For Christmas, Williams-Sonoma got Amazon the gift that truly keeps on giving: A federal lawsuit.
In a complaint filed Dec. 14, the home goods company accused Amazon.com of selling unauthorized Williams-Sonoma merchandise. It also claimed the retail giant “unfairly and deceptively engaged in a widespread campaign of copying” designs of its West Elm furniture for its own furniture line, Rivet. Sometimes the items are sold at a significant markup, the complaint states; other times, they’re sold at lower prices.
It’s widely known that third-party vendors sell counterfeit products on Amazon, but the company has sidestepped blame in the past by claiming it merely provides the platform and can’t control those vendors. This complaint is different. The knockoff Williams-Sonoma products are being sold and marketed by Amazon itself, putting Amazon in direct competition with Williams-Sonoma, according to the company’s lawyers at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe.
Although Williams-Sonoma doesn’t license its branded products to other online retailers, Amazon markets some merchandise on its website as Williams-Sonoma products “in a confusing manner that is likely to lead, and has led, customers to believe” that they are buying licensed Williams-Sonoma goods, the complaint says.
