US designer Thom Browne's stripe design does not infringe the trademark rights of Franconian sporting goods giant Adidas, according to a court ruling.

The jury in New York's Manhattan district decided on Thursday (local time) that the four parallel stripes used by the luxury fashion brand since 2008 do not harbor any risk of confusion with Adidas' famous three stripes. The sporting goods manufacturer had sued the New York designer over this in 2021 and demanded 7.8 million dollars in damages and a sales ban. The fashion brand, founded in 2001, had used three stripes as a logo on tops, pants and shoes until 2007. Following a legal dispute with Adidas, Thom Browne then switched to four stripes.

An Adidas spokeswoman explained that the company was disappointed by the decision. However, the Herzogenaurach-based company will continue to defend its intellectual property with determination. According to court documents, Adidas has filed more than 90 lawsuits over the characteristic three stripes since 2008 and reached out-of-court settlements a good 200 times.

Thom Browne explained that confusion between the two brands is unlikely because the two companies serve different customers in different markets and offer their products at completely different prices. Thom Browne sweaters cost high three-digit or even four-digit euro amounts. Furthermore, stripes are a widespread design element.

(Report by Blake Brittain; written by Alexander Hübner, edited by Myria Mildenberger. If you have any questions, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and the economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)