After years of arguing over designs and brand logos before courts around the world, Gucci and Guess have now formally settled all disputes. The Italian luxury fashion label and the US fashion company have announced this in a joint statement. The terms of the agreement are not known though.
As a result of the agreement, both parties want to end all ongoing legal proceedings worldwide, in which the Italians in majority of cases accuse Guess the copying of their brand logo and design. “The agreement is an important step for both companies in recognizing the significance of protecting their respective intellectual property portfolios and design creativity,” both parties said in a joint statement. The conditions attached to this new peace agreement are not known. Until recently, there were still ongoing ligitations in Italy, France, Australia and China.
First time before court in New York in 2009
The first legal dispute between the two sides took place in 2009 before the New York Federal Court. The reason for this was a shoe model by Guess, which was designed very close to the design of a Gucci shoe. Especially the interlocking G-logo used on these shoes was the trigger for Gucci to file a lawsuit – it looked very similar to their own worldwide known logo. The allegations were product piracy, unfair competition and trademark infringement.
In 2012 then, Gucci emerged victorious in the case: An injunction was filed against 3 of the 4 accused designs. In addition, the luxury label based in Florence was awarded a compensation of $ 4.7 million – still much less than the $ 221 million they had hoped for.
Encouraged by this decision, Gucci then started legal action against Guess in other countries.
Gucci vs. Guess: Different countries, different judgements
In 2012, the Italians filed a lawsuit against the trademark registration of the interlocking G logo of Guess before the EU court. Three years later the complaint failed with the reasoning of the EU court that “the signs in question produce a completely different overall impression, so that they can not be considered as similar” (We reported on it).
In Italy, Gucci accused the Americans of having copied their famous green-red-green stripe combination as well as several versions of their logo. But again a Milan court in 2013 ruled against Gucci, stating that Guess has used a different color combination and the logos were visually sufficiently different.
One of the bitterest defeats for Gucci followed 2015 in France: The Paris Tribunal de Grande Instance dismissed any allegation of trademark infringement against Guess and furthermore declared the Community trademark of the G logo of Gucci as invalid.
But 2013 in China and 2015 in Australia Gucci was victorious. In both cases Guess was convicted of trademark infringement and unfair competition.
With the agreement reached now, the final chapter in the long history of trademark disputes between the two parties seems to be over.
The fact that a luxury clothing label like Gucci has to defend itself against a so-called “copycat” is quite common. Last year Gucci was successful with a lawsuit against the fashion chain Forever 21 (Click here for our article). Forever 21 had copied Gucci’s blue-red-blue green-red-green trademark stripes.
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Gucci and Guess have agreed to end a global legal battle in an agreement “which will result in the conclusion of all pending intellectual property litigations and trademark office matters worldwide.” In a joint statement, the two parties said: 'The agreement is an important step for both companies in recognizing the ...
This was not their first rodeo, any copyright complaints up until they came up against the Gucci giant had been resolved successfully and quickly unlike the Gucci case. Jump forward and unsurprisingly Gucci came out victorious.
As noted below in more detail, the federal claims include trademark counterfeiting, infringement, dilution, and false designation of origin. The state law claims are based on common law trademark infringement and unfair competition, as well as statutory trademark dilution.
Gucci claimed that Guess was creating knockoffs of their trademarked logo in their shoe. The judge disagreed with this assessment. The judge found that Guess' product was likely to cause trademark dilution, which could explain why the sum awarded was much less than the $221 million that Gucci asked for.
Gucci's brand is ranked #52 in the list of Global Top 100 Brands, as rated by customers of Gucci.GUESS's brand is ranked #365 in the list of Global Top 1000 Brands, as rated by customers of GUESS. Their current market cap is $1.12B.
“Gucci” is a registered trademark since 1969 and the brand was first used in 1953. Guess has been accused of specifically ripping off four designs: Gucci's green and red stripe; the interlocking “G” pattern; the square “G” and the brand name's delicate script font.
Cohen's suit refers to eight cases alleging that Gucci officials, between 2010 and 2022, maintained sweatshop conditions in China, forced pregnant workers to have abortions, ignored sexual harassment claims, and even required women to wear straitjackets on the modelling runway against their will.
At the top of most famous copyright cases lists is that of rock legends David Bowie and Queen against rapper Vanilla Ice. If you've ever heard the opening seconds of Ice's 1990 hit "Ice Ice Baby" and thought it could be Queen and Bowie's "Under Pressure," you wouldn't be alone.
In law, dilution refers to the use of a trademark or trade name in commerce that is sufficiently similar to a famous mark that by association it confuses or diminishes the public's perception of the famous mark.
Luxury goods company Kering owns Gucci today. Kering is headquartered in Paris, France, and is majority-owned by the Pinault family. Kering also owns several other luxury brands, including Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Alexander McQueen, Stella McCartney, and Yves Saint Laurent.
It was started by Guccio Gucci (1881 – 1953) in Florence in 1909. Gucci is one of the most famous, successful, and easily recognizable fashion brands in the world. Gucci is now owned by the French conglomerate company, Kering.
They are good quality, stylish, on-trend pieces that are not definitely not classed as high-street or affordable clothing. However, Guess is not up to the same standard as more prominent luxury designers such as Dior and Prada.
While Gucci is known for its bold and colorful designs, Louis Vuitton is known for its classic and timeless design aesthetic. Louis Vuitton handbags are characterized by clean lines, understated colors, and simple yet elegant designs.
Both Louis Vuitton and Gucci are considered luxury brands and are known for their high prices. However, Louis Vuitton is generally considered more expensive than Gucci. LV, generally speaking.
It looked, as online pundits quickly pointed out, just like one designed by Daniel Day, better known as the imitation artist Dapper Dan, whose Harlem boutique was, in the 1980s and early '90s, the go-to for rappers, gangsters, boxers and anyone else looking for even more Gucci, Fendi and Louis Vuitton than could be ...
GUCCI brand has enjoyed trademark protection as early as in 1970s, whilst the logo has undergone significant evolution. Gucci is known for actively monitoring and enforcing its trademarks to combat infringement.
Not surprisingly, the Gucci's – and their business partner Edward Litwak – were sued by the design house for trademark infringement and trademark dilution.
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Introduction: My name is Msgr. Benton Quitzon, I am a comfortable, charming, thankful, happy, adventurous, handsome, precious person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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