UK: Shoe company awarded damages over copies
Luxury shoe brand Gina has won £100,000 (€125,293) in damages from a high street chain who sold copycat designs, the company said today.
Gina took action against Moda in Pelle after finding the shoes on the internet, a spokeswoman said.
She said Moda in Pelle had agreed to pay damages of £100,000 (€125,293) and court costs of more than £150,000 (€187,828).
The chain had also promised to destroy the shoes already on sale and another 5,000 pairs in the chain’s warehouse, she added.
The copied styles – named Zeta, Naomi and Colette – have been worn by celebrities including Penelope Cruz, Emma Thompson, Anna Friel and Nigella Lawson.
Gina managing director Attila Kurdash said: “The scale and audacity of the copying was such that we had to take hard, decisive action.
“We spend considerable time and effort in developing and creating our original designs. To have them copied like this is unacceptable. We have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to copies and will take action whenever necessary.”
Gina’s lawyer Alex Carter-Silk, from law firm Speechly Bircham LLP, said: “Gina has always taken the protection of its unique designs seriously and never hesitates to take action to protect itself against high street plagiarism.
“It is imperative that luxury brands such as Gina protect the value of their designs and deter copycats. Europe now has some of the best designers as well as the best legal protection for designs in the world.
“This is a salutary lesson for importers and retailers to be extremely careful when dealing in designs of unknown provenance.”
