Chinese Olympic team kit sponsor Anta sued by small Hong Kong rival for allegedly copying design of its schoolbags
- The sportswear giant is accused by Grown Up, a much smaller Hong Kong firm, of copying the appearance of three of its MoonRock branded schoolbags
Mainland China’s biggest sportswear company, Anta Sports Products, is being sued for allegedly copying the designs of schoolbags made by a small firm in Hong Kong, according to court papers seen by the Post.
Anta, which provided clothing for the Chinese Olympic team in 2016, is facing three different lawsuits in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen brought by Grown Up Licenses (Asia), which sells bags under the MoonRock brand. Grown Up is seeking damages totalling 9 million yuan (US$1.34 million) for infringement of copyright covering the physical appearance of three of its distinctive red and blue schoolbags.
The case is rare in China, where normally small domestic companies are accused of copying products made by a much bigger brand leader.
The verdict is pending in the first suit against Anta, which was heard at the Shanghai No 3 Intermediate People’s Court on Monday. The other two will be heard in Guangzhou and Shenzhen on dates yet to be decided.
“Usually it is the small company copying the designs of a large firm. There are already some people who think we have copied the design from Anta, but we have all the evidence to prove that it is the other way round,” said Alvin Ip Tze-fai, chief executive of Grown Up.