UGG (brand)

For the generic Australian style of sheepskin boot, see ugg boots.

UGG
FormerlyUGG Australia
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryFashion
Founded1978; 46 years ago (1978) in Santa Monica, California
FounderBrian Smith
Headquarters
34°25′47″N 119°51′43″W / 34.4296°N 119.86202°W / 34.4296; -119.86202
Number of locations
130+ stores
Area served
Worldwide
Products
RevenueIncrease US$2.24 billion (2024)[1]
ParentDeckers Brands
Websiteugg.com

UGG is an American fashion company primarily known for its sheepskin boots, founded in 1978 by Australian surfer Brian Smith in Santa Monica, California. After putting on his pair of Australian sheepskin boots after a chilly late-night surf in Malibu, Smith realized sheepskin boots weren't available in the United States like they were in Australia, giving Smith the idea to create UGG.[2] UGG also sells apparel, accessories,[3] and home textiles.[4]

History

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A pair of UGG boots

UGG was founded in California in 1978[5] by Australian surfer Brian Smith and Doug Jensen. Smith was living in Santa Monica, California, after studying at UCLA's Anderson School of Management.[6] Smith and Jensen first applied to be the United States distributors for the Western Australian sheepskin boot manufacturer Country Leather. Unhappy with the brand, Smith trademarked UGG.[7] Later, family friends invested $20,000 in the venture and the group set up Ugg Imports. In their first season in business, Ugg Imports sold 28 pairs of boots. Due to other business commitments, in 1979 Jensen handed over his share of the company to Smith. Sales steadily grew and Smith set up Ugg Holdings Inc. and in 1985 registered a US trademark on a rams head logo with the words "Original UGG Boot UGG Australia".[8] By 1994, 80 percent of UGG's sales were in southern Orange County, but the company gained international attention after the boots were worn by the U.S. Olympic team in Lillehammer for the 1994 Winter Olympics.[6]

In 1995, Deckers Brands acquired Smith's business for $14.6 million and continued to expand it.[9] During the late 1990s, UGG began experiencing double-digit sales growth as Deckers developed the company into an international brand. In 2003, UGG boots were included on Oprah Winfrey's show as part of "Oprah's Favorite Things."[10] Afterwards, the brand received an unprecedented surge in sales.[10][11] In 2006, UGG opened its first brick and mortar store in New York's SoHo neighborhood.[12] The company opened its first international store in Japan later that same year.[13]

UGG partnered with designer shoe brand Jimmy Choo in 2009 to launch a capsule collection combining the brands' styles.[14] The following year, UGG debuted a collection of boots designed in collaboration with Swarovski. The company launched its first men's advertising campaign in 2011 featuring New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in 2011.[15] The first UGG for Men stand-alone store opened in New York in 2012.[16] UGG reported over $1 billion (U.S) in sales for 2012.[17] UGG products are manufactured in a number of countries, primarily China.[18] Deckers uses two Chinese tanneries to supply the sheepskin. The tanneries in turn source the raw skins from Australia and the United Kingdom.[1]

Its collection of home goods launched in 2013 and included products such as rugs, blankets, pillows and other home pieces.[19] In June 2015, Ugg has announced a collaboration with Pixar. The company launched a capsule collection reflecting Pixar's film Inside Out,[20] and have produced Disney-themed boots featuring Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse and Tinker Bell.[21]

In 2016, Deckers rebranded to "UGG", instead of "UGG Australia", in response to an investigation by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission because of a complaint that the reference to "Australia", in its branding of sheepskin boots manufactured in China and Vietnam, was misleading and deceptive, and therefore in breach of Australia's consumer protection and fair competition laws.[22] Deckers now refers to the UGG brand as "Californian" rather than "Australian".[23]

In 2020, UGG debuted seasonal ready-to-wear apparel. UGG hired a new senior design team to lead its ready-to-wear collection. The collections are mostly athleisure, with a focus on faux fur, fleece and sherpa. The collection features men's, women's, and unisex designs.[3]

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UGG-branded sheepskin boots have been a style staple since they first appeared on Oprah Winfrey's show in her second edition of "Oprah's Favorite Things" in 2003,[11] in which she purchased over 350 shoes for her staff and audience.[24] The boots gained a large celebrity following and were frequently seen on notable people such as Kate Upton, Blake Lively,[25] Kate Hudson, Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez,[26] Leonardo DiCaprio, The Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood,[27] and Sarah Jessica Parker[11] as Carrie Bradshaw on Sex and the City.[28] This exposure led to immense growth in the UGG's popularity and recognizability.[29]

In 2013, various Vogue editors wrote about wearing an owning UGG-branded sheepskin boots and fashion figures Alexa Chung and André Leon Talley gave testimonials about their UGG-branded sheepskin boots.[25][30]

Trademark disputes

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Back of an UGG boot
Main article: Ugg boots trademark disputes

In 1971, Shane Steadman registered the trademark UGH-BOOT on the Australian Trade Mark Registry, and obtained an Australian registration for UGH in 1982. These registrations remained valid in Australia until removed for non-use in 2006. Steadman sold his UGH brand boots widely in Australia throughout the 1970s and 1980s.[31] This registration was subsequently sold to Ugg Holdings Inc. in early 1995. In August 1995, Deckers Brands purchased Ugg Holdings, and in 1999 registered Ugg Holdings trademarks, including the UGG AUSTRALIA label (with sun-like device), in Australia. Attempts by Deckers to stop other traders from using the "UGG" mark in Australia were challenged, ultimately leading to 2006 decisions by IP Australia to remove company's "UGH" and "UGH-BOOTS" trademarks due to non-use, finding that they had not been used during a three-year period ending one month before a removal application was submitted.[32][33] The Australian trademark that contains "UGG Australia" in stylised text was maintained. But there are many other similar trade marks in Australia that contain the words "UGG Australia" along with other graphical elements.[34][35] In 2016, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission investigated Deckers because of a complaint that the reference to "Australia" in its branding was misleading and deceptive, and therefore in breach of Australia's consumer protection and fair competition laws. In response, Deckers rebranded to "UGG", instead of "UGG Australia".[22] Deckers now refers to the UGG brand as "Californian" rather than "Australian".[23]

Deckers continues to hold registrations for the UGG trademark in the United States, China and over 130 other countries.[36] The validity of the UGG trademark outside of Australia has also been challenged, but courts have consistently upheld its validity. In 2004, Deckers filed a case against Koolaburra in the California federal court asserting that their use of "Ug" was trademark infringement.[29][9] Koolaburra argued that the UGG trademark was invalid as being generic and obtained by fraud.[29] In February 2005, the court ruled for Deckers stating that survey evidence clearly demonstrates that the UGG mark is not generic. There was no evidence that Smith acted with an intent to defraud the Trademark Office, and consumers would likely be confused with the similarity in "appearance, sight and sound" between "Ug" and "UGG" as the parties were marketing in direct competition with identical products. However, the court declined to rule on the validity of Deckers' Australian trademark registrations in the context of the US case.[29]

Other UGG trademark disputes have occurred with companies including Luda Production Pty[37][38] and Emu Australia,[39][40][41] as well as local manufacturers in countries such as Turkey and China.[36]

In August 2016, Australian senator Nick Xenophon called for international protection of the Australian footwear term ugg.[42]

Trademark enforcement against other manufacturers

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Deckers actively enforces its trademark rights in those countries in which it has succeeded in obtaining trade mark rights to "UGG". According to Deckers' brand-protection unit, in 2009 it took down 2,500 "fake" websites, 20,000 eBay listings and 150,000 other online auction listings with 60,000 pairs of "counterfeit" UGG footwear confiscated by customs agents.[43]

Law enforcement officials in the UK, the US and China have reported seizures of counterfeit UGG brand boots.[44][45][46] In 2009, US customs agents confiscated 60,000 pairs of boots falsely marked with the "UGG" trade mark, and the company took action against 2500 websites that were selling fraudulent products, as well as some 170,000 listings on eBay, Craigslist and similar sites.[47][48]

The National Arbitration Forum, which has been appointed by ICANN to resolve most Internet domain name disputes, has used Deckers Brands ownership of the UGG trademark in the United States as part of several decisions to direct Internet domains containing UGG to be transferred to Deckers.[49][50][51][52][53][54]

Concern for animals

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Since UGG-branded sheepskin boots are one of many clothing products made from animal skin, the production of UGG-branded sheepskin boots has been the subject of criticism by the animal liberation movement.[55] In the decade beginning in 2000, the animal rights organization PETA called for the boycott of UGG-branded boots and their replacement with alternatives not made from animal skin.

In 2007, Pamela Anderson, realizing that UGG-branded boots were made of sheepskin, wrote on her website that she does not support the brand any longer.[56] In February 2008, the Princeton Animal Welfare Society staged a campus protest against the fur industry, particularly attacking the sheepskin industry. "Students lay in the newly fallen snow on the Frist Campus Center's North Front Lawn on Friday afternoon, feigning death, wearing coats covered with fake blood and sporting signs that read, 'What if you were killed for your coat?' "[57]

UGG makes its footwear within its factories located in Vietnam and China. The sheepskin is primarily sourced from two tanneries in China, and the tanneries in turn source the raw skins from Australia and the United Kingdom.[1]

In 2022, Deckers Outdoor Corporation announced that it would phase alpaca wool out of its brands by the fall of 2023.[58]

In 2024, UGG announced their first vegan boots in a collaboration with designer Collina Strada. The footwear materials are made using sugarcane, Tencel and recycled polyester microfibre.[59]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Form 10-K" (PDF). Deckers Brands. May 24, 2024. Retrieved June 29, 2024.
  2. ^ Kless, Ed (February 22, 2018). "How the founder of UGG® is helping other entrepreneurs build their businesses, interview with founder Brian Smith". Sage. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Moore, Booth (September 3, 2020). "Ugg Gets Into Apparel in a More Serious Way With Launch of Seasonal Ready-to-Wear Collection". WWD. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  4. ^ Forman, Suzy (February 3, 2022). "5 UGG Home Products You Didn't Even Know Existed". Us Weekly. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  5. ^ Kim Bhasin (August 16, 2014). "Ugg Is Sick Of Being Pigeonholed For Its Boots". Huffington Post. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  6. ^ a b Tara Johnson (April 2, 2015). "How UGG Founder Brian Smith Turned a $500 Loan into Billion Dollar Brand". CPC Strategy. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  7. ^ Brian Smith (2014). The Birth of a Brand.
  8. ^ Higgins, Pamm (October 2001). "Booty Call". Los Angeles Magazine 46 (10): 75.
  9. ^ a b Behind the Brand: The Golden Fleece Wall Street Journal September 9, 2010.
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  11. ^ a b c Lorrie Grant (December 10, 2003). "UGG boots a fashion kick". USA Today. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  12. ^ Samantha Critchell (October 24, 2013). "An ode to Ugg, the boot with staying power". The Seattle Times. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  13. ^ Martin Webb (February 21, 2006). "Party round-up: Chloe, Maison Martin Margiela, Bernhard Willhelm, Alexander Lee-Chang . . ". The Japan Times. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  14. ^ Elena Andreou (September 16, 2010). "UGG Australia and Jimmy Choo Collaboration". InStyle UK. Archived from the original on May 28, 2015. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  15. ^ Aditi Kinkhabwala (September 12, 2011). "Unlikely Pair: UGG and Tom Brady". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  16. ^ "UGG Australia and GQ Opens First UGG for Men Store in New York City". Reuters. June 6, 2012. Archived from the original on May 28, 2015. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  17. ^ Sutherland & Tara Lachapelle, Brooke (November 26, 2012). "UGGs in Play With Deckers Seen Luring Buyers: Real M&A". Bloomberg LP. Retrieved February 23, 2013.
  18. ^ Nicolas Boot (November 9, 2004). "Ugg Boots". 7 Perth. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  19. ^ Lauren Levinson (September 19, 2013). "UGG Unveils Home Collection – And We Like It". Elle. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  20. ^ Ehlers, Sara (June 26, 2015). "Ugg partners with Pixar to create "Inside Out" collection". FashionUnited. Retrieved July 30, 2015.
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  22. ^ a b "Battle to use the term 'ugg boots' continues in US court", Sydney Morning Herald, 3 May 2017
  23. ^ a b "Fashion Lifestyle Footwear Brands | Deckers Brands". www.deckers.com.
  24. ^ Sandra M. Jones (August 25, 2007). "Ugg's arrival just in time for winter". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  25. ^ a b Kim Bhasin (March 3, 2014). "Why Ugg Boots Will Never Go Away". Huffington Post. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  26. ^ "Aus weichem Wildleder mit Butter." Cernotazi, 3 November 2012. Accessed 26 March 2013.
  27. ^ Chris Irvine (November 3, 2008). "Ugg Boots become must have fashion accessory for celebrity men". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  28. ^ Jasmine Garnsworthy (January 13, 2015). "Ugg Boots Are Coming Back in Style, According to Vogue". Style Caster. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  29. ^ a b c d "United States District Court UGG Holdings, Inc. -v- Clifford Severen et al" (PDF). Deckers Brands. February 23, 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 8, 2014. Retrieved February 12, 2013.
  30. ^ Alexandra Macon (February 15, 2013). "The Secret's Out: Confessions of Vogue's Ugg Addicts". Vogue. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  31. ^ Laurie L. Dove (February 15, 2012). "How Ugg Boots Work". How Stuff Works. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  32. ^ "Decision of a Delegate of the Registration of Trade Marks With Reasons" (PDF). Trade Marks Hearings. January 16, 2006. p. 13. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  33. ^ Marks, Kathy (January 18, 2006). "Ugg: How a minnow put the boot into a fashion giant". The Independent. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  34. ^ Anderson, Kerrin (February 7, 2011). "The Battle of the UGG BOOT Continues". Hynes Lawyers. Archived from the original on April 19, 2011. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  35. ^ "Ugg-ly Trademark Fight Comes to an End". The Age. August 23, 2006. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  36. ^ a b Website of Walker Morris UK solicitors firm, Leeds. Archived January 7, 2014, at the Wayback Machine "Bootiful – UGG recognised as a well known mark in Turkey" Legal Briefing from the Trade Marks and Designs Group, 3 October 2011.
  37. ^ Windsor, Alison (August 11, 2006), Decision of a Delegate of the Registrar of Trade Marks with Reasons (PDF), IP Australia, archived from the original (PDF) on September 18, 2006, retrieved September 4, 2010
  38. ^ Windsor, Alison (September 29, 2010), Decision of a Delegate of the Registrar of Trade Marks with Reasons (PDF), IP Australia, retrieved November 13, 2010
  39. ^ "The battle of the uggs". Shoe Fair Online. January 25, 2011. Retrieved September 7, 2011.
  40. ^ Leonhardt, Megan (August 26, 2011). "Deckers, Emu Resolve Ugg Trademark Suit". Law360.com. Retrieved September 7, 2011.
  41. ^ "Emu and Deckers reach settlement over Ugg name". Just-Style.com. August 26, 2011. Retrieved September 7, 2011.
  42. ^ "Xenophon calls for legislation to protect Ugg boots". ABC News. August 27, 2016.
  43. ^ Cronin, Emily. "The story of Ugg". The Daily Telegraph. January 30, 2011.
  44. ^ "Huge haul of fake clothes seized in London". BBC News. March 19, 2009. Retrieved August 25, 2010.
  45. ^ Davis, Shabria (January 29, 2010). "Seven are arrested for alleged sale of counterfeit merchandise at Cowtown in Pilesgrove". NJ.com. Retrieved August 25, 2010.
  46. ^ Administrative Penalty Decision: Chen Gong Shang An Zi (Chengjiang Township A.I.C. Case) No. (2010) 00005, Administration for Industry & Commerce of Jiangyin City, Wuxi Municipality, January 6, 2010
  47. ^ Clifford, Stephanie. "Economic Indicator: Even Cheaper Knockoffs", The New York Times, July 31, 2010.
  48. ^ "New Counterfeit Gambit: Knock Off Cheaper Brands". Brandchannel.com. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  49. ^ Fink, Karl V.; Johnson, Carolyn M.; Miranda, David P. (March 9, 2004), UGG Holdings, Inc. and Deckers Outdoor Corporation v. Geoff Sharpe d/b/a Australian Aura & DigiCommander Corp.-Ph. 1300 76 3888 a/k/a Domain Registration, National Arbitration Forum, retrieved August 25, 2010
  50. ^ Yachnin, Ralph (December 20, 2004), Deckers Outdoor Corporation v. Bills Distribution, National Arbitration Forum, retrieved August 25, 2010
  51. ^ Johnson, Carolyn M.; Tatham, David H.; Fink, Karl V. (February 4, 2004), UGG Holdings, Inc. and Deckers Outdoor Corporation v. Paul Barclay and Barclay Holdings, Inc., National Arbitration Forum, retrieved August 25, 2010
  52. ^ Fink, Karl V.; Johnson, Carolyn M.; Miranda, David P. (February 5, 2004), UGG Holdings, Inc. and Deckers Outdoor Corporation v. Paul Barclay d/b/a Australian Made Goods, National Arbitration Forum, retrieved August 25, 2010
  53. ^ Franklin, Sandra (November 8, 2004), UGG Holdings, Inc. v. Constantinos Roussos, National Arbitration Forum, retrieved August 25, 2010
  54. ^ Johnson, Carolyn M.; McCotter, Jr., Charles K.; Rindforth, P-E H Petter (December 8, 2004), UGG Holdings, Inc. v. WebQuest.com, Inc., National Arbitration Forum, retrieved August 25, 2010
  55. ^ The Truth About Ugg Boots: History, Controversy & Who Wears Them Whygo Australia August 5, 2010
  56. ^ "Pamela Anderson Learns Ugg Boots Made From Sheepskin, Speaks Out Against Them". Fox News. February 28, 2007. Retrieved May 14, 2010.
  57. ^ "PAWS takes aim at Ugg boots". Daily Princetonian. February 25, 2008. Archived from the original on July 4, 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) archived link at web.archive.org
  58. ^ Alexandra Harrell, "Say Goodbye to Ugg Alpaca Sweaters," SourcingJournal.com, 14 December 2022.
  59. ^ Simone Preuss, "Ugg x Collina Strada: first vegan Ugg boots," FashionUnited.in, 16 September, 2024.
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