Beware Impostors! Converse sued several big names including Skechers,Walmart and Kmart in an effort to protect its century-old and widely popular brand of 'Chuck Taylor' sneakers
Converse filed 22 lawsuits last Tuesday, Oct. 7 in United States District Court in Brooklyn against 31 companies for alleged trademark infringement of their iconic "Chuck Taylors" with the "black stripes and rubber toe topper."
Skechers, Wal-Mart and Kmart did not comment regarding the lawsuit.
However, the Nike-owned company stressed that their main goal in this ordeal is not primarily to get money, but to get the impostors off the shelves.
That's why they are filing for a separate lawsuit alongside the International Trade Commission which has the authority to block any shoes identified as counterfeit from entering U.S. territory.
"The goal really is to stop this action," Jim Calhoun, Converse chief executive emphasized.
"I think we're quite fortunate here to be in the possession of what we would consider to be an American icon," Calhoun added.
Converse's history started out long before the shelves became full of new brands like Reebok and Adidas.
The company launched its first sneaker especially created for basketball players and named it "All Star."
All Star's spokesman, basketball player Chuck Taylor joined Converse in 1920, which started a whole new era of "Chuck Taylors" phenomenon.
Converse was reportedly the brand of the "cool kids of the big screen." John Travolta and his "Grease" friends wore Chucks as a status symbol around their school, Rydell High.
On a similar note, even Sylvester Stalone's Rocky Balboa paraded the famous Chuck Taylors in the movie "Rocky."
When Nike bought the company in 2003, it rescued Converse from an impending bankruptcy and gave it a new face.
Nike also pushed Converse into several markets overseas, which helped boost the company's sales as well as its popularity.
With an increase in popularity, comes an "explosion in knockoff activity," says Calhoun.
The lawsuit filed to the trade commission included four China-based companies-and Calhoun reportedly said they won't be "goody-two-shoes" anymore when look-alikes and copycats are everywhere.
