NEW YORK (AP) — Two former faculty roommates who created a profitable clothes line below the “Rhode” trademark sued mannequin Hailey Bieber on Tuesday, saying she’s creating market confusion by advertising and marketing a skincare line below the Rhode identify.
The lawsuit in Manhattan federal courtroom requested a choose to quote trademark infringement and block Bieber from promoting or advertising and marketing any merchandise with the Rhode identify. It additionally sought unspecified damages.
The lawsuit stated courtroom intervention was crucial as a result of Hailey Bieber is a celeb with over 45 million Instagram followers who launched her skincare line final week and has filed trademark purposes to promote clothes.
Hailey Bieber is married to singer Justin Bieber, and the lawsuit stated her husband has promoted her enterprise to his 243 million Instagram followers, producing 1.5 million likes with one posting. Her lawyer didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
In accordance with the lawsuit, Purna Khatau and Phoebe Vickers are looking for to guard the enterprise they started in 2014 once they give up their day jobs to create a high-end clothes and accessories line, concentrating on “female, assured and well-traveled ladies.”
Since then, it stated, their merchandise have been featured in Vogue, carried in shops like Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus worldwide and worn by celebrities together with Beyonce, Mindy Kaling and Rihanna. Gross sales are projected to hit $14.5 million this 12 months, the lawsuit stated.
On the day her product was launched, Hailey Bieber stated in a Forbes story that she’s had a “actually exhausting time” with “a world of media that likes to perpetuate ladies in opposition to ladies,” the lawsuit stated.
“However the actuality is that the “world of media” Ms. Bieber describes is at her disposal. And he or she has chosen to make use of it to squash a lady and minority co-founded model that merely can not compete along with her immense fame and following,” the lawsuit stated.
When her product line was launched June 15, Hailey Bieber appeared on “Good Morning America” on ABC and “The Tonight Present” with Jimmy Fallon on NBC, the lawsuit famous.
The lawsuit stated confusion and hurt to the model began by Khatau and Vickers is already widespread and it has solely taken days for some customers to consider that the 8-year-old firm is buying and selling off the identify of the brand new competitor as a substitute of the reverse.
