Which Australian trader failed to dodge a bullet by international fashion powerhouse Stella McCartney?
McCartney has prevented a Sydney-based cosmetics company from selling products bearing the words St Ella New York.
The Australian Trade Marks Office rejected a trademark bid by Wong Kwai Hua, who attempted to register the mark for a range of beauty items.
McCartney filed an opposition to the trademark in December 2010, after an attempted registration in May, arguing it would trade off her reputation and intellectual property.
Representatives for McCartney argued the two marks were "highly similar", being comprised of exactly the same letters in exactly the same order.
They also argued the marks were phonetically similar and would capitalise on McCartney's name and profile.
Stella McCartney ready-to-wear has been sold in Australia since 2003 and handbags have been sold since 2004.
The goods are sold in Sydney, Perth and Melbourne.
Representatives for McCartney revealed that between September 2007 and March 2011 approximately €75,000 (AU$117,425.70) of bags alone were sold at wholesale to Australian customers for resale.
Hearing officer Iain Campbell Thompson ruled that St Ella New York was branded with a long 't', meaning once printed it may not appear as two separate words and be confused with 'Stella'.
Stella McCartney for Adidas.
