New Balance is going after one of fashion's biggest designers, Karl Lagerfeld, and it's over a pair of trainers. The Boston-based company claim that the longtime creative director of Chanel has ripped off its logo for his eponymous label.
In the lawsuit acqured by TMZ, New Balance accuses Karl of using a block capital letter "K" on a pair of retro-inspired trainers that bear resemblance to a design that NB has been using since the 70s.
New Balance says that this causes customer confusion (although one key difference is that the New Balance sneaks are $112, while Lagerfeld's version retails at $360). The trainer brand goes on to note that even fashion blogs have picked up on the similarity, including one with an article titled, "Wait did Karl Lagerfeld just knock off New Balance sneakers?"
Lagerfeld is known for his witty re-appropriations of everyday objects, like his range of Chanel-branded supermarket goods for autumn/winter 2014 and the gasoline can-shaped quilted handbag from his most recent cruise collection. And what's more everyday than a pair of sneaks, right?
What do you think – droll homage or wholesale knock-off?
