Victoria Beckham bags win against counterfeit websites copying her brand, writes RICHARD EDEN
She has a £31million mansion in London’s Holland Park at her disposal, not to mention trophy properties in Miami, Dubai and of course the Cotswolds.
But never assume that Victoria Beckham is content to hang out at home, enjoying the £425 million fortune she and her husband David have amassed (so far).
I can reveal that the famously disciplined fashion designer, who confesses to starting her day by drinking three tablespoons of cider vinegar, is currently enjoying the sweetest of victories – over a group of six employees who have been trying to cash in on the Beckham brand. by selling counterfeit goods.
The battle unfolded after ‘Posh’, as Victoria was known in her days with the Spice Girls, came under attack by the appearance of no fewer than 46 websites, all calling themselves ‘victoriabeckhambeauty’, each with a different ‘geographical indicator’ – implying that they were connected to another country. They all bore her company’s “logo, brand and copyrighted images.”
Aware that none of them had anything to do with her fashion and beauty products, which are sold in 50 countries, Victoria filed a complaint with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Mediation Center in late January.
Victoria Beckham is enjoying a victory against a group of six employees who are making money from her brand by selling counterfeit goods
Beckham was attacked by the appearance of no fewer than 46 websites, all calling themselves ‘victoriabeckhambeauty’ with her company’s logo and copyright.
The verdict, handed down this week, was unequivocally in her favor. It is noted that all the domain names were registered on the same day last November and that they copy ‘the look and feel’ of Victoria’s official website – and like hers are used as online stores.
The four women and two men who registered the websites were invited to respond to Victoria’s complaint. They refused to do this.
WIPO scathingly concludes that their activities “constitute a pattern of bad faith abuse” by making a deliberate and calculated attempt to attract customers “for commercial gain” through a “likelihood of confusion.”
Recognizing Victoria’s evidence that what the group of six were selling was ‘most likely counterfeit goods’ indicates this is a form of fraud – and ordered all domain names to be transferred to her.
It’s quite a triumph for Victoria, who celebrates her 50th birthday next week. In 2002, she tried (and failed) to stop Peterborough United from using the nickname ‘The Posh’, arguing that the word ‘Posh’ was ‘inexorably associated with her’.
I hope she now indulges in what for her is the rarest of luxury: a smile.
Cosmetics show outfit that made aunt blush
As an ‘angel’ for Victoria’s Secret lingerie, Leomie Anderson is used to wearing very little, but this led to a ‘dress-down’ from the BBC.
The London-born model, 31, is the presenter of BBC Three’s cosmetics reality competition Glow Up.
She tells me, “I had a little outfit that showed my breasts and they said I couldn’t wear it.”
During a preview screening of the sixth series, she added: ‘I don’t have big breasts but I didn’t have much material to cover them. So they tried to crop it so you could only see my head and shoulders.”
Leonie, who wore a black bikini and a leather jacket and trousers, revealed: ‘They let me zip up my jacket and in the end it was fine.’
Leomie Anderson was given a dressing down by the BBC after wearing a black bikini and leather jacket and trousers during a preview of the sixth series of Glow Up
Many Tory MPs have raised a stink about the growing influence of the oil-rich Gulf states in Britain.
So what better way for the Qatari government to clear the air than by giving the gift of pleasant-smelling perfumes to a minister?
I hear that Andrew Mitchell, the Minister for Development, has received a ‘fragrance basket’ worth £369 from Qatar. Documents from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs state that the gift is ‘in the hands of the department’. It must be the most fragrant office in Whitehall.
Prince Harry said he and Meghan fled Britain in 2020 “out of fear for our lives,” but his brother Prince William appears to be able to live a fairly normal life.
I’m told he popped into a pub in North Norfolk this weekend with his mother-in-law, who was reportedly staying with the Prince and Princess of Wales over Easter.
A patron tells me: ‘It was all very quiet, without much fuss. He just walked in and through the pub. It looked like he was with Carole Middleton.” There was no sign of Catherine, who is being treated for an unknown form of cancer.
While Harry said he left Britain with Meghan ‘out of fear for our lives’, William (left) appears to be able to live a fairly normal life
Ministers trying to ban mobile phones in the classroom have an ally in no-nonsense choreographer Dame Arlene Phillips.
The former strict judge says that during rehearsals she ‘constantly’ has to tell dancers to ‘put your phone away’.
‘If you go in [dance] In class your phones can’t be with you – you have to concentrate,” Dame Arlene, 80, explained at the NHS Charity gala concert With All Our Hearts.
Strictly Come Dancing presenter Claudia Winkleman appears to regret a beautician using new technology to analyze her face.
‘I did a Pro Derm Scan and the woman said, ‘Your skin is disgusting, you’re old, you’re grey. Have you ever had a glass of water?’ says Winkleman, 52, at the No7 Future Renew party at the Searcys Club in London.
‘I didn’t do that. I don’t believe in it, I don’t do it and I don’t care.’
Rosamund is aware
Saltburn star Rosamund Pike – known for her signature bob – showed off a striking new hairstyle at a red carpet event in New York.
Rosamund Pike showed off a striking new hairstyle at a red carpet event in New York
Pictured: Pike at the Brooklyn Artists Ball, held at the Brooklyn Museum on Tuesday, April 9
The Oxford graduate wore her hair in a loop braid, complete with a butterfly clip
The 45-year-old Oxford graduate, who once noted, “Actresses are generally not allowed to have hairstyles because short hair is not considered versatile,” wore her locks in a looped braid, complete with a butterfly clip.
Here’s a house that will hit all the right notes: the former home of Britain’s most celebrated living pianist, Alfred Brendel, has been put on the market by his ex-wife, Irene. Plush Manor, near Dorchester in Dorset, is for sale for £4.25 million.
“The house provided my former husband with a refuge from his relentless travel schedule and created a peaceful sanctuary for the children,” she says. They bought the eight-bedroom property in 1993 for £1 million.