A New York federal court has denied Uniqlo and Anya Hindmarch’s bid to sidestep a trademark lawsuit waged against them for allegedly co-opting another brand’s a googly eye motif. In a decision and order on Tuesday, Judge Victor Marrero of the U.S. District Court for the …

A New York federal court has denied Uniqlo and Anya Hindmarch’s bid to sidestep a trademark lawsuit waged against them for allegedly co-opting another brand’s a googly eye motif. In a decision and order on Tuesday, Judge Victor Marrero of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York sided with Googly Eye Cru, LLC (“GEC”), holding that the New York-based apparel and accessories company’s trademark and trade dress infringement claims can move forward despite the fast fashion giant and the British accessories brand’s efforts to get the claim dismissed.

A Bit of Background: Googly Eye Cru filed a lawsuit against Fast Retailing USA, Inc., Uniqlo USA, LLC, and A.S.H.S. Limited (d/b/a Anya Hindmarch) (the “defendants”) for trademark and trade dress infringement in May 2024 based on two federally registered trademarks for its googly eye design, which it uses on its apparel and accessories products. The suit centers on a 2023 collaboration between Uniqlo and Anya Hindmarch, which featured a “confusingly similar” googly eye design on apparel.

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Uniqlo, Anya Hindmarch Must Face Trademark Claims Over “Copycat” Googly Eye Designs