District Court of Düsseldorf: Sale on the discounter platform real.de impairs the prestige image of the SHISEIDO and ISSEY MIYAKE perfume and cosmetic brands

Our colleagues Dr. Rani Mallick and Eva Maierski achieved a great success for our client Shiseido against the real.de platform. Shiseido had filed two complaints against Real seeking injunctions concerning the sale of its SHISEIDO and ISSEY MIYAKE perfume and cosmetic products on the real.de platform.

In both cases the District Court of Düsseldorf (decisions of 29 September 2022, case nos. 37 O 183/19 and 37 O 177/19) held that SHISEIDO and ISSEY MIYAKE are luxury brands that have a prestige image. Selling products of those brands on the platform real.de, which features a discounter-like sales environment, impairs the prestige image of those trademarks. Therefore, Shiseido has legitimate reasons to oppose further sale and distribution of the products pursuant to Art. 15 (2) EUTMR, preventing Real to rely on the principle of exhaustion.

The decisions are not yet final and binding.