LONDON — Accessories brand Chylak has won a years-long legal battle against CCC SA, one of Poland’s largest retail companies, for copying one of its bestselling handbag designs.
Chylak, which sells shoes and handbags at contemporary price points, filed the case against CCC on June 9, 2021, after it saw similarities between one of its bags and one for sale on the retailer’s website. The initial court ruled in favor of Chylak in October 2024.
CCC appealed the case, but in October 2022, the Court of Appeal in Poznań, Poland, dismissed the appeal and said the original bag, designed by Chylak’s founder Zofia Chylak-Widmańska, “goes beyond the scope of acceptable inspiration.”
Chylak footwear.
The court ordered the retailer to publish a statement about the verdict on the company’s homepage and Facebook page with a deadline of Nov. 4, 2024, which CCC has not yet done. CCC is looking to appeal the case to Poland’s Supreme Court, according to Chylak.
“This creates a serious challenge for independent artists in Poland. Not everyone can afford to take on the financial and emotional strain of battling a large entity like CCC, even when their rights have been clearly violated,” said Chylak-Widmańska in an email interview.
“The legal costs were quite substantial, and unfortunately, I won’t be able to recover them in full. In Poland, the winning party in a case is entitled to reimbursement of only a portion of their legal expenses. This means that even with a favorable judgment, a significant part of the financial burden remains with the plaintiff,” she added.
The court ordered CCC to pay a combination of damages, unlawfully obtained profits, and compensation for the “moral injury” that Chylak-Widmańska suffered in the process. The brand did not disclose the amount.
Chylak, fall 2024
Courtesy of Chylak
The damages were calculated as a fraction of the infringing product’s price, multiplied by the number of units sold. Because the price of these products was very low, the total damages awarded were not as substantial as one might expect.
Chylak was founded in 2014 with a focus on minimally designed bags with striking features such as a gold buckle or pearl drops that look like tears.
The brand expanded into footwear in the spring of 2023 with its ambitions set on practicality rather than a particular aesthetic.
“My goal was to create designs that look graceful in all sizes. I wear a size 41 myself and am often dissatisfied with how shoes look in this size. While most shoe models are developed first in size 37 — and later scaled up — we also develop them in size 41,” Chylak told WWD a year ago.
Her footwear designs borrow from vintage shoes and ballet flats featuring romantic touches such as big bows, laces and fringes.
