table of contents
(1) Introduction
Clothing is made by combining multiple designs. No two pieces are the same in terms of color, shape, or material. In recent years, it has become popular to be able to get clothes cheaply and enjoy fashion casually, as symbolized by words like "fast fashion" and "petit pla." Fast fashion from Japan is now very popular overseas. The Japanese government's "Cool Japan" strategy to promote Japanese culture overseas also includes the promotion of Japanese fashion culture.
The number of design registrations for "clothing and personal items" in 2019 was 2,441, which is less than 9% of all design registrations, so it cannot be said to be a large number. However, because fashion is a combination of designs, it is important to obtain design rights.
In addition, due to the major revision of the Design Act in 25, the duration of design rights has effectively been extended to 20 years from the filing date, making it possible to consider long-term, investment-oriented intellectual property strategies based on the theory that fashion trends follow a XNUMX-year cycle.
(2) Apparel Industry and Design Rights
A wide range of items are protected by design rights in the apparel industry. Not only finished products such as shoes and trousers, but even parts such as buttons and belt buckles are protected. Furthermore, not only can the entire garment be registered as a design, but also a portion of the design can be registered as a partial design. Therefore, design rights can be obtained for only the sleeve design or collar design. Below are some examples of items that have acquired design rights for clothing.
★T-shirt (partial design)
Group B (clothing and personal items)
(LDH Co., Ltd., Registered Design No. 1432316)
★Uniform
Group B (clothing and personal items)
(Registered Trademark No. 1508953 of the Nippon Professional Baseball Organization)
Group B (clothing and personal items)
(Adidas International Marketing B.V., Registered Design No. 1267395)
★Jeans pants
Group B (clothing and personal items)
(Levi Strauss & Co., Design Registration No. 1097199)
★Shoes
Group B (clothing and personal items)
(Hermes Serie, Registered Design No. 1386944)
★Shoes (partial design)
Group B (clothing and personal items)
(SSK Corporation, Registered Design No. 1144364)
★Button (part)
Group B (clothing and personal items)
(Morito Co., Ltd., Registered Design No. 1545002)
★Belt buckles (parts)
Group B (clothing and personal items)
(Hermes Serie, Registered Design No. 1256833)
In addition, since the apparel industry is easier to manufacture than other products, there are a lot of counterfeit products on the market. In recent years, the distribution of counterfeit products has also increased and become an international problem. In order to prevent product imitation, it is important to protect products with design rights.
(3) It’s too late once counterfeit products start circulating overseas
Once a fashion trend becomes popular, counterfeit goods may flow into Japan from abroad, especially from East Asia, and be sold in Japan. In addition, design and trademark applications are often already filed locally.
After facing such a situation, even if you finally try to protect your rights overseas, you will find it extremely difficult, so we strongly recommend that you simultaneously obtain design rights in Japan and file design applications in other countries. If you are considering expanding overseas, please feel free to consult with us.
Designs are handled in various ways in advanced intellectual property countries such as Europe and the United States, as well as in East Asian and Southeast Asian countries and other countries in recent years. Each country has its own know-how regarding the method of design registration, so please feel free to consult us on this point.
In addition, since Japan joined the Hague Agreement in 2015, it has become possible to use the international design registration system, which can reduce the burden in terms of both procedures and costs.
For more information about the international design registration systemCLICK HEREPlease fill in the fields below.
(4) "HARAKENZO more " supports the apparel industry
There is data that shows that filing design applications is useful in the apparel industry to attract attention to your products. If you are thinking of registering your design both at home and abroad, please contact "HARAKENZO more Please feel free to contact us at .