Citroën can count on its chevrons, protected as a
figurative trademark and confirmed as having a distinctive
character by the Paris Court of Appeals in late 2021 and the EUIPO
in April 2022, to block new competitor Polestar. Based in Sweden
and car preparer for Volvo company, Polestar was unable to enter
the French market of car manufacturers.
Insights on a two-stage legal battle and the distinctive
signs that car manufacturers can use to protect their position and
the related investments.
The press and various internet forums had denounced the visual
connection between the Polestar logo and that of Citroën in
eloquent terms: "the sketch of the North Star which
resembles, by an unfortunate chance, the old chevrons of
Citroën that some joker would have separated and turned
over" (Challenges) or "the Jerks! (sic) they
recycled the Citroën chevron" (Autoplus website
forum).
