The Auto Writer

Perhaps Porsche should extend their suit to include this guy too.

From our “stupid controversies” file we have pulled out the following missive: German automaker Porsche, itself part of the Volkswagen Empire, is suing the maker of Crocs whose quirky summery shoes appear to be on mostly everyone’s feet lately. Except mine.

Cayman Trademark

It seems that Porsche and Crocs share one model name – Cayman – a trademark infringement according to the sports car maker. Porsche is so serious about Crocs, Inc. dropping the Cayman name that they sent a “cease and desist” order this past May to the company’s European operation requesting that they do the same.

Porsche is demanding that Crocs “…pay Porsche’s attorney’s fees in conjunction with the issuance of the notice letter.” That letter was followed up by a July 30th injunction against Crocs Europe BV’s use of the Cayman mark in Germany. Crocs says that they are defending itself against these claims. Crocs, Inc. shared this information with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a recent filing. My first attempts to reach Crocs media representative for a follow up were unsuccessful, but I thought my readers would like to be apprised of this controversy as it unfolds.

Cayman Islands

Last I checked, Cayman belonged to a group of islands in the Caribbean, a name that also describes a certain kind of alligator. Therefore, it would seem that Crocs and Cayman go together while Porsche and Cayman do not, though Colorado-based Crocs isn’t objecting to the automaker’s use of the gator name for its own purposes.

When I first learned about the Porsche tiff, I immediately became angered. Porsche has enough other stuff to worry about without concerning itself with sharing a name with a footwear manufacturer. There are plenty of other examples where companies share names including the Gillette Fusion (razor) and Ford Fusion (sedan).

Perhaps in Germany they get their noses bent out of shape over such matters, but here in the United States consumers certainly know that there is a difference between an expensive sports car and a pair of shoes of dubious fashion significance.

A special hat tip to Footnoted.org for supplying background information about this case.

Photo Credit: Dr. Zsolt Zatrok