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Inspections on units making and selling fake Birkenstock ( BIRK )

sandals

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Birkenstock ( BIRK ) showed counterfeit sandals to Delhi court

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Court ordered inspections in May, kept order confidential

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Judge called counterfeits "cheap knock offs"

By Arpan Chaturvedi

NEW DELHI, July 6 (Reuters) - Indian court-appointed

legal representatives inspected small-scale factories in recent

weeks to seize suspected counterfeit Birkenstock ( BIRK ) footwear, after

the German brand launched an infringement lawsuit, people

familiar with the matter said.

Birkenstock's ( BIRK ) case is occurring around the same time other

shoemakers are in the news in India. Crocs this month secured a

court nod to pursue a nine-year-old infringement case, while

Prada is facing heat over showcasing sandals similar to ethnic

Indian footwear without initially giving credit to India.

Reuters is first to report the Indian case details related

to Birkenstock ( BIRK ) sandals, which have evolved from a counterculture

symbol to a trendy fashion item, and are also popular in India.

In May, Birkenstock ( BIRK ) filed an infringement lawsuit in the

Delhi High Court against four footwear traders, four factories

and two unnamed individuals. Its complaint stated an internal

investigation found counterfeits were being made in rural areas

in and around the tourist hub of Agra, and sold locally and

exported to other countries.

On May 26, Delhi judge Saurabh Banerjee issued a

confidential order that was only made public on the court's

website last week. It said 10 local lawyers were appointed as

commissioners to visit the suspected factories.

The judge said commissioners can "seize, pack and seal the

infringing products", and his order included photographs that

Birkenstock ( BIRK ) submitted showing the alleged counterfeit footwear

and shoe boxes with the company's branding.

The visits have been completed and reports were submitted

confidentially to the judge, the three people familiar with the

matter said on Saturday, asking to remain unidentified. The next

hearing in the case is set for October 6.

The visits were conducted in Agra, home to the Taj Mahal,

and in India's capital New Delhi, the people said, declining to

give further details from their inspection.

Birkenstock ( BIRK ) did not respond to queries from Reuters and its

lawyers from Delhi-based law firm Lall and Sethi declined to

comment, citing the pending legal case.

In his May order, Banerjee said he reviewed photographs and

samples of the alleged counterfeit products in court, and they

"seem like a cheap knock off" of Birkenstock ( BIRK ) products.

"There is all likelihood of the public getting deceived ...

The differences, hardly if any, are not something which can be

discernable to the naked eyes," he wrote.

Once popular with hippies, tech enthusiasts and medical

professionals, Birkenstock ( BIRK ) gained widespread attention after

Australian actress Margot Robbie wore a pair of pink

Birkenstocks in the final scene of the 2023 hit movie "Barbie".

In February, a German court said Birkenstock ( BIRK ) sandals do not

qualify as art and are therefore not protected by copyright,

dismissing a lawsuit brought by the German company.

In India, Birkenstock ( BIRK ) footwear for women is priced between

$46 and $233.