Thomas Pink files infringement case over Victoria's Secret teen label Pink
British shirtmaker Thomas Pink has filed an infringement case against US lingerie firm Victoria’s Secret over the name of its teen fashion line, Pink.
Despite launching in 2002, the teen line of underwear, loungewear, beauty products and accessories aimed at 15-22 year-olds, Victoria’s Secret has only now opened standalone stores with two in London – one in Westfield Stratford and a flagship on Bond Street.
The luxury London-based shirt brand has now accused the US firm of misleading its customers by using the name Pink, which it has been using as its trademark since 1984. The infringement case was filed with the Patents County Court, a spokesman’s comment to Vogue reads: “Thomas Pink is determined to protect the considerable investment that has been made into building the world’s luxury leading shirt brand.”
Victoria’s Secret, however, is looking to establish ‘the rights of the parties, allowing them to continue in the peaceful coexistence that has been in place for many years’, explains reports in Vogue.
Last year Thomas Pink – which is now part of the LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessey) group – recorded profits of £33.87m in the UK. Victoria’s Secret’s 2012 sales topped $6.12bn, around £3.99bn.