay, I would snag it and not buy a knock-off. But why should I buy a "licensed reproduction" that was made just a few months ago by a robot in a Chinese factory and stamped with the HM logo for $700? To me they have a different intrinsic value. What exactly does "original" encompass nowadays? It's a tough question.

Here's some food for thought for those who so strongly advocate purchasing licensed designer original furniture regardless of the cost. When you purchase traditional furniture, do you buy the original antique or seek out the descendant companies of the original 17th, 18th, or 19th century cabinetmakers? I think not, since Sothebys and Christie's are a little steep for most people's purses, you buy it from a major furniture manufacturer.

As noted earlier, furniture design and manufacture is not patented, and for good reason. For centuries, cabinetmakers, and furniture fabricators have copied each other's designs, incrementally and sometimes radically changing them for better or for worse. Developing and refining techniques until today we have the massive market offering a variety of furniture styles and quality range. Tenaciously clinging to the corporate licensing mantra or allowing oneself to be browbeaten into paying unreasonable amounts of money, only serves to wildly enrich the manufacturer and stymie the innovation that might result in a cheaper, better, and longer lasting Womb Chair and other modern pieces.

If the knock-offs of the Womb chairs and other iconic pieces were artistic adaptations, or structural improvements, then I'd see your point more. But these lower priced versions are meant to fool the eye, which is a different intent. I'm all for creative reinterpretation. This ain't it.

Mind you, these comments are coming from a designer sitting on a "real" Eames leather desk chair, but who will *sometimes* spec a knock-off if the job warrants the look but the client can't afford the original... although I'd much prefer to spec a piece of furniture that's not pretending to be something else. There's enough furniture out there so it shouldn't be an issue.

Right now, most of my clients are asking about the origins of pieces, so that knocks a considerable number of knock-offs right off the shopping list, since rarely are they domestically born and raised.

patrick - I do suspect some backlash against knockoffs is due to increased ethnocentricity and nationalism over the last few years, especially backlash against countries such as China, India, etc, perceived as "competition" to America. You can even see evidence of that on this site. People are attacking knock-offs for being made in China, when HM and Knoll both produce some of their products in China and in other countries.

I am not nationalistic. I have, however, stopped purchasing items (food, home goods, anything in fact) made in China. They have a reprehensible record of poisoning their own citizens (infant formula) to death, poisoning pets (I knew two dogs who died due to the tainted food), producing toxic drywall (google Florida Chinese drywall) that has cost thousands of first time homebuyers their homes with no hope of recompense because China ignores all legal recourse by victims. China has polluted its own country to the point where citizens in some cities routinely wear face masks to keep from becoming ill due to the density of toxic particulates in the air.
The US has its own past and current history of toxic chemicals, lying corporations and citizens who have died due to corporate immorality. However the legal system here has tightened up the polluting of the land and the citizens and attempted some form of recompense to victims. (asbestos, black lung being two off the top of my head)
I believe deeply it is a choice of my own morality. I don't knowingly buy products made in nations that enslave their populace, pollute at will and produce merchandise that may be putting small artisans out of work. China has a particularly nasty record and is high on my personal purchasing ban.

Really, the extreme poles of this recurring argument make me kind of giggly.

Scoot--None of Knoll's products are made in China. I just checked their website and they have factories in the US, Canada, and Italy. (If you google knoll and made in china you will find Chinese companies that exploit Knoll's designs -- even those designed by Florence Knoll.) Knoll, along with Herman Miller, have strict environmental standards to protect our world. HM has a unique and amazing philosophy of caring for its workers. Both Knoll and HM are American companies and yes, Americans are paid more. Do you want to work for Chinese wages and under Chinese conditions? Do you want to live near a Chinese factory. I assure you, you do not! American companies and American workers pay taxes and contribute to YOUR welfare. They are important to our future. I have nothing against Chinese furniture companies that want to create something unique--I used to live in China--but I resent the theft of our intellectual property.

If original design has no value, then what is the incentive to innovate? If anyone can blatantly copy your design, call it by the same name, and undersell it (usually by creating an inferior quality product) then why even try? If you think the design is great, you should pay for it. Companies have the right to charge whatever they want. If you don't like their prices, then find something else. Don't steal. (Be honest, isn't part of the appeal of the chair that it's high-end.) Value integrity and originality, not fraud and forgery.

I've been lusting after one of these for ages. There's no way I could afford an original as I am knee-deep in renovations and, frankly, could think of more practical things to spend thousands of euros on. I'm more concerned with achieving a certain look than I am about bragging to everyone that I have (or can afford) an authentic Eero Saarinen piece. Buy the knock off if that's what you can afford.

Bluesuntree is another company you might want to consider.

My parents owned an original. The fabric never came loose from the foam. It was eventually (decades later) reupholstered because the very high quality fabric eventually started to show wear. We lived in that chair - VERY heavy usage. I think if you had that experience you were dealing with a knock off.

Our family has two of these chairs. Both are replicas. I bought the first one from Manhattan Home Design and it is over a year old and still going strong. The second one was purchased from Barcelona-Designs by my sister. That one is 4 months old and is still in perfect condition. We are both very pleased with the quality of the chairs.