While Kylie Jenner's billion dollar beauty brand may have the Kylie Cosmetics founder on cloud nine, the business has been hit with a sour note this past week.
On Monday a makeup brand called Sheree Cosmetics filed a lawsuit against Kylie Cosmetics alleging its Born To Sparkle eye shadow copies Sheree Cosmetics' eye shadow palette of the same name.
Alabama-based Sheree Cosmetics founder Tiffany Hermann says her Born To Sparkle Glitter Palette went on sale October 2017, while Jenner's Born To Sparkle Glitter Eyes – the single shade in a liquid eyeshadow range – went on sale in August this year.
In a statment to Allure, Hermann said: "Our Glitter Palette, Born to Sparkle, was created in September 2017 and went live for sale on our website on October 2017. We were the first to enter the market with this concept. Kylie then released her own glitter eyeshadow (same product) named the same name (Born to Sparkle) in 2018, long after ours, and proceeded to heavily market the same product with the same name, after ours was already on the market.
"As we were first to market with name and product, we knew we had to protect our trademark and stand up for our business. As they say, imitation is the best form of flattery. I’m starting to learn this practice is just part of the business cycle and happens more often than the public is led to believe.
"We would like to be sure our ideas for Born to Sparkle are protected and what we believe is fair prevails, and we hope this protects other entrepreneurs like us from future similar situations."
It is important to note that although the Born To Sparkle palette was launched in 2017, United States Patent and Trademark Office records reflect that the trademark Herrmann mentions wasn't filed until August 30, 2018, several weeks after Kylie Cosmetics' Born to Sparkle was launched as part of Jenner's 21st birthday collection.
"This has been a true wake-up call as a businesswoman and in some ways a disappointing one. That said, I know I’m the visionary behind this brand, and excited to have the chance to keep creating new and innovative beauty products for our customers around the world," Herrmann continued to tell Allure. "You can’t take the vision out of the visionary!"
