Absolutely not!
Most makers are not designers; they use other peoples designs to make their own knives. True designers are rare.
My favorite designer is Bob Loveless. Bob's designs show up everywhere, usually without any acknowledgement. He had a major impact on the knife making community (individuals as well as companies) for 40 years. He made knives longer than that. He came up with more than just patterns, but techniques for manufacture that are today considered "normal" or "standard". The large two piece throughbolts (or rivets) for handles, tapered tangs, ways to join the bolsters to the blade, spacers between the scales, etc. These are things he helped bring into knife making. He also was a major force for using Japanese techniques and helped bring those to the USA. There are custom makers who have made their entire reputation by copying Loveless, dozens of them.
Bob Dozier probaly owes as much to Loveless as anyone; there's not much original design in his lineup. I like Bobs knives, he's built me two true "customs" to my specs, but he'd be the first to admit they were Loveless patterns. Dozier is a good knife maker, but at heart he's a grinding machine salesman, maybe because that's something he's had original impact on.
Another good example is Tony Bose. A great knifemaker, but his special gift to the knife world is his ability to copy old patterns and bring them back to the public eye. His work with Case just highlights this, and reintroduces old patterns, above average attention to detail, and quality control to mass manufacturing and marketing. Thus the average knife owner sees the Swayback Jack, the Norfolk, etc that used to be very rare patterns.
Think of it this way: new designs are industry altering, new models are a sales gimmick.
