Nordstrom Selling “Substantial Quantities” of Counterfeits, Per Patagonia Lawsuit

Nordstrom is selling lots of counterfeit Patagonia wares, the outdoor apparel brand asserts in a new lawsuit. According to the complaint that it filed with a California federal court on Tuesday, Patagonia claims that despite “hold[ing] itself out as a trusted retailer with a strong reputation among its customers,” Nordstrom has sold “thousands of counterfeit Patagonia sweatshirts and t-shirts through its Nordstrom Rack stores.” To make matters worse, Patagonia states that Nordstrom was an authorized dealer of Patagonia apparel for many years, making it so that “while [it] is no longer an authorized Patagonia dealer, Nordstrom’s customers expect to find genuine Patagonia product at Nordstrom stores, including its Nordstrom Rack stores, which Nordstrom advertises as carrying ‘the same vendors [as those] carried” in its main brand stores. 

Setting the stage in the newly filed lawsuit, which was first reported by TFL, Patagonia asserts that in 2023, “shortly after the end of the years-long dealer relationship between [it] and Nordstrom,” which Patagonia states that it “elected not to renew,” Nordstrom began selling counterfeit Patagonia products at Nordstrom Rack stores. The “counterfeit” wares contain trademarks that are “identical to [Patagonia’s] P-6 logo artwork and trademark, and that are identical to the PATAGONIA word mark,” per Patagonia. Not only do the copycat wares bear counterfeit logos and other trademarks, the garments, themselves, are “identical to and compete directly with goods sold by Patagonia, including sweatshirts and t-shirts,” Ventura, California-based Patagonia claims. 

In addition to causing confusion among consumers about the source of the products, “These obvious counterfeits – especially to Nordstrom who knows Patagonia’s products well – also deliberately mislead customers about the quality of the materials used and the conditions in which they were made.” For example, the counterfeit sweatshirts include a neck label that “prominently” – and falsely – advertises them as being made of “organic cotton” when the care and content label on the very same garments “lists the fiber as ‘100% recycled polyester.’” Beyond that, the hang tags on the counterfeit products include a “Fair Trade Certified” logo, and improperly state that the products are “made in a fair trade Certified sewing facility, which means we pay a premium to workers so they can elevate their standard of living.” 

With the foregoing in mind and given that Patagonia has “spent decades, and invested millions of dollars, to establish product quality and fair labor practices as pillars of its brand,” the counterfeit goods at issue “prey on [its] reputation, misleading customers into buying poor quality products that were, on information and belief, made in factories with conditions that do not meet Fair Trade Certified requirements.” 

While Patagonia maintains that in an effort to avoid litigation, it “brought this problem to Nordstrom’s attention and requested that the company voluntarily recall the products or reimburse customers,” but Nordstrom allegedly “failed to recall these fake, mislabeled Patagonia-branded products (or even inform its customers that they purchased counterfeits of inferior fabrication and quality).” As a result, Patagonia says that it was forced to file this lawsuit against Nordstrom “to prevent further harm to [its brand] and consumers.” 

The need for litigation is heighted, per Patagonia, by its belief that Nordstrom has willfully “marketed and sold substantial quantities of products bearing the counterfeit designs through Nordstrom Rack stores across the country and has profited (and continues to derive commercial benefit) from such sales.” Nordstrom’s “actions have caused and will cause Patagonia irreparable harm for which money damages and other remedies are inadequate,” and unless it is restrained by this court, Nordstrom “will continue expanding its illegal activities and otherwise continue to cause irreparable damage and injury to Patagonia by.” 

Against that background, Patagonia sets out claims of trademark infringement and dilution, unfair competition, counterfeiting, and copyright infringement (as Patagonia maintains both trademark and copyright rights in its P-6 logo). It is seeking injunctive relief to bar Nordstrom from infringing and diluting its rights by selling counterfeit goods, as well as monetary damages. 

A Nordstrom spokesperson told TFL, “We are aware of the lawsuit and take these allegations seriously. We are currently reviewing the matter.”

The case is Patagonia, Inc. v. Nordstrom, Inc., 2:23-cv-04168 (C.D. Cal.).