Know Why "Fruit" of the Loom Trademark Appeal was dismissed by Court

28 Nov 2018

November 28,2018:

On 22nd November 2018, European Union General Court has dismissed the appeal of US-based clothing brand Fruit of the Loom regarding their trademark "Fruit".

The word "Fruit" has been registered as an European Union Trademark in 2007, covering clothing, footwear, and headgear in class 25. In 2013, Takko Holding, a German-based fashion company has appealed for revocation of this trademark.

The appeal states that the mark has not been genuinely used continuously for five years.

According to the appeal, the mark "Fruit" was not used genuinely by the US-based clothing brand Fruit of the Loom for a continuous period of five years. So, this trademark should be revoked by European Union Intellectual Property Office.

In opposition to this, the clothing brand submitted evidence showing that the mark was used by them from 2008 to 2013. It shows that the mark was featured with other trademarks and as a standalone, it is used to launch " Born in the USA". However, the Cancellation Division decided to revoke the trademark in 2014.

Fruit of the Loom again appealed against the decision of the board, disputing their assessment of the use of "Fruit" as a standalone trademark. However, the appeal was again rejected by the board. The board found that a low volume of goods bore the contested trademark.

Hence, it has not been put to genuine use by the company. The General Court sided with the board, stating that the proprietor should have produced additional evidence to dispel any doubts.

The European Union General Court has decided in favor of Takko Holdings to revoke the contested trademark.

The evidence presented by the US clothing brand was not enough to clear the doubts. Therefore the Court revoked the mark & further ordered US-based clothing brand Fruit of the Loom to pay the costs of the appeals and the costs of cancellation proceedings.