In Judgment T-580/08, the Court upheld the opposition brought by PEPE JEANS against the contested CTM application PEPEQUILLO for goods and services in Classes 18, 25 and 35 on the grounds of Articles 8 (1) (b) and (8) (5) CTMR.

There is a medium degree of visual similarity and low degree phonetically; from the conceptual point of view for the Spanish consumer, PEPE refers to a common nickname for JOSE, and QUILLO is the affectionate abbreviation for ‘chiquillo’ (affectionate way to refer to ‘kid, youngster’), so the relevant public might see a play on words for the contested CTM as well as in the earlier marks with ‘PEPE’.

The opponent has sufficiently proved the notoriety of its earlier marks, PEPE and PEPE JEANS, which enjoy a high degree of distinctiveness, so there is a risk of taking unfair advantage by PEPEQUILLO: indeed the consumer might buy jeans or a purse with the contested brand because it is similar to the earlier marks .

* Quillo is a popular expression for 'mate' in Southern Spain, for Quillo choir click here.