Following a complaint filed by ‘Holey Soles Holdings’, a Canadian company, the European Union’s Office for Harmonization in the International Market has ruled that Crocs’ Registered Community Design is invalid. According to the ruling, Crocs’ Beach model shoes “lack individual character” compared with other similar brands.
The ruling apparently triggered a massive $5.00 drop in the price of Crocs shares in Friday trading, wiping over 13% off the worth of the company.
In a deposition filed on Sept. 11, 2007 before the International Trade Commission, Crocs inventor Scott Seamans said he knew of a “Battiston Aqua Clog” being sold in 2001, which is a strapless foam-like clog quite similar to Crocs’ Beach model.
