adidas and Thom Browne Fight in Court Over Three Stripes Trademark
Some of the best-dressed lawyers you’ll ever see.
UPDATE (January 13, 2023) : Fashion designer Thom Browne has won his lawsuit against iconic sportswear brand adidas.
After a years-long battle, an eight-person jury decided that Browne could not be held responsible for the alleged damages adidas suffered as a result of his four stripe design on Thursday, January 12. The Germany-based brand first claimed the luxury designer crossed a line in 2007 when it asserted creative ownership over his use of stripes on athleisurewear. Browne stood his ground, stating that he “never considered adidas” in his design and was simply referencing a common collegiate motif.
After the verdict’s announcement, a spokesperson from Thom Browne shared, “We are pleased that the jury found that at no time did Thom Browne Inc. infringe on any of Adidas’ trademarks. For over 20 years now, Thom Browne has been a pioneering force in luxury fashion, bringing a wholly unique and distinctive design aesthetic that combines classic tailoring with American sportswear sensibilities. We look forward to continuing to design and provide the creative products that have become the hallmark of the Thom Browne label.”
This lawsuit’s outcome sets a precedent for what qualifies as trademark infringement in fashion, creating opportunities for emerging artists and designers to experiment for freely with their work without fear.
adidas and Thom Browne are up in arms as both brands are in court over a trademark dispute. This past Tuesday, January 3, attorneys representing both companies arrived in Manhattan’s Southern District Court to plead their cases, according to WWD.
For those have been embroiled in this fashion conflict, in June 2021, adidas accused Thom Browne of copying the brand’s iconic three stripes logo.
A trademark infringement and dilution complaint filed by the German sports brand asserts that “despite Thom Browne’s knowledge of [its] rights in the famous three-stripe mark,” the New York-based label “has expanded its product offerings far beyond [its] formal wear and business attire specialty.” It continues to claim that Browne is “selling athletic-style apparel and footwear featuring two, three or four parallel stripes in a manner that is confusingly similar to adidas’ three-stripe mark.”
adidas reportedly initially approached Browne in 2007 when he first began applying the parallel pattern to varsity clothing, It’s worth nothing that Browne’s team claims they weren’t contacted until 2008, but nevertheless, its former CEO agreed to alter the graphic to four stripes to avoid further conflict.
The sportswear house argues that Browne is profiting from the familiarity of its branding, capitalizing off the Three Stripes’ “widespread fame and tremendous public recognition”, as well as taking advantage of the “extremely valuable goodwill” that the brand has worked for through and established through “millions of dollars” of campaigns. While Browne’s work might be an attempt to pay homage to the legendary sports brand, adidas claims that it is “irreparably harming adidas’ brand and its extremely valuable [mark]” as his designs could potentially “cause consumer confusion and deceive the public regarding its source, sponsorship, association or affiliation.” adidas is suing for $867,225 USD in damages for what would have been licensing fees and an additional $7 million USD in profits Browne allegedly made.
The American luxury brand feels differently as both labels not only exist in different sectors of fashion, but retorts that consumers won’t be confused by the designs’ similarities. Thome Browne’s attorney Robert T. Maldonado of Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks P.C., stated, “Three stripes are not the same as four horizontal bars. [adidas] fell asleep at the wheel and woke up too late.”
The tense trial is expected to conclude in two weeks. Stay tuned for updates.
