Tiffany Trump Wore the Shoe Brand That’s Suing the Ivanka Trump Label
Tiffany Trump and her older half-sister, Ivanka Trump, maintain a close bond, often spending time together and featuring each other on their Instagram channels. The older first daughter has spoken about her relationship with Tiffany, telling People, “She’s my little sister! I’ve been close to Tiffany her whole life, and I really love her.”
A photo posted by Tiffany Ariana Trump (@tiffanytrump) on Jan 22, 2017 at 1:32pm PST
Like Ivanka, the 23-year-old University of Pennsylvania graduate has a great sense of style and loves to post images of her looks on her Instagram account. In her latest post, in which she poses in front of the Washington Monument with her half-brother Eric Trump, she wears a sleek navy coat, a bright blue scarf, and patriotic footwear. The label of the $725 lace-up flats that feature the colors of the American flag? Aquazzura — the same brand that’s currently suing the Ivanka Trump label.
Luxury Italian footwear company Aquazzura filed a lawsuit back in June 2016 accusing the Ivanka Trump label of copying its designs for three particular shoe styles — the “Wild Thing” shoe, the “Forever Marilyn” shoe, and the “Belgravia” shoe.
While the shoes named in the suit look quite similar, the price point varies dramatically. Aquazzura’s Wild Thing shoe retails for $785, and Trump’s high-heeled sandal — the Hettie stiletto — retails for $145. Aquazzura feels its designs are “instantly recognizable,” so they should be subject to common law protection regarding “trade dress,” or appearance.
The high-end designer also named Marc Fisher, Trump’s footwear licensing partner, in the trademark lawsuit, accusing the companies of “repeated infringement” and “deceptive trade practices.”
The company posted an Instagram shot of its Wild Thing shoe style next to the Ivanka Trump label Hettie stiletto, captioning the image, “One of the most disturbing things in the fashion industry is when someone blatantly steals your copyright designs and doesn’t care. You should know better. Shame on you @ivankatrump! Imitation is NOT the most sincere form of flattery. #aquazzura #ivankatrump Proud of mine #madeinitaly #italiansdoitbetter.”
A photo posted by AQUAZZURA by Edgardo Osorio (@aquazzura) on Mar 4, 2016 at 5:30am PST
At the time the lawsuit was filed, Edgardo Osorio, the founder of Aquazzura, insisted the action was not a personal attack. “I have nothing against Ivanka Trump,” he told Footwear News. “It’s not only her, and I’m glad to [call others out on Instagram also]. I plan to do the same with Steve Madden and other people who have ripped us off. … Sometimes I look at the buys in department stores, and I see copies of my shoes. We need to be harder with our retailers. They need to protect us. You can’t cannibalize one business with another.”
Ivanka Trump’s label and Marc Fisher have denied the copyright claims. Marc Fisher’s CFO, Matthew Burris, told Yahoo Style at the time of the filing in 2016: “This is a baseless lawsuit aimed at generating publicity. The shoe in question is representative of a trending fashion style, is not subject to intellectual property law protection, and there are similar styles made by several major brands. The lawsuit is without merit, and we will vigorously defend ourselves against the claim.”
Aquazzura has since added a design patent infringement claim to its suit. According to documents obtained by the Fashion Law in November 2016, the company’s design patent protection covers its Christy design, which is ironically the style Tiffany is wearing in her Instagram photo. The shoes closely resemble the Ivanka Trump Tropica Pointed Toe Lace Up Flats. It should be noted that lots of other brands, including Steve Madden, Chinese Laundry, and Zara, to name a few, produce similar copycat shoes.
Funnily enough, Tiffany actually wore the Ivanka Trump version of the shoe in suede to her college graduation in May.
Although Ivanka has announced that she is stepping down from her position at her namesake label, the suit is still unresolved.
Despite the details behind Tiffany’s footwear choice, many people on Instagram commented on how much they loved the shoes.
“Great picture! Love your heels @tiffanytrump,” Julie Sovero commented. “Wow I need these flats asap ????????,” added jessireds.
Yahoo has reached out to Aquazzura for comment and will update when we receive a response.
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