SKECHERS USA, Inc. Sues Reebok for Infringing on SKECHERS GO WALK® Footwear Line
19 June 2014 - 11:05PM
Business Wire
SKECHERS USA, Inc. (NYSE:SKX), a global leader in the lifestyle
and performance footwear industry and the number two footwear brand
in the United States*, today announced that it filed a lawsuit
against Reebok International Limited for selling footwear that
infringes on the popular SKECHERS GO WALK® product line.
The suit, filed in the United States District Court for the
Central District of California, seeks compensatory and punitive
damages as well as injunctive relief for infringing on SKECHERS’
patent and trade dress rights and for unfair competition. The suit
states that Reebok is selling the infringing products under the
name Reebok Walk Ahead RS.
“SKECHERS has invested tremendous resources into designing,
developing, advertising and patenting our SKECHERS GO WALK® product
line and has built SKECHERS GO WALK® into a name and look globally
recognized and synonymous with SKECHERS,” stated David Weinberg,
Chief Operating Officer of SKECHERS. “While we prefer to compete in
the market place, Reebok is selling its infringing footwear to
SKECHERS wholesale customers and in other sales channels where
SKECHERS GO WALK® is sold, and we believe this is causing us
enormous damage. Considering our investment in SKECHERS GO WALK®,
we cannot allow a company the size of Reebok, or any other company
for that matter, to infringe on one of our most valuable
intellectual properties. We plan on taking similar action against
any company that develops any products that infringe on the patents
and trade dress of SKECHERS GO WALK® as well as our other
proprietary product lines, and any retailer that sells Reebok Walk
Ahead RS.”
SKECHERS is being represented in the suit by Marshall Lerner of
Kleinberg and Lerner in Los Angeles.
*Sporting Goods Intelligence, July 12, 2013
ABOUT SKECHERS USA, INC.
SKECHERS USA, Inc. (SKX), based in Manhattan Beach, California,
designs, develops and markets a diverse range of footwear for men,
women and children under the SKECHERS name. SKECHERS footwear is
available in the United States via department and specialty stores,
company-owned SKECHERS retail stores and its e-commerce website,
and over 100 countries and territories through the company’s global
network of distributors and subsidiaries in Brazil, Canada, Chile,
Japan and across Europe, as well as through joint ventures in Asia.
For more information, please visit www.skechers.com and follow us
on Facebook (Facebook.com/SKECHERS) and Twitter
(Twitter.com/SKECHERSUSA).
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that are
made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking
statements include, without limitation, the Company’s future
growth, financial results and operations, its development of new
products, future demand for its products and growth opportunities,
and its planned opening of new stores, advertising and marketing
initiatives. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the
use of forward-looking language such as “believe,” “anticipate,”
“expect,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project,” “will be,” “will
continue,” “will result,” “could,” “may,” “might,” or any
variations of such words with similar meanings. Any such statements
are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those projected in
forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause or contribute
to such differences include the resignation of the Company’s former
independent registered public accounting firm, and its withdrawal
of its audit reports with respect to certain of the Company’s
historical financial statements; international, national and local
general economic, political and market conditions including the
ongoing global economic slowdown and market instability; consumer
preferences and rapid changes in technology in the highly
competitive performance footwear market; sustaining, managing and
forecasting costs and proper inventory levels; losing any
significant customers, decreased demand by industry retailers and
cancellation of order commitments due to the lack of popularity of
particular designs and/or categories of products; maintaining brand
image and intense competition among sellers of footwear for
consumers; anticipating, identifying, interpreting or forecasting
changes in fashion trends, consumer demand for the products and the
various market factors described above; sales levels during the
spring, back-to-school and holiday selling seasons; and other
factors referenced or incorporated by reference in the Company’s
annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013 and
its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended March
31, 2014. The risks included here are not exhaustive. The Company
operates in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment.
New risks emerge from time to time and the companies cannot predict
all such risk factors, nor can the companies assess the impact of
all such risk factors on their respective businesses or the extent
to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual
results to differ materially from those contained in any
forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties,
you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements
as a prediction of actual results. Moreover, reported results
should not be considered an indication of future performance.
SKECHERS USA, Inc.Jennifer Clay, 310-937-1326
Skechers USA (NYSE:SKX)
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