In this case, the EUIPO had considered that the expression ‘mid season’ would be understood as simply meaning the ‘middle of a season’, whether that be winter, summer, spring or autumn, and that this meaning therefore had no direct link with the goods in question. The General Court takes a different approach. It finds that, in the fashion sector, the expression ‘mid season’ is used to refer to clothing and accessories suitable for the transitional periods of the year, in particular spring and autumn. It also relied on evidence not taken into account by the Board of Appeal, in particular dictionary extracts indicating that ‘mid-season’ referred to a temperate period of the year, between the extreme temperatures of winter and summer, namely, more specifically, spring and autumn.

This interpretation is reinforced by the slogan ‘For When It’s Not Quite Cold Not Quite Warm’, which refers directly to weather conditions that are neither really cold nor really warm, characteristic of the transitional seasons.

In the Court’s view, the English-speaking public will therefore immediately perceive the sign as describing the destination or characteristics of the goods in question, namely items designed to be worn during the mid-season.

👉 This decision illustrates once again that the assessment of descriptive character must take into account the actual understanding of the sign within its economic sector.