copycat

Coach Sues Target Over Copycat Bags

Filed under: Handbags

Coach and Target are at it again. In 2006 the luxury handbag brand took on the retailer over designs that looked similar to their offerings and that case ended in a private settlement. Now Coach is ready to step back into court with Target over a fresh set of designs that look just a little too close to their own much-more-expensive offerings. Coach filed a complaint last week in U.S. District Court in Manhattan. At issue are Coach's Ergo bags and the Signature Patchwork bags similar to the one shown at right. Coach says that starting this summer Target began to sell knockoffs of these bags.

The craze for the handbags has lead to a rapid uptick in a lookalikes in the past few years. Once a popular style hits the mainstream it is rapidly copied. While out-and-out counterfeits are illegal and relatively easy to identify the business of similarity is far muddier. Earlier this year Gucci took on Guess? Inc. for trademark infringement saying that the company's use of the "g" logo and interlocking G pattens were too similar and damaging to the Gucci brand. Both Coach and Gucci are seeking similar resolution in the form of damages, attorneys fees and injunctions against selling the similar designs.

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Tags: coach, copycat, handbag, lawsuit, legal, target