"THOM BROWNE" Brand Protection: Guangdong High Court Reverses and Awards 7.58 Million RMB in Damages

Recently, the Guangdong High People's Court issued a second-instance judgment in the trademark infringement and unfair competition case brought by Thom Browne Japan Co., Ltd. and Tumubulang (Shanghai) Trading Co., Ltd. against a Dongguan-based apparel company and two other defendants. The court ultimately ordered the three defendants to pay jointly 7.58 million RMB in economic losses and reasonable enforcement expenses.

The plaintiff, Thom Browne Japan Co., Ltd., is the rights holder of the "THOM BROWNE" brand. Founded in 2001 by American designer Thom Browne in New York, the brand is globally renowned in the fashion industry for its signature four-stripe and red-white-blue grosgrain ribbon elements. Tumubulang (Shanghai) Trading Co., Ltd. is responsible for the brand's operation and promotion in China, having opened over 30 stores in nearly 20 cities across the country, as well as official flagship stores on platforms such as Tmall.

The defendants consist of a Dongguan-based company, its Foshan branch, and a Dongguan-based e-commerce company, all of which are affiliated entities. The plaintiffs alleged that the three defendants produced and sold apparel bearing marks such as "TBTHOM", "TBTHOIVI", "TBTHONN", "TBThonn", and "THOM BONZERO" through more than ten online and offline stores (covering platforms including 1688, Pinduoduo, Taobao, Tmall, JD.com, Douyin, and Kuaishou). The defendants also used elements such as "red-white-blue vertical stripes and same-color four stripes", "TB", and "NEW YORK" on their products, constituting trademark infringement and unfair competition. The plaintiffs subsequently filed a lawsuit with the Dongguan Intermediate People's Court, seeking an injunction, compensation for economic losses and reasonable expenses totaling 10 million RMB, and the publication of a statement to eliminate negative impact.

The first-instance court found partial infringement, awarded 5 million RMB in damages, and held that unfair competition had not been established. Both parties appealed to the Guangdong High People's Court.

After trial, the Guangdong High Court substantially revised several findings of the first instance. The court held that Thom Browne enjoys significant renown in the apparel field. When assessing trademark similarity, the perspective of the average consumer must be adopted—after all, when purchasing clothing, consumers do not compare letters letter by letter but rather look at the overall impression. Following this logic, the court systematically dismantled the defendants' "imitation tactics":

"TBTHOM" contains "THOM", and "TB" is the initial of "THOM BROWNE"; overall, it resembles a "simplified version of the well-known trademark".
"TBTHOIVI" — the "IVI" portion is essentially a simple deformation of the "M" in "TBTHOM", a superficial change.
"TBTHONN" — similarly, the "NN" is a derivative imitation.
TBThonn is even more perfunctory, merely altering letter case.
"THOM BONZERO" — its overall visual impression is highly similar to "THOM BROWNE", easily causing confusion among ordinary consumers.

Ultimately, the second-instance court determined that all five disputed marks constituted trademark infringement and also amounted to unfair competition. The three defendants were ordered to pay jointly 7.58 million RMB in economic losses and reasonable enforcement expenses—an increase of 2.58 million RMB from the first-instance award. This decision serves as a stern warning to any enterprise considering "imitation and free-riding."