Temu agrees to remove rip-off greeting cards from its site more quickly

Amanda, and her husband and business partner Frank, estimate that fraudulent versions of their products have made online sellers £100,000 in sales, equivalent to about 13% of Lola Design's annual turnover.

However, Amanda said it is both the emotional toll and the time taken to get the copycat products removed that have had the biggest impact.

"Every piece that I create is actually a piece of me," she said. "I know that sounds crazy, but it is. Every designer gives out a piece of themselves because they just want to create a little bit of happiness, and it is not much to ask for people to respect that."

After pressure from the Greeting Card Association (GCA), Temu has now put in place a bespoke takedown process for the industry which, it says, will mean stolen designs are removed more quickly and won't be able to be re-uploaded.

Previously, card firms would have to report each individual listing but, as part of the trial, they will now only have to submit one link. The software will remove the product and any others using the same design.

One card publisher, who helped develop the new system, saw 68 listings removed automatically. Something which previously might have meant 68 separate forms or emails to Temu.

According to the GCA, the system will then use AI to log the designer's original creation as a protected image. It will then block any products using that design before they appear for sale.