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Ironic Fashion – The New Threat to Luxury Brands

2014-09-25

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IRONICFASHION-THENEWTHREATTOLUXURYBRANDS
STEVENBENTO*
ROBIC,
LLP
L
AWYERS,PATENTANDTRADE-MARKAGENTS

Introduction
Musicandfashionhaveenjoyedaloveaffairfromthedawnoftimes.Onesimply
needstolookatthemanymodelsturnedmusicians(CarlaBruni,Tyrese,Iggy
Azalea,etc.),musiciansturnedmodels(KatyPerry,PeterDoherty,Beyoncé,etc.)or
musiciansturnedfashiondesigners(KanyeWest,VictoriaBeckham,Jessica
Simpson,etc.).Morerecently,thehiphopmusicmovementhasgivenrisetoa
rebelliousfashiontrendthathas,sincethe90s,takenthe“streets”bystorm.
1The
mainstreamappealofhiphopisnowundisputed,andtheironicfashionmovementit
hasspawnedseemstobealiveandwell.
Whatmayhavestartedasanattempttoridiculeluxurybrandsassociatedwithhigh-
endfashionor,perhapstothecontrary,toadaptandmakethemavailabletourban
youthortothosetowhomluxurywasinaccessible,hasbecomeaworldwidetrend.
Thesuccesshasbeensogreatthat,ironically,someofthegarmentsarenowpriced
atclosetoa700%markup.
2

Irrespectiveofthereasonsbehindthesuccessofthistrend,therearesignificantlegal
implicationsandpotentiallyseriousrepercussionsforluxurybrandowners.This
articleseekstoexaminetheremediesavailableandchallengesforbrandowners.

WhatIsIronicFashion?
Ironicfashionconsistsofafashiontrendthattakesthelogosortrade-marksof
famoushigh-enddesignersand/orfashionhouses,alsoknownasluxurybrands,and
deformstheminasatiricalorironicwayinordertogivethemanewmeaning,while
maintainingthedesignelementsthatallowconsumerstoassociatethenewlogoor
trade-marktotheoriginalluxurybrand.Itiscrucialtodistinguishironicfashionfrom
ordinarycounterfeiting,whichusestheregisteredtrade-markofafamousbrand

©CIPS,2014.*FromROBIC,LLP,amultidisciplinaryfirmofLawyers,andPatentandTrade-markAgents.Published
at(2014),19:2IntellectualProperty1226-1229.Publication173.029E.
1BobbyViteri,Pleasestopmakingthoseironicfashiont-shirts,online:ViceMediaInc.
.
2Ibid.

2
ownerwiththeintentofdeceivingthepublicbyinducingpurchaserstobelievethat
thewaresweremadebyorwiththeconsentoftheowner.

Theironicfashionmovementis,unapologetically,tradingonthebrandequityand
goodwillassociatedwithafamousfashionhouse.Whiletheultimategoalofthe
movementistocreateanironicrenditionofthetargetedbrandsforrebellious
purposes,thereputationofthehigh-endfashionhouseishijackedintheprocess.

Althoughthegrowthinthetrend’spopularityisrootedinhiphopculture,ithasmore
recentlyalsobeenlinkedtothehipstermovement.Therearemanyexamplesofstars
donningironicfashiongarmentswhoalsoappeartobeiconsofthehipster
movement,suchasA$APRocky(along-standingsupporteroftheSSURlabelwhich
isbehindthesatireoftheCommedesGarçonsdesignerlabel).Otherartistssuchas
Rihanna,MileyCyrusandKhloeKardashianhaveallbeenspottedwearingthe
popularHomiesparodyofthewell-knownFrenchfashionhouseHermès.

TheLegalImplicationsofIronicFashion
IsaParodiedTrade-markaCommercial“Use”?
Thetrendofironicfashionraisesthequestionofwhetheruseofa“parodiedversion”
ofafashionhousebrandconstitutestrade-mark“use”,withinthemeaningofsection
4oftheTrade-marksAct
3.Inaddition,theconceptofcommercialversusnon-
commercialuseofatrade-markmaycomeintoplay,astheoffendermayclaimthat
thesatireofthemarkisrootedintheconceptoffreedomofspeech.
4IntheUnited
States,itiswellestablishedthatfreedomofspeech“grantsthedefendantfullFirst
AmendmentprotectionbyholdingthattrademarklawdoesnotapplyandthatFirst
Amendmentprotectssuchspeech”.
5InCanada,however,thereisno“fairuse”
doctrineapplicabletotrade-marksand,asaresult,thedistinctionbetween
commercialandnon-commercialuseofthetrade-markforsatiredoesnotappearto
beavailable.
6Generally,aCanadiancourtwillonlydismisstrade-markinfringement
claimswheretheusepertainstonon-commercialactivities,suchascriticism
websitesorunionprotests.

3Trade-marksAct,R.S.C.1985,c.T-13(the“Act”).4TheTaubmanCompanyv.Webfeats,etal.319F.3dat774-75(6thCir.2003);NissanMotorCo.v.
NissanComputerCorp.378F.3d1002,1015-18(9thCir.2004).
5Ibid.6GrahamGarton,RecueildedécisionsrelativesàlaChartecanadiennedesdroitsetlibertésMisà
jour:avril(2005)JusticeCanada(section8[Généralités](CanLII)
http://www.canlii.org/fr/doctrine/recueilCharte/s-2-
b.html?searchUrlHash=AAAAAQA8U291cmNlIFBlcnJpZXIgKFNvY2nDqXTDqSBBbm9ueW1lKSB2LiB
GaXJhLUxlc3MgTWFya2V0aW5nIENvAAAAAAE.

3
ThereisasizablebodyofCanadiancaselawholdingthatnon-commercialuseof
trade-marksisnon-infringing.7Thepivotalaspecttobetakenintoconsiderationis
whetherornottheparodyofthetrade-markconstitutes“use”undersection4ofthe
Act.Iftheuseoftheluxurybrand’slogosbytheironicfashionhousesisdeemedto
constitute“use”pursuanttosection4oftheAct,theninfringementremediesappear
tobeavailable.

Inreality,ironicfashionisatrendthatcanonlysustainitselfifitiscommercially
viable.Whattrulycharacterizesthisfashiontrendisthecommercialuseofblatantly
revisedtrade-marks.Theironicfashionlabelsareproducedbybusinesseswhoare
neverthelessinvolvedinthegarmenttrade.
Theseminalcasewhereanironicuseofatrade-markhasbeenarguedinCanadais
SourcePerrier(SociétéAnonyme)v.Fira-LessMarketingCo.Limited
8(hereinafter
“SourcePerrier(S.A.)”).Inthatdecision,theFederalCourtwasaskedtoconsider
whetherthedefendantwasinfringingtheplaintiff’strade-markrightsanddepreciating
thevalueofthegoodwillinthePERRIERmarkbyadvertising,distributingand
marketingbottledwater,asaformofpoliticalsatire,underthename“PierreEh”.The
politicalspoofwasacraftyreferencetothePrimeMinisterPierreElliotTrudeau.The
Courtconcludedthattheparodyofthetrade-markregisteredbySociétéPerrier
constituted“use”undersection4oftheActandexposedtheinfringertodamages
andotherremedies.

DoesIronicFashionConstitutePassing-Off?
Theissueofwhetheraparodiedtrade-markconstitutespassing-offhasalreadybeen
consideredinGreenv.Schwartz
9,wherethetrade-markROOTSwas“spoofed”
usingthewordROTSandamacabrebeaver.Aninterlocutoryinjunctionwasgranted
enjoiningthedefendantfromdeliberatelycopyingtheletteringandconfiguration
associatedwiththeplaintiff’sbrand,sincethehumoroustakeontheplaintiff’smark
wasobviouslycashinginonitsgoodwill.

Thequestioniswhethertheironicfashiontrendisintendedtodirectpublicattention
towaresinamannerthatislikelytocauseconfusionwiththewaresofwell-known
brands,bycopyingelementsoftheirlikeness.Ifthisisthecase,thispracticewould
fallsquarelywithintherealmofsection7(b)oftheActorofthecommonlawtortof
passing-off.

HughesonTradeMarksaddsthattheremustbecommercialactivitytoattract
liability:

7TeresaScassa,“TrademarksWorthaThousandWords:FreedomofExpressionandtheuseofthe
TrademarksofOthers”(2012)LesCahiersdedroit,at877–907.
8SourcePerrier(S.A.)v.Fira-LessMarketingCo.,[1983]2F.C.18,70C.P.R.(2d)61,4C.R.R.317
(Fed.T.D.)(“SourcePerrier(S.A.)”).9Greenv.Schwartz,[1986],O.J.No.1003,12C.P.R.(3d)84(S.C.).

4
Confusionundersection7(b)dependsuponuseasdefinedin
section4oftheTrade-marksAct.Thus,intheabsenceofanytrading
activity,therecanbenocauseofactionundersection7(b).
10

Agoodportionofthedebateiscenteredonthequestionoftheusethatisbeing
conductedbytheironicfashionlabels.Ifthepracticesthatironicfashionhouses
engageinconstitute“use”undersection4oftheAct,thenwecouldforeseethe
applicationofthesafeguardingmeasuresoftheAct.Concludingonuseisnotonly
pivotalbutalsoaverydifficulttaskandwilldependonthecircumstancesofeach
case.
IsthePurchaserConfused?

Anotherpotentialcauseofactiontobeassertedagainstironicfashionhousesis
infringementundersection20oftheAct.Besidestheuseissue,thedifficultywith
provinginfringementwhendealingwithironicfashionpertainstoprovingconsumer
confusion.Iftheconsumerisawareoftheparody,wecaninferthattheconsumer
canclearlydistinguishthesourceoftheactualtrade-markfromthesourceofthe
parodiedversion,andisthereforenotconfused.Thatsaid,thelinesareblurred
regardinghowmuchdistinguishingoccursbetweenthehigh-endtrade-markandits
ironicversion.Insomecasesbothrenditionsofthetrade-markarefairlydifferent,
whileinothercases,thereareminimaldifferences.Forthesereasons,infringement
ofatrade-markbyaparodiedmarkmaybedifficulttoestablish.
11

DepreciationofGoodwillinLuxuryBrands
Duetothedifficultyinprovinginfringementwhereaparodyisatplay,itmaybebetter
toassertdepreciationofgoodwill,alsoknownasdilution,asabasisforaclaim.
12

Fordilutiontooccur,themarkbeingmockedmustbeusedcommercially,in
accordancewithsection4oftheAct.Furthermore,thetrade-markownermustprove
thattherehasbeenanegativeeffectonthegoodwillattachedtohistrade-mark.The
depreciationofgoodwillmayinvolvelatentdepreciationthatcouldmanifestitselfin
thefuture.
13

10RogerT.Hughes,HughesonTradeMarks,2ndEdition,LexisNexisCanada(Canada:2005)981at
77,985at78,988at80.
11Supranote8;RôtisserieSt-Hubertltéec.Syndicatdestravailleurs(euses)delaRôtisserieSt-Hubert
deDrummondville(CSN),[1987]J.E.87-291(attempted);CieGénéraledesÉtablissementsMichelin-
Michelin&Ciev.C.A.W.[1997]71C.P.R.(3d)348,124F.T.R.192,2F.C.306(F.C.)(attempted).
12Ibid.13HughesonTradeMarks,supranote10at895.

5
TheSourcePerrier(S.A.)caseprovidesinsightintohowtheCourtsapplythedilution
concept.TheCourtconcludedthattheparodyofPERRIERin“PierreEh”caused
depreciationofgoodwillofthemarkundersection22oftheAct.

ThesameallegationsofdepreciationofgoodwillwasrejectedintheRôtisserieSt-
Hubertltéev.Syndicatdestravailleurs(euses)delaRôtisserieSt-Hubertde
Drummondville
14andMichelinv.Caw15cases,sinceitwasdeemedinbothcases
thattheparodiesconstitutednon-commercialuse.Hence,theCourtsappeartogive
morecredencetothefreedomofspeechdefensewhenparodyisbeingconductedin
anon-commercialcontext,suchasduringlabournegotiations.Regardingtheparody
defence,theCourtintheSourcePerrier(S.A.)casenotedthat:
[t]hemostliberalinterpretationof“freedomofexpression”doesnot
embracethefreedomtodepreciatethegoodwilloftheregistered
trade-marks,nordoesitaffordalicensetoimpairthebusiness
integrityoftheownerofthemarks,merelytoaccommodatethe
creationofaspoof.

Inadditiontothisstrongstatementagainsttherighttoparodyfamousbrands,the
Courtswilllikelyrejectanyargumentthatuseofthefamoustrade-marksbyironic
fashionlabelsconstitutesaformoffreedomofexpressionorfreedomofspeechthat
shouldnotbecensured.Forthebrandowners,itmaystillbeanuphillbattleto
demonstratethattherevampedtrade-marksbeingusedbyironicfashionlabelsare
confusing,sincetheymaybesufficientlydifferenttopreventconfusionand
purchasersmaywellappreciatethedifferencesatthepointofsale.
16

CopyrightInfringementandtheParodyDefence
Section29oftheCopyrightAct
17anditsparodyexception(fairdealing)offers
anotherremedyandapotentialavenueforescapingliabilityforinfringement.For
example,theironicfashionversionoftheYvesSaint-Laurentplaint-shirtwiththe
iconicYSLlogoemploysvariouscurrenciessuchastheYen,theDollarandthe
Poundtovisuallycreatethesameverticallayout.Whilethiscopyingcouldwellbe
pursuedascopyrightinfringement,iftheYSLlogoissubjecttocopyrightprotection,
onecouldarguethatthestatutoryparodyexceptioncouldpermittotheironicfashion
labeltomountadefence,providedthatthecriteriadevelopedbytheSupremeCourt
ofCanadaestablishingtheparametersofwhatconstitutes“fairdealing”aremet
18.

BeatThemorJoinThem?

14RôtisserieSt-Hubertltéec.Syndicatdestravailleurs(euses)delaRôtisserieSt-Hubertde
Drummondville(CSN),supranote11
15CieGénéraledesÉtablissementsMichelin-Michelin&Ciev.C.A.W.,supranote11.16VeuveClicquotPonsardinv.BoutiquesCliquotLtee,[2006]S.C.J.No.22at50.17R.S.C.1985,c.C-42.18CCHCanadianLtd.v.LawSocietyofUpperCanada,[2004]1S.C.R.339.

Oneinterestingresponsetothewidespreadphenomenonofironicfashionhascome
fromtheItalianfashionhouseVersace,which,inOctober2013,launchedacollection
designedbyBritish-SriLankanrecordingartistM.I.A.
19Thiscollectionisananswer,
oratleastawayoftryingtoregaincontrolofthepopulartrend,byofferinggarments
whicharebasedonthemanybootleggedVersaceproductsfoundinLondon’sstreet
markets.Inaway,Versaceishijackingthehijacker.

Althoughthisinnovativesolutionaddressescounterfeitingmuchmorethanit
addressesthesatireofluxurytrade-marks,onecanenvisionasimilarpracticebeing
usedbythefashionhouseswhicharevictimsofthisironicfashiontrendtohelp
recapturethislucrativemarket.
Conclusion
OneoftherecentreportsfromTrendWatching,publishedattrendwatching.com,
notestheincreasingpopularityoftrendssimilartoironicfashionwhereconsumers
redefinebrands:
20
Consumershavebeenbusycreatinganever-endingstreamofbrand
heresiesoftheirown.JustaglimpseatTumblr,Instagram,YouTube
andFacebookwillbearwitnesstohowconsumersbothparticipatein
(orareattheveryleastobserversof)theremixing,hijacking,copying
andredefiningofbrands,theirproductsandservices.
21

Ironicfashionanditscorollarymovementshavereachedimpressiveproportions.
Brandownersmustnotshyawayfromlookingforsolutionstoprotecttheirintellectual
propertythattheyhaveheavilyinvestedincreatingandmarketing.The
merchandisersatthecoreofthisironicfashionwavearesimplyengaginginblatant
consumerbrandappropriation.Thisisunderscoredbythefactthatwhatstartedout
asatrendconductedbyindividualshasgrownintoafull-fledgedindustryofitsown.
Basedonexistingcaselawthathastouchedon“spoofed”brands,thereisnoreason
tobelievethatCanadiancourtswillnotrisetotheoccasioninprotectingtheluxury
brandsbeinghijackedbythispopulartrend.

19PaulBackman,ed.,HeritageHeresy,online:trendwatching.com
.
20Ibid.21Ibid.

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