VANS Successfully Enforces Its Stripe Marks

On September 27, 2022, the Shanghai Intellectual Property Court issued the final judgment in a trademark infringement dispute in which it confirmed that the use of a logo similar to the VANS stripe marks on shoes was trademark infringement and imposed a damages award of RMB 1 million (approximately US $145,750) on the infringer.

The appellee (plaintiff in the first instance), Vans, Inc. (Vans), owns trademark registrations for the following:

Vans submitted evidence that shoes bearing said marks have been widely sold in China. Having noticed that the appellant (defendant in the first instance), XUE Shengbo, a natural person, sold shoes bearing a logo similar to the VANS stripe marks on Pinduoduo (a Chinese e-commerce platform), Vans filed a trademark infringement lawsuit and requested the court to order the appellant to immediately stop infringing its exclusive trademark rights and to award compensation.