Fashion, Design & Lifestyle: The business of style. The art of protection.

If your brand's value lies in how your products look, feel and present themselves – from a distinctive silhouette or signature texture to iconic packaging – you know that protecting your identity is just as important as creating it. And that has never been harder. 

The rise of ultra-fast online copying, social media-fuelled "dupe culture", the exploitation of well-known brands' reputation, and increasingly parasitic competition place original designs and brands under constant pressure. These challenges span industries and market segments, from emerging labels and high-street brands to premium and luxury houses, wherever design and brand identity drive value. At the same time, social media and content creator marketing have created powerful new channels for reaching consumers, bringing with them new legal challenges around advertising compliance, disclosure requirements and brand control.

That is why we are launching our Fashion, Design & Lifestyle industry group.

What we do

Whether you represent a global luxury house, an established consumer brand or an emerging design-driven business, we advise on the protection, enforcement and commercialisation of your most valuable assets: your designs, your brand identity and product authenticity. We also help you navigate the rapidly evolving legal landscape of social media and the digital economy, advising brands, agencies and content creators alike.

Our core expertise spans the full lifecycle of design and brand protection, from developing protection strategies and securing and managing design rights and trademarks to enforcing them against counterfeits, lookalikes and parasitic imitation. We further advise on the commercial structures surrounding brands and designs, including licensing, selective distribution, fashion law, influencer marketing and sustainability compliance, as well as anti-counterfeiting and product piracy, from customs measures and market awareness initiatives to civil litigation. With offices across CEE, we coordinate cross-border strategies seamlessly throughout the region.

Your challenges rarely fit into a single legal category and neither does our advice. We combine an IP and unfair competition perspective with a clear understanding of the broader commercial context, enabling practical, strategic solutions that protect not only your rights, but also the value and reputation you have built.

For a detailed overview of our services, please visit our dedicated industry page.

Why now

Product piracy and counterfeiting remain among the most serious threats to brand value – and can also pose significant risks to consumer health and safety. The speed and reach of online commerce have made counterfeit products more widespread and harder to contain. Alongside outright counterfeits, AI-powered copying, "dupe" trends and increasingly sophisticated lookalike strategies are blurring the line between inspiration and imitation. At the same time, the legal framework is evolving: the EU Design Reform and the Digital Services Act are reshaping rights, responsibilities and enforcement tools for brands, platforms and other market participants.

We see a clear need for legal advisors who combine deep IP expertise with a genuine understanding of the industries they serve. That is exactly what this industry group is built to deliver.

What's ahead

In the coming months, we will publish a series of focused insights on the legal challenges shaping the fashion, design and lifestyle sectors, including the premium and luxury segment. Topics will range from design protection and anti-counterfeiting to dupe culture, AI-enabled imitation and sustainability. Stay tuned.

If you would like to discuss how we can support your brand protection strategy, please contact our team and subscribe to our newsletter for updates and insights.