Kim Kardashian Sues Fashion Company

Kim Kardashian is suing a fast fashion company after it allegedly used her likeness to promote products, proving that the Kardashians may not have a hand in every knockoff gown they inspire.

According to documents obtained by Entertainment Tonight, the reality star is suing Missguided USA for allegedly using her name and image without permission. Kardashian claims that Missguided “in total disregard of Kardashian’s trademark rights and rights of publicity, have repeatedly used Kardashian’s name and image without authorization to generate interest in their brand and website, and to elicit sales of their products.”

The suit includes photos of what Kardashian claims are the brand’s “knock-off” versions of her clothing and states that KKW Beauty founder is suing for “violation of statutory right of publicity, violation of common law right of publicity, false designation of origin, trademark infringement, common law trademark infringement.” She is seeking no less than $10 million in damages, disgorgement of Missguided’s profits and a permanent injunction restraining the company from future infringement.

Missguided is not the first fast fashion brand to make a profit from pieces inspired by the Kardashian family — retailers including Pretty Little Thing, Fashion Nova, Boohoo and others have all sold lower priced variations of the high-end gowns Kardashian and her sisters have worn over the years, with Fashion Nova even turning around Kylie Jenner’s 21st birthday outfits in just hours.

Several of the brands have worked with Kardashian’s family members in the past, including Missguided and Pretty Little Thing, which had partnerships with Kourtney Kardashian. Jenner has also promoted Fashion Nova’s products, and the brand even has a page on its site dedicated to everything the 21-year-old has worn from its stock.

Kim’s suit comes after the 38-year-old used social media to express frustration with the fast fashion brands who copy her looks, the most recent being the vintage black Thierry Mugler gown she wore to the Hollywood Beauty Awards on Sunday evening.

“Only two days ago, I was privileged enough to wear a one-of-a-kind vintage Mugler dress and in less than 24 hours it was knocked off and thrown up on a site — but it’s not for sale,” she wrote. “You have to sign up for a waitlist because the dress hasn’t even been made to sell yet. This is a way to get people to sign up for their mailing list and make people believe there is some kind of relationship between me and this fashion site. There is not.”

“It’s devastating to see these fashion companies rip off designs that have taken the blood, sweat and tears of true designers who have put their all into their own original ideas,” Kim continued. “I’ve watched these companies profit off my husband’s work for years and now that it’s also affecting designers who have been so generous to give me access to their beautiful works, I can no longer sit silent.”

“So, as always, don’t believe everything you read and see online,” she concluded. “I don’t have any relationships with these sites. I’m not leaking my looks to anyone, and I don’t support what these companies are doing.”

Kim recently found herself at the center of a similar issue when she shared a photo of herself wearing a gold dress with a stomach cutout designed by her husband, Kanye West.

“Going through old fitting pics & found this gold look that Kanye made for me for my Miami trip last summer (I went w the neon vibes instead),” she wrote. “P.S. fast fashion brands, can you please wait until I wear this in real life before you knock it off?”

Hours later, Missguided debuted a replica of the gown on Instagram, leading some to wonder whether Kardashian was in on the item’s creation.

“The devil works hard but Missguided works harder. [Kim Kardashian] you’ve only got a few days before this drops online,” Missguided wrote in a later-deleted post.

Photo Credit: Getty / Angela Weiss