7-Eleven has filed a lawsuit against Nike claiming that its brand colors were copied for an upcoming release of the Air Max 95 shoe and is “confusingly similar” to its trademarked Tri-Color Mark colorway.
In a suit filed on Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas and reported by Sneaker Legal, the convenience store chain says the sportswear maker’s shoe, slated for release on July 11, coincides with the store’s annual holiday and that Nike’s infringement is “deliberate and willful.”
The Air Max 95 is part of the “Konbini” pack that appears to reference convenience stores like 7-Eleven and Lawson, which are extremely popular in Japan. On the Nike SNKRS app, the shoe retails for $200 and is listed as “Air Max 95 Big Bubble” in “Sport Green and Safety Orange” colors with no mention of 7-Eleven.
“Because of years of continuous and exclusive use of the inherently distinctive, arbitrary and nonfunctional combination of orange, green, and red stripes, 7-Eleven has acquired strong and protectable common law rights in the Tri-Color Mark,” the convenience store chain said in its complaint. “7-Eleven further has acquired significant goodwill, and consumers readily recognize the pattern of orange, green, and red stripes as signifying 7-Eleven as the exclusive source of goods bearing the Tri-Color Mark.”
7-Eleven was founded in 1927 in Dallas, Texas and began using the orange, green, red and white color scheme in 1968 and has used the combination on numerous apparel, footwear, accessories and other merchandise in the past 58 years. The brand is now wholly owned by Seven & i Holdings, a Tokyo-based retail giant after acquiring the American parent company in 1991.
But in 2020, the 7-Eleven logo was features on the Nike SB Dunk in a collaboration between the brands that turned the popular skateboarding shoe into a sought after item that found its way into the hands of sneaker culture collectors but only made available in Japan.
It echoed a similar model in 2008 when the Nike SB Dunk High Pro SB “Big Gulp” was in time for Christmas and was an acknowledgment one of 7-Eleven’s most popular drink cups. It’s unclear if that shoe was planned by the brands or if Nike was making a loose references to the convenience chain. But the shoe was mostly red, with white accents and green laces and a light hint of orange on the tongue.
The convenience store chain as asking Nike to halt the pending release and recall any Air Max 95 shoes with the similar colors that are already in circulation while asking for damages for the alleged infringement.
No dollar amount was specified for the damages and 7-Eleven owns three specific trademarks from 2009 and 2016 that all display the colors in similar usage that would typically be displayed outside of their stores with an orange bar on top of a green bar and red bar at the bottom.
Nike’s shoe is still listed on the SNKRS app with a description that reads: “Since its debut, the AM95 has been the flyest way to get around, even if you’re just strolling down to the corner shop for a quick snack.” That wording could be interpreted as a nod to convenience stores.
While a preliminary injunction has been requested by 7-Eleven, no action against Nike has been taken and the Air Max 95 shoes are still being advertised by the sportswear maker. 7-Eleven would need to file a separate restraining order in the before the July 11 sales begin.
Nike has not addressed the lawsuit and did not respond to a request fir a statement on the matter
7-Eleven said on Thursday that “based on the unauthorized use of our brand along with the impending launch in a matter of days on our birthday, 7-Eleven Day (7/11), we had to act quickly and decisively to protect our brand.”
