The fight for the stripes continues. The fashion brand Thom Browne tried to register its three-color stripes as a trademark in the EU, but the sports brand Adidas wanted to put a stop to it. However, the European Union’s Intellectual Property Office rejected Adidas’ application and allowed Thom Browne to use the stripes, according to industry magazine WWD.
The reasoning behind this decision echoes that of an earlier US court case between the two brands. Since both brands operate in a different segment – sports and luxury fashion – the authority believes it is unlikely that consumers will confuse the two brands because of the stripes.
Adidas frequently and strongly protects the use of three stripes in its designs. For example, between 1997 and 2021 there was a legal dispute with H&M over the use of stripes in the Work Out collection. The dispute lasted 24 years, and H&M finally emerged victorious. Adidas has also taken on K-Swiss, Fitnessworld, Scapa and Nike, among others. Adidas isn’t the only one fighting against the use of a specific stripe pattern – Gucci also protects the use of a blue-red-blue stripe pattern and a green-red-green stripe pattern.
This translated article previously appeared on FashionUnited.nl