Counterfeits have been a sharp thorn in the side of luxury fashion houses for decades. Dating back to ancient Roman times, counterfeiting within the fashion industry underwent a surge of popularity in the late 1970s, thanks to the rise of designer jeans. With several copycats trying to mark and sell duplicated designs and styles for a fraction...
Jun 12, 2025
The rapid technological advancements of the past year have caused a significant global shift, leaving many struggling to keep up. The long-term impact of dominant technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), on specific industries remains uncertain. In the UK, tensions surrounding such a topic have risen in recent months, as the...
Mar 18, 2025
New York-based brand management firm WHP Global has signed an agreement to acquire the intellectual property (IP) of the fashion brand Vera Wang. As part of the agreement, the founder and chief creative officer of her eponymous brand Vera Wang will remain in her role and join WHP Global as a shareholder to further drive the brand’s future...
Dec 16, 2024
When creating a new business or brand, one of the many issues to be considered is what to call it. For a designer, the most obvious naming choice is to use their own name, or a variant of their own name. It is common practice within the fashion and cosmetics industries for a designer or founder to name the brand after themself, and there can be...
Nov 29, 2024
We’ve watched the new collections strut down the runway, but now that fashion week is over, what should designers be thinking about in terms of IP protection? Written by Emma Day (IA trainee) and Harriet Berridge (IA director and fashion lead), Stobbs If you need a recap on designs, Stobbs touched on registered and unregistered designs in a...
Oct 9, 2024
Amazon's Marketplace, a platform that hosts millions of independent sellers, has long been a popular destination for consumers seeking beauty and fragrance products. However, the e-commerce giant has recently announced a significant policy change affecting the sale of certain fragrances in the European Union (EU) and United Kingdom (UK) markets....
Sep 5, 2024
The allure of designer handbags has long attracted counterfeiters, prompting luxury brands to employ a multi-faceted approach to intellectual property protection, according to insights from the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) magazine. The global handbag market, projected to reach 68.31 billion dollars this year according to...
Jun 24, 2024
Bridal designer and influencer Hayley Paige Gutman has reached an agreement and settled a lawsuit with dressmaker JLM Couture, putting an end to her three-and-a-half-year legal battle with her former employer. According to a copy of the settlement agreement following JLM’s bankruptcy proceedings, Gutman has agreed to pay JLM Couture 263,000 USD...
May 29, 2024
British heritage fashion house Burberry has been awarded six million renminbi (675,668 pounds) in damages in a Chinese trademark infringement case. Lusheng, a Chinese law firm and patent agency specialising in multinational intellectual property, helped Burberry win the significant trademark infringement case against Chinese company Xinboli...
May 8, 2024
Trends are traditionally dedicated by the runway. The apparel industry looks to runway designs, haute couture as well as ready-to-wear, for inspiration. Designs are reinterpreted for a wider audience or diluted and made more accessible while being sold at ever-lower prices. Source: the background article ‘Fashion: from catwalk to closet’ Some...
Apr 8, 2024
The jungle of intellectual property rights in China is full of horror stories. From trademark squatters, counterfeiters, parallel importers to brand owners fighting for the right to use their genuine names that were maliciously, yet legally, registered by others. Global fashion brands Dsquared2, Ice Iceberg, Disney Victoria’s Secret are just...
Jul 20, 2022
A new study by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) says consumers are facing ever more risks due to buying fake products online. A surge in e-commerce counterfeit from nearly every sector, including fashion, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, can pose great safety and health concerns. Findings from the study European Citizens and...
Jun 15, 2021