The third Saturday of each month free with El País.The third Saturday of each month free with El País.Manolo Blahnik, pictured in 2016 at his Burlington Arcade store in London.Photo: Getty ImagesBritish firm Manolo Blahnik has won a legal battle to use his name in China for the first time after 22 years.The brand, founded in London in the early seventies by the shoe designer born in La Palma who gave it its name, had not been able to use that name in the Asian giant due to a trademark rights issue.As reported from the firm in a statement issued this week, now that dispute has ended and the Chinese supreme court has confirmed the ownership of the name of the firm to the company of its founder, instead of continuing to attribute it to the Chinese businessman Fang Yuzhou, that in 1999 he had registered it in his country.This legal battle "was a big hole in our existence," Kristina Blahnik, CEO of the brand and niece of its promoter, told the Financial Times, "when they called us [to communicate the court ruling] we shed real tears."Shoe designer Manolo Blahnik, 79, has spent the last two years in retirement at his house in Bath (England), as he explained in a recent interview with EPS.From there, he assured him, he has continued to think about the future of his firm.Now, the brand is facing a new and extensive market, China, because after these more than two decades it will finally be able to market its shoes there under its name (although its models could already be purchased in the country through online platforms). -luxury fashion commerce).China has a complex trademark registration system that grants the right to the trademark name to the first to register.And that was precisely what happened to Manolo Blahnik when he wanted to access that market: his firm, which had gained great popularity thanks to the success of the series Sex and the City, released in 1998 and whose protagonist, Carrie Bradshaw, exhibited episode after episode his collection of manolos, had already been registered by a local businessman in China.According to The Wall Street Journal, complaints from Western companies about these name registration laws in China are constant and represent "a generalized infringement of copyright", although the Beijing government has recently modified these rules, which he is making legal cases winnable, as has happened now with Manolo Blahnik.In 2020, the basketball player Michael Jordan set a precedent by prevailing over the Chinese firm Qiaodan Sports in the use of the logo with his silhouette and luxury brands such as the Italian group Zegna or the British company Dunhill, have also won lawsuits related to their brands in China.Article updated on July 23, 2022 |4:01 p.m.How a pair of Manolo Blahnik boots were responsible for the creation of 'Sex and the City'Newsletter It's rare to liveStories and essays about culture, intimacy and feminism in your email.Linda Evangelista returns to star in a fashion campaign after the trauma of her body deformation due to a treatmentWhy this height obsession on Tinder?X-ray of the great physical prejudice that men face in dating apps"I've already heard that I'm too old for some roles": Eva Green, the iconic femme fatale who fled HollywoodAitana: “When I get overwhelmed I call my mother and I realize that we all have problems”The unimaginable heyday of unconventional tattooing: artists and trends shaping the new 'tatoo' landscapeThe best news stories, fashion, beauty and feminism in your email every week.