Since 2022, I have been trapped in an unnecessarily protracted and expensive trademark dispute with the world’s largest cosmetics and personal care business which has caused untold damage to my small business. You can read a summary of that dispute here.
The crux of this case is that L’Oreal has the word NAKED trademarked which it uses for some of its Urban Decay eyeshadow palettes and a small amount of other make up items (such as concealer and foundation). For this reason, L’Oreal says I am not allowed to trademark what has been my company name for the last 15 years – nkd – and that I must change the name of my waxing and beauty business altogether, despite us building up a reputation as nkd since 2009.
One of the stranger aspects of this case is how many other (non L’Oreal owned) trademarks do actually contain the word NAKED (which my mark does not) and do operate in the field of cosmetics and make-up (which my business also does not). These brand names and classifications are far closer to NAKED’s make up range than nkd’s waxing and hair removal aftercare products, which begs the question of why L’Oreal have chosen to pursue this course of action so vigorously against my small business?
You can search the Intellectual Property Office (IPO)’s trademark database here to see which other trademarks contain the word NAKED and are already registered in Class 3.
https://www.gov.uk/search-for-trademark
These results include:
NAKED - Colognes; eaux de parfum; perfumes.
BUD NAKED - Cosmetics
THE NAKED PEACH - Skin care preparations, namely, face wash, makeup remover, facial toner, skin moisturizer, face masks for cosmetic use, face scrub, body scrub, body wash, body lotion, body butter, body wax and facial wax; cosmetics.
NAKED LEAF - Non-medicated toilet preparations; bath preparations; bath elixir; shower preparations; shower gel; preparations for the care of the skin, face and body; body butter; skin care preparations; skin moisturisers; oils, creams and lotions for the skin; soaps; perfumery; perfumes; toilet water; aftershave; cologne; essential oils; aromatherapy products; massage preparations; deodorants and antiperspirants; preparations for the care of the scalp and hair; hair lotions; hair gel; shampoos and conditioners; hair colourants; hair styling products; dentifrices; preparations for the care of the mouth and teeth; shaving preparations; pre-shave and aftershave preparations; sun-tanning and sun protection preparations; self-tanning preparations; cosmetics; make-up and make-up removing preparations; lip care preparations; talcum powder; cotton wool, cotton sticks; cosmetic pads, tissues or wipes; pre-moistened or impregnated cleansing pads, tissues or wipes; beauty masks, facial packs; cleaning preparations.
THE NAKED BEE - Bath soaps in liquid, solid or gel form; Body lotions; Face and body lotions; Hair shampoo; Hand soaps; Lip balm; Lip gloss; Lip polisher; Liquid bath soaps; Shampoo-conditioners.
NAKED NATURALS - Antibacterial skin soaps; cosmetics; hair care preparations; hair conditioners; hair gels; hair mousses; hair pomades; hair relaxers; hair sprays; hair straightening preparations; hair styling preparations; non-medicated skin care preparations; non-medicated toiletries; shampoo conditioners; shampoos; skin bronzing creams; skin clarifiers; skin cleansers; skin lighteners; skin lotion; skin masks; soaps; skin soaps; bleaching preparations and other substances for laundry use; cleaning, polishing, scouring and abrasive preparations; perfumery; essential oils; hair lotions; dentifrices; depilatories; make-up removing preparations; lipsticks, beauty masks; shaving preparations; preservatives for leather; creams for leather.
GO NAKED (includes personal care products; body soaps; non-medicated hand washes and body washes; sanitizers for household use; skin cleansers and hand and body lotions.)
Naked Tan - Sun-tanning preparations (cosmetics); suntanning preparations including sunless tanning preparations in the form of solutions, creams, moisturisers and aerosols.
And on top of those registered trademarks, are a plethora of other “naked” branded cosmetic products already on available to buy in the UK, all of which are far more similar to the use of L’Oreal’s actual use of NAKED than nkd’s products.
CHERRY COSMETICS BUTT NAKED MAKEUP PALETTE
REVERS COSMETICS NAKED SKIN MATCH FOUNDATION
ECCO VERDE PRETTY NAKED FACE PALETTE
REVOLUTION LIVE LOVE LOVE NAKED EYESHADOW PALETTE
FOREVER COSMETICS BUTTERLY EYESHADOW MAKEUP PALETTE – NAKED GLITTER SHADES
In my opinion this makes it very clear no single entity – not even the giant that is L’Oreal – can (nor should be able to) lay claim to a single word across such a huge market and industry, let alone derivatives and other versions of that word.
