The 2200 block of West 4th Avenue is about to become ground zero for a retail trademark infringement battle.
Arc’teryx’s parent company, Amer Sports, has filed a notice of civil claim against Adidas seeking an injunction against Adidas using their Terrex brand for both its brick-and-mortar retail stores and online stores.
Specifically, the lawsuit notes Adidas opened a Terrex-branded store at 2235 West 4th Avenue.
The lawsuit claims Adidas’ use of the Terrex brand has “directed public attention to its services and business in such a way as to cause, or likely to cause, confusion in Canada with the services and business of Arc’teryx.”
A couple storefronts to the east of the new Terrex store sits an existing Arc’teryx location at 2201 West 4th Avenue.
Arc’teryx claims the Adidas store “deliberately omitted” any reference to the Adidas brand, in contrast to the other stores the company owns and operates in Vancouver.
“Rather, Adidas chose to use a triangular symbol, like a stylized letter ‘A,’ in front of the word Terrex. The result of Adidas’s design choice is signage that resembles ‘A Terrex,’” reads the lawsuit.
Arc’teryx further claims Adidas knew the proximity of its new store to the Arc’teryx store and deliberately chose its signage in such a way to “reasonably create the inference that Adidas intentionally sought to create consumer confusion between the Terrex store and the Arc’teryx brand.”
In particular, the company claims the new Adidas-owned store has or will cause loss of customers and revenue, along with damage to its brand and reputation.
On top of an injunction against Adidas using the Terrex branding on its stores, Arc’teryx is seeking damages against Adidas, including costs for profits it allegedly wrongfully made through the Terrex store.
Read more about this lawsuit on BIV.
Last modified: February 21, 2023
