And now the three sisters have launched their own cosmetic line called KHROMA. Only problem is the name they chose belongs to a real makeup artist named LEE TILLETT. And she has officially filed suit against the Kardashians in Los Angeles superior court. She is suing for $10 million dollars in damages, claiming the Kardashians stole the name of her makeup line, Kroma, which was founded in 2004, and simply added an "h." "I developed the Kroma line myself, built my business through my own hard work, and took the legal steps necessary to protect it," Tillett said in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel. "And yet I have now been forced into a legal battle with the Kardashians simply because they have decided to take something that doesn't belong to them."
This is not the first time the Kardashians have faced legal action in regards to Khroma. Back in October, another makeup line called Chroma threatened to sue the Kardashians unless they changed the name of the brand. Michael Rey, co-owner of Chroma Makeup, told TMZ that the reality stars' new range "cheapens" his line and "creates confusion in the marketplace." With the beauty market so oversaturated, it's not an unfair complaint. Though Rey went even further in the same interview to say his customers would be "embarrassed" to find they had purchased a Kardashian brand in error.
The Kardashians did indeed change the name after the threat from Chroma Makeup, and Boldface Licensing + Branding, the company that owns the Kardashian license, claimed they had gone through several steps to secure the brand's originality and name, telling the Huffington Post, "Boldface Licensing + Branding has gone through the appropriate legal channels in obtaining the rights to use the name Khroma Beauty by Kourtney, Kim and Khloé in the Color Category with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, making all proper legal filings."
UPDATE: The Kardashian sisters' make-up line Khroma Beauty was served with a preliminary injunction by U.S. District Court for the Central District of California after getting into legal snafu with another similarly named beauty brand "Kroma". This means that sales of the Kardashian beauty line will halt until a final decision is rendered. Apparently since Khroma was launched by the Kardashians, Tillett's line Kroma has seen a decrease in sales of 25%. Judge Audrey Collins wrote in her ruling, "Tillett has demonstrated that it will likely lose business opportunities, customers, and goodwill due to Boldface's use of the confusingly similar Khroma Beauty marks. This Court has little doubt that, in short order, the Khroma Beauty products will likely eliminate Tillett's business entirely, creating irreparable harm to justify an injunction."
Boldface Licensing + Branding, which owns the licensing rights to Kardashian's Kroma pleaded with the Judge to not grant the injunction as it would result in millions of dollars in lost sales. However, the Judge in evaluating the facts believe that no injunction would completely destroy Tillett's Kroma and that "the difference between the two is that Tillett has superior rights to Boldface. As a result, the balance of hardships tips sharply in Tillett's favor."
Lee Tillett has graciously agreed to allow stores to continue to sell any Khroma products already in stock, but unless Boldface can get the Ninth Circuit to reverse the District Court, the preliminary injunction will hold.
KhromaBeauty.com directs users to their Facebook page currently.
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