The court’s decision sets precedent for protecting Panerai’s iconic watch collections in the future, allowing the Maison to further its commitment to act against infringers globally.

The decision rendered by Guangdong Shenzhen Luohu District People’s Court last October 12th, 2019 and confirmed as final on April 13th, 2020, was the last step in a process that started in 2016, when Panerai first took legal action against Awsky. As Awsky initially agreed to stop the infringement, the matter was settled, however, later Awsky reneged on the agreement which forced Panerai to act again.

The court has ordered the defendants in the case to cease the sales of the infringing watches immediately. The defendants are also required to compensate Panerai for the trademark infringement.

Awsky was a significant target: they sold 48 different Panerai lookalike models in at least 16 online stores and had significant investments to promote its products.

As part of Richemont, Panerai is well renowned for its iconic design and distinctive details of its watches – a large cushion-shaped case, luminescent numerals and indices, the use of overlapping plates for the dial for a stunning underwater visibility, the patent for the crown-protecting bridge that was originally born to meet the needs of the Italian Navy.