The Kardashian sisters were ready to release their Khroma Beauty line this month, but a new lawsuit that slams the sisters for their unoriginality has brought the brand’s progress to a screeching halt.
The Kardashian sisters have been accused of being extremely unoriginal for quite some time. Many fashion blogs have bashed the sisters’ clothing line for being eerily similar copies of other major designers. There wasn’t a hand bag or fitted dress in the collection that didn’t look like it had been ripped off another designer’s runway.
Now, even their cosmetics line is being called into question because it seems like Kim ripped the name off from another woman in the beauty industry.
A Florida based company called Kroma Makeup is suing the Kardashians’ licensing partner for “stealing” the company’s name.
That’s right. It looks like Kimmy saw the name and just added an “h” to it and figured that was creative enough to avoid any legal troubles – well apparently she thought wrong.
The owner of Kroma Makeup is seeking more than $6 million from the reality clan and the company that produced the line, Boldface.
While the girls have usually been able to rely on their star power to get them out of trouble in the past, it seems like the judge in this case is already taking sides with Lee Tillett, the founder of Kroma Makeup.
“Tillett has demonstrated that [she] will likely lose business opportunities, customers and goodwill due to Boldface’s use of the confusingly similar Khroma Beauty marks,” U.S District Judge Audrey B. Collins said according to Law360. “The court has little doubt that, in short order, the Khroma Beauty products will likely eliminate Tillett’s business entirely, creating irreparable harm sufficient to justify an injunction.”
To make matters worse, Tillett gave the girls an opportunity to change the name of their beauty line but the hard headed trio didn’t see any need to think of something more creative and original.
It was back in July of 2012 that Tillett brought up the matter and pointed out that the beauty line was stealing the name she had already developed and trademarked on her own.
“I developed the Kroma line myself, built my business through my own hard work, and took the legal steps necessary to protect it,” Tillett told the Orlando Sentinel. “And yet I have now been forced into legal battle with the Kardashians simply because they have decided to take something that doesn’t belong to them.”
Her attorney Elliot Gipson also pointed out that Kim may have possible had knowledge of the name prior to using it for her own collection, which would eliminate the possibility that the similar names were just a coincidence.
Apparently Gipson had worked closely with TLK Fusion, who allegedly acted as the product placement agent for the Kardashians, about having Kroma placed in Keeping up with the Kardashians.
“On or about May 2010, representatives for Tillett and TLK Fusion were engaged in discussions regarding the possible product placement of the KROMA cosmetics line on the television reality show special The SPINdustry that was scheduled to air on E! Entertainment television following an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians,” he explained.
While no agreement was ever reached this would be enough to prove that Kim did know about the name Kroma and decided to steal the idea from Miss. Tillett.
If you ask us, this is just another case of Donkey Booty vs. Stallion Booty… except this time the idea that’s being copied is actually a good one.
