Fashion Wrap: Christian Louboutin wins red soles war, tech-savvy shopping hits record high plus more!

15th OF September 2012

Shoe showdown

French designer Christian Louboutin now has the exclusive rights to his renowned red soles, a US court has ruled.

The decision reverses a previous ruling that allowed rival label Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) to paint its soles red.

The New York battle between the two high-end brands began last year when Louboutin took YSL to federal court accusing the label of copying his signature soles.

At the time, the judge ruled that Louboutin could not claim the colour red as its own.

Louboutin, reluctant to give up the fight, brought the case to the Second Circuit US Court of Appeals who have now overturned the initial ruling, concluding: "We reverse in part the order of the District Court insofar as it purported to deny trademark protection to Louboutin's use of contrasting red lacquered outsoles.”

Which means Louboutin has monopoly over shoes where red soles contrast the rest of the design.

This suited YSL just fine as the original shoe that Louboutin wanted to sue the brand over was of entirely red design, which still remains acceptable in the court’s eyes.

Louboutin’s glamous footwear have featured his signature red outsoles since 1992 and after they were featured on Sex and the City, fashion lovers everywhere have come to love and instantly recognise the famous heel.

Louboutin sells about 240,000 pairs each year in the United States, and considering one pair alone typically costs between $US700 and $US1000, we’d say that’s some serious shoe business worth fighting for!

Tech savvy shoppers

Turns out a whopping 96 per cent of us will reach for our computer or smart phone first before hitting the shops, a new study by US marketing agency Ryan Partnerships has discovered.

Involving 8000 primary households in their research, the company claims consumers will use at least one digital retail tool before they purchase, with most shoppers using more than one.

The most popular digital aids for our shopping needs were:

64% - store websites; 

61% - downloadable coupons; 

53% - retailer emails; 

51% - search engines; 

49% - brand websites.

Other common digital retail tools cited by participants included branded social media, mobile coupons and shopping apps.

And speaking of shopping apps, check out RESCU’s Best Fashion Apps.

Zara expands once more!

Sydneysiders get ready. This week saw the unveiling of a second Zara store for Sydney, this time at Westfield Bondi Junction.

Unlike the Zara store at Sydney’s CBD which spans across three floors, the new store (above) only covers one level of Westfield Bondi Junction but still equates to the spacious size of the mid city store.

Key trends Zara is embracing right now include gold studding and pastel, which is perfect for spring wardrobe additions!

Giving you another heads up, new stock for the new store comes twice a week every Wednesday and Friday.

But you better get in quick as there are some pieces that are exclusively available to the Bondi Junction store and as regular Zara shoppers well know once it’s gone, there’s no chance of finding it again anywhere else.

The additional Sydney store has come just in time for summer, when thousands of tourists and locals alike will flock to trendy area for the beach and shops.

It is the Spanish chain store’s fifth store in Australia.