Adidas Lose Court Case Over Use of Stripes

Adidas have lost a court case they filed against fashion designer Thom Browne. The German brand were seeking that Browne be prevented from using four stripes on his clothing lines, as well as $7.87 million in damages.

Adidas Lose Court Case Against Fashion Designer Thom Browne

In 2021 Adidas filed a court case against fashion designer Thom Browne, claiming the four stripes used on his brand's clothing was too similar to their own long-standing trademark. A couple of days ago - after a nine day hearing - the jury came to a verdict in favour of Browne.

Adidas have been using three stripes on their products since the 1950s. The design is a huge part of their brand identity and one of the most recognisable trademarks in any industry, so they were not happy when Browne used three stripes on a jacket back in 2007. The sportswear giant complained and Browne added an extra stripe to the garment, and has been using four stripes ever since.

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Adidas were seeking a total of $7.87 million in damages from the designer. $867,225 of that total was for licensing fees, and the remaining $7 million for the profits that Adidas say Browne has made off his use of the stripes. Browne's lawyers made the case that "Adidas doesn't own stripes" and that the two brands had very different target markets and price scales, meaning there could be little confusion between them.

Thom Browne says he hopes his victory in the case will encourage other independent brands to fight back when challenged by big companies.

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