7-Eleven will move to dismiss a trademark lawsuit against Nike over a shoe design with a color scheme it claimed was similar to its green, orange and red Tri-Color Mark dress.
The convenience store chain told a Dallas federal court on Monday that it would drop its case with prejudice and the claim cannot be refiled.
In its original complaint filed in July, 7-Eleven said that Nike’s infringement was “deliberate and willful” in the design of the Air Max 95 shoe that was set to be released on July 11, or “7-Eleven Day,” but was pulled from Nike’s SNKRS app.
“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 argued that the similarities in colorway would confuse customers who would think that the shoe was part of an official collaboration between the companies.
No mention of the convenience store chain was ever listed on the SNKRS app, shown on the shoe or the packaging.
Before it was removed from the app, a description read: “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 have been interpreted as a nod to convenience stores.
7-Eleven was founded in 1927 in Dallas, Texas and began displaying the orange, green, red and white color scheme in 1968. The color and combination has been used in numerous apparel, footwear, accessories and other merchandise for nearly 60 years.
The brand is now wholly owned by Seven & i Holdings, a Tokyo-based retail giant after it acquired the American parent company in 1991.
Nike and 7-Eleven have a history of working on shoes, with a SB Dunk model featuring the convenience store’s logo on the outer heel area in a 2020 release. In 2008, the SB Dunk High Pro SB “Big Gulp” was a nod to 7-Eleven’s popular large drink cups and the shoe was mostly red, with white accents and green laces and a light hint of orange on the tongue.
The Air Max 95 model has remained popular since being released over 30 years ago and has seen more than 600 versions of colorways, special editions, limited drops and collaborations.
In its canceled release with the green, orange and red colorway as part of its Convini Pack alongside retailer Atmos as a Japanese exclusive, a blue, gray and white version of the shoe was also set to be released and resembled the colors of convenience store Lawson.
