When vintage store the Future Past in SF’s Inner Richmond put Gap Inc. on blast, accusing its Banana Republic brand of blatantly copying owner Lindsey Hansen’s original upcycled jeans design, the company removed the jeans from its store and website.

As Mission Local reports, shop owner Lindsey Hansen created the custom jeans in the spring of 2024 while repairing a pair of threadbare Levi’s 501s. She hand-sewed several scraps of denim patches to the thigh and knee on each leg using traditional Japanese sashiko cross-stitch and then sold them for $288 through Levi's social media two days later.

Per Mission Local, Future Past employee Jenna Giusto first spotted Banana Republic’s identical jeans on Instagram last week, retailing for $180 and featuring what appeared to be the exact same stitching and patch placement.

“When I initially saw the stolen design my stomach sank,” Hansen told the Chronicle. “I immediately knew that it was an almost identical copy of a pair that I had repaired last year.”

Guisto told the Chronicle she was furious. “Our whole ethos is slow fashion,” she said. “To see that exact design of a pair of jeans that we specifically took to save and repair and thoughtfully craft and hand-stitch, for that to be replicated by this company that’s just pumping out thousands of this same jean that obviously doesn’t need repair … it’s just so backwards. It makes no sense and it’s the opposite of what we’re trying to do.”

Hansen voiced a similar perspective, calling it problematic of Gap Inc to make new garments look distressed — and turning it into a trend — rather than focusing on recycling and reducing waste, per Mission Local. “It’s not a trend,” Hansen said. “We need to repair our clothes, because we just can’t keep consuming clothes the way that we are.”

Per the Chronicle, Gap Inc has since pulled the jeans from its store and website. “We take their concerns seriously as a brand that supports the local creative community,” a spokesperson told the outlet. “Our team is looking into this matter and will handle it as appropriate.”

Image: Banana Republic's jeans (left); Lindsey Hansen's jeans (right)/Lindsey Hansen