When it comes to branding trademark battles, we’ve seen plenty of David vs Goliath stories over the last few years. Indeed, it often feels somewhat celebratory when a small brand takes on a big one and wins. But here’s an example where the similarities clearly aren’t coincidental.
Have you heard the one about the ‘dog fashion’ magazine called Dogue? No, it isn’t a joke – Dogue is a real independent magazine focussing on canine fashion. And Vogue publisher Condé Nast has filed a lawsuit accusing it of trademark infringement. It’s pretty obvious from the covers that this is a blatant parody – unsurprising given that Vogue has produced some of the best magazine covers in the world.
From the punny name to the large serif wordmark adorning the top of the cover, there can be no mystery about who Dogue is parodying.
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According to the New York Times, the print magazine is only sold at one newsstand in Beverly Hills, Calif., sells about 100 copies per issue. Founded by Olga Portnaya, the magazine started as an Instagram account named Coverdogs before becoming a print publication in 2021. Portnaya secured the trademark to ‘Dogue’ last year, no doubt prompting the Condé Nast lawsuit.
“Dogue is a dog fashion magazine that has always been clearly branded, independently authored, and distinct in both concept and execution,” Portnaya told the New York Times. “Art and culture have always evolved through reinterpretation and dialogue. “For me, this is a larger fight: I’m not just fighting for my own work and our community, but for other independent creators.”
But there is perhaps a more specific reason why Vogue has taken issue with Dogue. In 2024, Vogue launched its own series of digital covers featuring dogs. The title? You guessed it:
So, if it seems unsurprising that Vogue has decided to go after a similarly branded parody named Dogue, it looks positively inevitable given that the brand has used the Dogue concept itself. Inevitable and a little disingenuous, perhaps – Vogue’s ‘Dogue’ covers arrived three years later than Portnaya’s first print edition.
Lawyers for the Condé Nast have demanded in their filing that Portnaya pay the company damages and hand over all copies of Dogue to the company for “destruction.”
Portnaya has started a GoFundMe to pay for her legal costs, which currently sits at over $8,000.