Estée Lauder sued Walmart in the Central District Court of California alleging that the big-box retailer sold counterfeit versions of the personal care company’s products on its website.
The cosmetics juggernaut accuses Walmart of selling fake versions of popular skincare and fragrance products from Lauder brands Aveda, Clinique, La Mer, Le Labo, and Tom Ford, which are also listed as plaintiffs in the suit. The products sold on Walmart’s website “bear marks that are identical with, substantially indistinguishable from, or confusingly similar” to products with Estée Lauder trademarks, the company alleges.
In court filings, Estée Lauder claims it purchased and then tested some of the products in question and determined that they did not originate from the beauty company. In the complaint, Estée Lauder shows side-by-side photographs of a perfume sold by Walmart called “Intense Peach” next to a Tom Ford fragrance called “Bitter Peach.” Both items come in orange packaging.
