A Message from Christian Louboutin
In case you were thinking of producing a shoe with a red sole, do yourself a favor and keep reading.
As you may recall, the Christian Louboutin company sued the Spanish chain Zara in 2008 for selling such a shoe, which it maintained was a trademark infringement of its Yo Yo style. Louboutin lost that case, and this week lost its final appeal.
No less litigious, however, they’ve issued the following statement, with more strongly worded language regarding its Red Sole Trademark, lest anyone think the coast is clear…
“We would like to respond to the recent commentary in various articles from newspapers and blogs regarding the French court decision in the Zara case. Much of the discussion either implies or states that through this ruling we have lost our rights to our world famous Red Sole Trademark. We would like to clarify that what has been disputed and canceled is only one French registration of said Red sole Trademark.
Christian Louboutin continues to own valid and enforceable trademark rights in its Red Sole Trademark, including in France itself as well as throughout the world. A number of court decisions have recognized the strong association between Christian Louboutin and the Red Sole Trademark, including in France.
Christian Louboutin will continue to protect and enforce its rights to its Red Sole Trademark which has been its iconic signature for the past 20 years.
We would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of the people who continually show support to our brand.”
In related news, Louboutin’s higher-profile case against YSL for a similar infraction is still pending.
And in less related but more upbeat news, the Christian Louboutin exhibition at the London Design Museum (closing July 9) has broken all previous visitor records with an average daily attendance of 910 visitors, totaling over 38,000 and counting.
