Hermes, a bookshop in the seaside town of Izmir, Turkey, has successfully fought off attempts by luxury French fashion house, Hermès, to prevent it from using its name.

An Ankara court has partially voided a decision by TurkPatent, Turkey’s intellectual property authority, that prevented any brand other than Hermès Paris from using the name Hermes.

The David and Goliath battle between the two began in 2021 when the Turkish retailer sought to register a trademark for his 15-year-old bookshop. The French company’s legal team then initiated proceedings against TurkPatent and took the case to court to prevent the shop owner from using “Hermes” in its brand name or in any of its marketing materials. It argued that there was “similarity and risk of confusion” between the two names, emphasizing that it is also active in publishing through its magazine.

The bookshop’s owner, Umit Nar, however, stated that in his fifteen years of business, the store had not once been mistaken for the French fashion brand, famous for its outrageously expensive handbags and long wait lists. He argued that the deity Hermes is closely linked to the ancient history of Smyrna — Izmir’s old name — on the Aegaen coast, where many Greek myths are set. “Hermes, Zeus or Santa Claus belong to the cultural heritage of humanity,” he stated, while speaking to AFP.

It’s not unusual for large fashion conglomerates like Hermes to adopt aggressive intellectual property strategies but it is relatively uncommon for small independent brands to fight such a challenge. The time and energy spent dealing with legal battles can be enormous and the financial toll is often prohibitive. It’s not yet clear if there will be an appeal but Nar, it seems, is not planning to back down.

Hermès fashion house did not immediately respond to a request for comment.