Red won

The Court of Appeal in New York on September 5 recognized the exclusive right of the French shoe house Christian Louboutin to use red soles in the design of shoes. The judges ruled that it could be considered a registered trademark and therefore protected.

Thus, the court overturned the decision made a year ago by New York judge Victor Marrero, in which the Fashion House refused to satisfy the claim against the French fashion house Yves Saint Laurent. Louboutin argued that his competitor "copied" the branded outsole and should stop producing such shoes.

Marrero acknowledged that the red soles of Louboutin are well known, but stated that in the fashion industry, no one should be allowed to use any color as a trademark.

Meanwhile, the appellate court ruled that the red sole is "a distinctive symbol to be protected as a trademark." However, this solution only applies to shoes with a contrasting sole color. Thus, Yves Saint Laurent can continue to produce red shoes with red soles.

Louboutin's "trademark" - red soles of shoes, actually originated from one of his employees. Once, during the show, Louboutin felt that the presented model was missing something - and one of his employees was just holding red nail polish in her hands - he imagined that he was putting it on the sole and this became a "signature" for all his models. ITAR-TASS reports.