Confusion over the crocodiles used by rival fashion companies is only likely to occur when Hong Kong consumers are looking at the emblem used by Lacoste, a market research expert said yesterday. David Bottomley told a judge a survey had shown 64 per cent of people, when looking at the green Lacoste crocodile, thought it belonged to the company's Hong Kong-based rival Crocodile Garments. But only four per cent thought the crocodile used by Crocodile Garments was that of Lacoste. 'The Crocodile brand dominates people's thinking. But that of Lacoste was still identified by something like a quarter of the population,' Mr Bottomley said. He was giving evidence in a trademark battle at the Court of First Instance. La Chemise Lacoste, based in France, is fighting the registration by Crocodile Garments of a crocodile logo on the mainland. Lacoste argues Crocodile Garments breached a 1980 agreement by registering a crocodile emblem 'confusingly similar' to its own. He said 480 people had been quizzed in the survey conducted by Asia Commercial Research in Hong Kong last December. In the first test, they were shown the two different crocodile emblems along with other well-known trademarks, and 64 per cent thought the Lacoste logo belonged to Crocodile Garments. Only four per cent thought the crocodile emblem was that of Lacoste. A second test, using just the crocodile logos, produced similar results, with 47 per cent mistaking the Lacoste mark for that of Crocodile Garments and seven per cent making the mistake the other way round. Mr Bottomley said he had been surprised by the clear findings with only 'a tiny percentage' of people thinking the Crocodile Garments logo belonged to Lacoste. Lacoste questioned the methods used to arrive at the conclusion that there is little risk of confusion created by the Crocodile Garments logo. The case, before Mr Justice Andrew Chung On-tak in the Court of First Instance, continues next week.
