Spanish clothing giant Zara is pushing back against allegations that it violated Estée Lauder’s trademark rights by using Jo Malone’s name on fragrance products, according to court documents filed in London’s High Court.
The retail company argues it followed specific guidelines that Estée Lauder’s own legal team established in 2020 regarding how the famous perfumer’s name could be used in marketing materials.
The dispute stems from Estée Lauder’s 1999 acquisition of Malone’s original fragrance company, which included purchasing the commercial rights to her name. After departing the cosmetics conglomerate in 2006, Malone created her new brand “Jo Loves” in 2011 and began working with Zara on fragrance collaborations in 2019.
Estée Lauder filed suit in March against Malone, her “Jo Loves” company, and Zara’s British operations. The lawsuit focuses on Zara’s website product descriptions mentioning “Jo Malone” and packaging text reading “Created by Jo Malone CBE, founder of Jo Loves.”
In its defense, Zara’s UK subsidiary ITX points to correspondence from 2020 when Estée Lauder initially objected to Malone’s name appearing on Zara’s Chinese social media. The cosmetics company’s attorneys later indicated this usage was acceptable and provided specific naming conventions for future reference.
Those guidelines recommended using variations like “Jo Malone CBE,” “Ms Jo Malone,” “Ms Malone” or simply “Jo” to distinguish between the individual and the brand name, while avoiding references to her as the original Jo Malone brand founder.
ITX maintains its current product descriptions comply with these recommendations. Zara’s website now describes the fragrances as collaborations “with perfumer Ms. Jo Malone CBE, founder of Jo Loves.”
The case raises fundamental questions about how Malone can legitimately reference herself given Estée Lauder’s trademark ownership, according to Zara’s legal filing.
Malone addressed the controversy in an Instagram video last month, explaining her perspective on the partnership. “Seven years ago, I started to work with Zara, they approached me, they didn’t approach a company, they didn’t approach a brand, they didn’t approach a logo, they approached me, Jo Malone, the person … we have gone above and beyond to make sure everyone understands this has nothing to do with Jo Malone London the company,” she stated.
Zara also disputes Estée Lauder’s “passing off” allegations, which claim the retailer misleads customers into believing its products come from another company. The fashion chain additionally objects to characterizing its fragrances as “budget” options.
The pricing difference between the competing products is substantial. Zara’s collaborative scents, including “Energetically New York,” “Elegantly Tokyo,” and “Fashionably London,” retail for approximately $49 per 100ml bottle on the UK website. Comparable Jo Malone brand perfumes start at $165 for the same quantity.
Estée Lauder representatives declined to provide additional comments beyond their original March statement, which noted that Malone agreed in 1999 to restrictions on using the Jo Malone name for commercial fragrance marketing purposes.
