Fashion’s Influence in Television: A Cultural Shift
Emily in Paris fashion
With its loyal audience around the world always waiting for a new season to drop, since its debut, Emily in Paris has become more than just a Netflix series, Emily [the protagonist, a luxury marketing executive], truly has become a social media sensation giving rise to a global fashion movement. Carven, Vivienne Westwood, Jacquemus, Ganni, Ralph Lauren, and Nina Ricci were the few luxury brands that took centre stage in the aesthetic series, successfully creating a show that beautifully combines high fashion and entertainment.
Its viewership is influenced not just by its plot, but also by the interesting conversations sparked across social media platforms, giving rise to accounts such as @EmilyInParisOutfits (170,000 followers), @LilyCollinsStyle (31,900 followers), and @EmilyInParisOutfit (25,600 followers) that break down the iconic looks. With a staggering seven million posts on TikTok featuring the term "Emily in Paris clothes.", the virality of this social media-fueled fashion movement speaks to the show’s massive cultural influence.
We now see how Netflix has teamed up with Google Lense, allowing fans to use the image recognition feature to shop for the looks or find similar items worn in the series. This collaboration highlights how the show drives real-world fashion trends, with searches for “Jacquemus cardigans” increasing by 18% month-on-month, and “Ganni bags” by 15%. Meanwhile, searches for styles like “sailor caps” and “checked coats” surged by 46% and 53%, respectively, on the global shopping platform Lyst.
Whilst the kind of success and followership this show has received from a successful symbiotic relationship between fashion and television is quite novel to witness the idea is not quite as new as it might seem. Iconic shows like Sex and the City laid the foundation for the potential of organic marketing for high fashion through modern storytelling. Carrie Bradshaw’s love affair with Manolo Blahnik and Christian Dior created quite subconsciously for us, a huge part of her character, also turning these brands into more recognised names. Fashion evolved from a backdrop to an essential part of the narrative.
Even shows like Gossip Girl, complete with its drama, were very much about impeccable fashion choices, be it the preppy academia aesthetic with the mean girl on the block Blair Waldorf, or the boho-chic blonde IT girl Serena Vanderwoodsen. The show was always in the limelight not only for the plot but also for the fashion.
Emily in Paris takes this approach a step further, by incorporating luxury fashion into its plotlines, which feels natural and relatable to the audience engaging with it. What they tapped into was the relatability of young individuals trying to create a name for themselves despite being in the relatively busy and luxuriant city of Paris, for example, in one episode where Mindy Chen (Ashley Park) resells a couture dress gifted by her wealthy boyfriend, entering a branded Vestiaire Collective store. Harnessing the potential of organically promoting the brand, this scene’s storyline created a moment of exposure that felt authentic rather than forced.
Vestiaire Collective reported an 85% increase in US Google searches following its appearance in the show, and it gained 22,000 new followers shortly after the episode premiered.
With great exposure comes a greater need to navigate carefully through the various intellectual property rights (IPR) involved with brands’ stakes getting higher with them getting featured in Emily in Paris. The challenge lies in safeguarding their distinct trademarks, the logos and the designs being used correctly to productively leverage the show’s immense reach and influence.
This written piece aims to offer an insider’s look into the basic process of IPR dealings that take place behind the aesthetic curtains where the brand collaborates with entertainment powerhouses like Netflix. From securing licensing agreements to monitoring how their designs are showcased, brands must ensure their intellectual property is protected while maximising the marketing potential that a cultural phenomenon like Emily in Paris offers.
Trademarks and Logos: The Cornerstone of Fashion Protection
When viewing the fashion industry from a zoomed-out lens, it is a prime-facie understanding that the trademarks and logos of these renowned brands, serve the importance which is equivalent to that of an heirloom, furthering their identity, reputation, and design heritage.
This perspective could be understood, by taking the example of the timeless brand of Ralph Lauren, a trademark which can include a logo, name, symbol or even a distinctive design that is closely associated with the brand’s products or services, when you look at the iconic polo player logo belonging to Ralph Lauren, it instantly evokes the brand’s ethos of elegance, sophistication and silent luxury. To attain that level of apparel sophistication, finesse and luxury label, a brand invests heavily in its operations and to rightfully achieve the deserving profits out of the same, the logos, the names and associated symbols are legally protected as trademarks, ensuring that no other entity can use it without prior permission.
With a new wave of marketing of fashion coming about, mitigating the risks that come with participating in high-visibility shows like Emily in Paris, becomes the need of the hour. Capitalising on such extensive exposure is the goal of every business, and to do so the brands must establish comprehensive legal protections. This is where licensing agreements come into play—serving as the blueprint for collaboration, they ensure that intellectual property, from logos to designs, is both creatively showcased and legally safeguarded. In the following section, we have talked about a basic process you can anticipate when considering such an exposure whilst keeping your IP protected.
Licensing Agreements: Legal Steps to Safeguard Fashion Brands
1. Initial Negotiation
What could be anticipated as the first step of the process of deriving a secured deal with the fashion brands and the shows would be negotiations between the brand’s legal team and the show’s producers or content creators. There must be a consensus ad idem, i.e., the brand and the show agreeing in complete consonance and coherence how the brand’s products, trademarks and designs will be used.
The same could be understood by the case of Louis Vuitton Malletier S.A. v. Hyundai Motor America (2012), where the court sided with Louis Vuitton, emphasised how crucial it is to secure prior permission before using trademarks in any form of media, in the light of Hyundai using a faux Louis Vuitton trademark in a commercial without its permission.
2. Defining Usage Rights
Let’s understand this by an example, if Jacquemus, grants a licence for one of its bags to appear in a key scene of the show, there would exist a contract mutually and voluntarily entered into, outlining how the bag is to be used, ensuring that it is displayed in a manner which is deemed appropriate by the brand serving to enhance the brand’s image weeding out any potential misrepresentation.
In the case of Twentieth Century Fox v Empire Distribution (2016), the record label, Empire Distribution sued Twentieth Century Fox over the use of the name "Empire" in the television series Empire. The court sided with Fox, stating that the show's use of the name was protected under the First Amendment. This case highlights the importance of clearly defining usage rights in licensing agreements. Brands must ensure that their trademarks are used in line with their intended purpose, or they risk confusion and potential litigation.
3. Approval of Storylines and Context
Despite being the times of widespread acceptance of creative expression, when it comes to brands being portrayed in a particular connotation, the brands agreeing to be showcased often require pre-approval of the scenes or storylines in which their products will appear. This helps them guard against the possibility of their image and IP being associated with unfavourable or conflicting messages.
Finding Guess liable for trademark infringement in the case of Gucci America, Inc. v Guess?, Inc. (2012), the court found that Guess was indeed liable to pay damages to Gucci for copying several of its signature designs, including its trademark in a way which led to brand dilution. With such strong precedence established, it is noted how important it is for the brands to have control over how their designs are represented. For the Emily in Paris Effect, creating a surge among the brands to collaborate or partner with the show, a fashion brand would want to ensure that its trademarks are not used in any context that could confuse consumers or tarnish the brand’s image.
4. Compensation and Royalties
The licensing agreements entered into by the parties also involve the compensation for the brand. This could be either in the form of a one-time fee for the use of the brand’s trademarks, or it could be a provision where ongoing royalties are based on viewership numbers or merchandise sales driven by the show. Once again taking the example of Jacquemus, if the demand for its cardigans spikes due to their appearance in Emily in Paris, the brand may receive royalties based on the sales data.
The case which elaborated this concept was Estate of Marilyn Monroe v. CMG Worldwide (2008), with the concern of unauthorised use of Marilyn Monroe’s likeness by CMG Worldwide, which used Monroe’s image to market products, without paying royalties to her estate. The court once again recognised the justiciable right and ruled in favour of the Monroe estate, awarding them damages. This precedent underscores for us the pertinence of royalty agreements in licensing deals, especially in high-visibility content like fashion in media. Again highlights how important it is for brands to ensure that compensation for their intellectual property is properly negotiated to avoid a legal dispute
This case involved the unauthorised use of Marilyn Monroe’s likeness by CMG Worldwide, which marketed products using Monroe's image without paying royalties to her estate. The court ruled in favour of the Monroe estate, awarding them damages. This underscores the importance of royalty agreements in licensing deals, especially in high-visibility contexts like fashion in media. Brands must ensure that compensation for their intellectual property is properly negotiated to avoid legal disputes.
5. Territorial Rights
The reach of an entertainment giant like Netflix goes global, and with that kind of widespread reach, brands should be cautious about defining which territories their trademarks are protected in. This step is taken to ensure that the brand's IP is secure not only in countries where it already has a presence but also in new markets where the show might introduce its products.
In the case of Starbucks Corp. v. Morinaga Milk Industry Co. (2018), where Starbucks went on to sue Morinaga for using its trademark on a product in Japan without permission, violating territorial rights. Ruling in favour of Starbucks, the court once again reinforced the need for brands to carefully manage where and how their trademarks are used across different countries. In a show like Emily in Paris, international exposure requires a careful agreement on territorial licensing to ensure that IP is protected across all markets.
6. Duration and Renewal
Just like any other licensing agreements, specifying the duration for its object, the licensing agreements of the duration of permissible usage of a brand’s IP are also air-tightly created. Such agreements are effective in protecting the brand’s IP when they align with the period of the show, after which the rights would need to be renewed.
Once again bringing into light the clear time frames for which trademark can be used, the court in the case of Major League Baseball v. Sed Non-Olet Denarius (1993) sided with Major League Baseball's (MLB) claim of unjust use of logo beyond the agreed-upon period, by the charity organisation Sed Non-Olet, Denarius. This case highlights the importance of well-defined durations in licensing agreements to avoid unauthorised use of trademarks after contracts expire.
7. Monitoring and Enforcement
The job is half done with having the agreement in place, the brands from thereon have a team dedicated to monitoring the use of their IP in the show to ensure compliance with the terms of the agreement. If a show exceeds the agreed-upon usage or portrays the brand in an undesirable light, the brand can take legal action to enforce the terms of the contract or seek damages for any breach.
In the case of Tiffany & Co. v. Costco Wholesale Corp. (2017), Tiffany sues Costco for selling rings with the label "Tiffany," despite them not being made by Tiffany & Co. The court ruled in favour of Tiffany awarding the damages for the trademark infringement. This case stands as a cautionary tale to us where the brands must at all times be on-guard monitoring and enforcing trademark rights, to prevent obstructions to redressal such as doctrine of laches and the like.
The Role of Intellectual Property in Fashion Collaborations
With the marketing world being taken by storm such as it has been since the ‘Emily in Paris’ Effect dropped, the waves of ways of brand promotions will continue to chart a new course, but what remains a constant is the dedicated teams of brands being ever ready to face the new challenges as they come about. With the rise of streaming platforms and the shift toward direct-to-consumer marketing, we can expect fashion brands to increasingly invest in these collaborations. Television shows are becoming global runways, allowing brands to reach millions of viewers almost instantly. For established fashion houses, this presents a golden opportunity to stay relevant in the ever-evolving fashion landscape.
Whilst being always on guard with extensive legal teams stands as a viable option for major fashion brands, the smaller labels must take caution from the beginning and be strategic about their collaborations and partnerships. They need to balance the desire for visibility with the need for legal protection, ensuring that their designs, logos, and creative elements are safeguarded when featured on large platforms. Emerging brands will need to secure trademarks early, carefully draft licensing agreements, and be vigilant about protecting their creative assets to avoid any infringement or misuse. In the following section, we have provided some insights into what new start-ups can bring to their use.
Insights for New Startups in Fashion Collaborations
For startups eager to collaborate with major media platforms, securing intellectual property rights is essential, the given below points must be taken into consideration as you plan your next business move.
Trademark Early and Often: Ensure that your logos, designs, and even brand name are protected before entering any major collaborations.
Craft Clear Licensing Agreements: Outline how your brand will be used in the show, specifying the context, duration, and territory of usage, the devil lies in the details, so it's best to make it an angel when the ball is in your court.
Monitor Brand Representation: When it comes to your brand, protect it like a lioness protects her cubs, always keep a close eye on how your brand is portrayed to prevent dilution or misrepresentation.
Embrace Sustainability: If your brand champions a specific ethos, partner with platforms or shows that reflect those values to align your creative and ethical goals.
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