Founded in 1856 by Thomas Burberry, Burberry, a British luxury brand, developed gabardine in 1879, a lightweight, breathable fabric that contained windproof and waterproof properties. This fabric has developed Burberry into a global luxury brand. The trench coat, which was made as a raincoat for British military officers, was so popular that it was nicknamed 'Burberry coat' and imprinted the brand 'Burberry' in people all over the world. In the 1920s, Burberry combined a coat lining made of gabardine with a distinctive checkered pattern to create the look we know of the Burberry coat. Since then, the distinctive check pattern has been recognized as a symbol representing Burberry.
Burberry sues Korean school uniform maker,
Burberry filed
a lawsuit against a school uniform manufacturer in 2019, claiming that the
check pattern used in Korean middle and high school uniforms infringed on the
company's checkered trademark rights. It is known that there are about 270
schools in South Korea, including 50 in Seoul alone and 15 in Jeju, that
Burberry claimed to be infringing on checkered school uniforms. Schools that
used this checkered pattern only on the collar or sleeves of school uniforms were
also included.
Burberry protects the trademark of the checkered pattern,
Burberry
registered its checkered pattern as a trademark with establishing a Korean
corporation in 2002. At that time, the company has been very active in
protecting trademark rights by advertising that they will respond immediately
if its logo and checkered pattern are used without permission. A checkered
design cannot claim its right because 20 years have passed since it was published,
but in the case of a trademark, they can claim the right through it because
it’s renewed every 10 years. Burberry
has been involved in trademark disputes with Korean companies such as SBW Inc. and LG Fashion. Not only large
companies, but also small businesses as well as self-employed people such as
Burberry Karaoke and Andong Burberry Rice Cake, Burberry have taken a thorough
response to protect their rights, such as filing infringement lawsuits.
(WIPS online trademark database)
Korea School Uniform Industry Association (translated name) reached an agreement with Burberry,
Following
Burberry's continued complaints, the Korea School Uniform Industry Association began
negotiations on behalf of school uniform manufacturers. The Korea School
Uniform Industry Association announced that, after consulting with Burberry's
domestic legal representative, they agreed to maintain the original design
until this year, but to change the design of the checkered pattern from 2023.
An official notice about the change of school uniform was sent out. As a
result, current students who purchased school uniforms are not included, but
from the school uniforms of next year's freshmen, the checkered pattern that
Burberry claims to be infringing will no longer be available. The association
said that it went through a consultation process to avoid as much damage to the
school and uniform companies as possible. It is known that school uniform
companies are struggling with inventory handling of school uniforms they have
already produced.
(Discussion for School Uniform Design Change)
Awareness of trademark first,
At some point,
Burberry patterns became readily available everywhere around us. Many items
such as umbrellas and handkerchiefs use Burberry's unique checkered pattern. In
fact, most of these things are used without Burberry’s permission. Not only
Burberry, but also the fashion industry has suffered from theft of trademarks
and designs for a long time. The deterioration of the brand image due to
unauthorized theft has been a big problem. As such, it seems that not only
individuals but also domestic companies are unaware of the potential disputes
with foreign companies or have complacency. Now, I think that companies
themselves should recognize the importance of intellectual property rights and
take the lead in protecting rights and preventing theft.
