FORT LAUDERDALE – Gucci America recently filed a federal suit alleging several individuals and businesses are selling counterfeit Gucci products on the web.
In its suit filed Sept 20 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Gucci America claims that 63 individuals and businesses have sold counterfeit products bearing the Gucci label or name. The company is seeking injunctive relief and damages alleging trademark counterfeiting and infringement, false designation of origin, common law unfair competition and common law trademark infringement.
According to the suit, the defendants promoted, sold and offered for sale the fake goods through e-commerce stores on sites like eBay.com and iOffer.com.
New York-based Gucci sells products including handbags, clothing, scarves, purses, handbags, watches, shoes, and mobile electronic covers and cases. The company operates boutiques throughout the world and manufactures and distributes a variety of high quality luxury goods under multiple world famous common law and federally registered trademarks
Gucci says these counterfeit labeled products are substandard and bears a negative impact on Gucci and its label. "Internet-based businesses amount to nothing more than illegal operations established and operated in order to infringe the intellectual property rights of Gucci and others," the suit said. "The natural and intended byproduct of defendants’ actions is the erosion and destruction of the goodwill associated with the Gucci name and associated trademarks and the destruction of the legitimate market sector in which it operates."
According to the complaint, Gucci was able to locate who was selling the counterfeit items by a seller's identification number that was attached to each of the eBay.com or iOffer.com accounts. Each of the names involved were out of Florida where they advertised and sold the counterfeit goods, which is why the complaint was filed in the state of Florida.