By DITA DE BONI
A stoush over red-rimmed gumboots will arrive in the High Court in Christchurch this week.
Gumboot maker Skellerup says in a statement of claim filed with the court in June and due to be heard tomorrow that gumboots made by Otorohanga producer Bullseye Rubber Products sport
a "confusingly similar" red rim, and accuses the company of "passing off" its product.
If Skellerup succeeds in its claim, Bullseye could be forced to pay $250,000 in damages plus the costs of the High Court action.
Skellerup has filed an application for interim injunction and wants a permanent injunction placed on Bullseye restraining it from selling its Red Rhino brand of boot "or any other confusingly similar name in association with gumboots."
It also wants all Red Rhino boots recalled.
Skellerup has been manufacturing Red Band gumboots since 1948, and says a red "top bind" on the boots as well as red "foxing" - a band at the sole of the boot - are "distinctive elements of the get-up utilised by the plaintiff to identify its Red Band gumboots and have become associated in the minds of the New Zealand purchasing public".
Skellerup management could not be reached for contact yesterday and Bullseye representative Paul Wallace said he did not believe his boots infringed in any way on those of Skellerup.
The companies are thought to have been warring over gumboots and wet weather gear since Bullseye started producing the Red Rhino boots this year.
Bullseye says the stoush between the two companies has extended to its manufacturing plants in China and the Czech Republic, and claims to have evidence of attempted skulduggery at its overseas operations.
Skellerup says in its statement of claim that it believes Bullseye boots made in China are "mass produced" and "not subject to rigorous quality checks", a claim Bullseye rejects.
Skellerup is the market leader for gumboots in New Zealand.
Bullseye rubber products have been sold for 10 years, and the Red Rhino brand was introduced this year. The company says its export sales have been strong.
The New Zealand gumboot market is estimated to be worth $10 million a year.
