In November of 2017, I created a design I called gold leaf in blue. It proved to be immensely popular with LHD fans, but at the time there was no way for my production to match demand, so I shelved it temporarily.
Around the time I was discussing a partnership opportunity with Heartbeat Dice to work towards mass production of the design (as previously announced) I was approached by a random factory attempting to sell me my own design, gold leaf in blue resin, and apparently they reached out to other dice sellers as well. I did not want to work with them, as there was no way I could be assured of their quality at production quantities, and I wanted to work with proven manufacturers with ethical standards.
I understand that it's difficult to protect designs like Gold Leaf in Blue, but it makes it impossible for a small business like mine to be able to share innovations with fans and customers, with the knowledge that a larger company can come in and "beat you to the mass market" because I don't have the instant connections to get an idea to mass production immediately.
Working with Heartbeat was the first time I had stepped out of my small batch production to bring something that my fans wanted to mass market production in order to meet that demand. I'm sad that the photos I've been seeing around appear to be the same design that this factory presented to me.
At this point, I realize there's no way to prevent anyone from buying another sellers version of Gold Leaf in Blue, but if you have some patience with me, when my production design comes out, I know it will be worth it. And your patience will be rewarded.
-Lemmie