The long legal battle between Kim Kardashian-West’s KKW Beauty brand and Danish makeup artist and entrepreneur Kjaer Weis seems far from over. The copyright infringement lawsuit was filed on July 2017 by Weis, claiming that “KKW” closely resembles “KW,” causing confusion amongst customers.
Weis began using her trademarked KW logo seven years prior to Kardashian’s launch of her makeup brand. The makeup artist accuses Kardashian of making a “knowing, willing, and deliberate” choice to use a similar logo for her KKW makeup line. A representative for Kardashian said, “There is no merit to this lawsuit. Before launching, Kim received approval for KKW, KKW BEAUTY, and KKW FRAGRANCE from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. When Ms. Weis asked for a re-examination, the USPTO again approved the brand names for Kim’s company a second time. Kim has done everything by the book.”
More than a year later, Kardashian is now aiming to have the case dismissed, claiming Weis has failed to show evidence of consumers actually getting confused between the brands and that the brands have different packaging and price points. And, with “Kardashian’s fame and access to over 100 million social media followers,” she does not need “to trick the public into associating her products with Kjaer Weis in order to gain exposure or traction.” It’s hard to argue with that.
A hearing regarding the dismissal is set to take place on November 2.
[ via The Fashion Law ]
