Dealing with Distributors
Thursday 29 April at 4.30pm
It's very appealing - the idea of having a distributor for your brand. You sell to them, they pay you, and they sort out the market.
It can be great way of growing a fashion brand - as long as you have in place a legal framework which works in your favour. Last year's Dekline case showed how a footwear distributor was able to benefit from a distributorship agreement in a way which parallels the legal protection given to agents. Come and learn from the mistakes made in this case.
Stephen Sidkin, head of the fashionlaw group at Fox Williams will show you the way, with some frightening examples from our industry. He will take you through the Dekline case. Decided in 2009, this is a text book study on how not to operate or try to terminate a distributorship agreement.
- be amazed at how a brand owner and distributor managed to confuse the terms of their distributorship agreement;
- marvel at the way in which the distributor was able to claim significant damages from the brand owner on termination;
- Understand the difference between an "agent" and a "distributor"
Fox Williams are Associate Members of UKFT Exports. They are an independent business law firm in the City, specialising in corporate, IT and e-commerce. The fashionlaw group is unique within the legal profession; created in 2003, it is a cross-departmental team of lawyers who are passionate about fashion, offering advice to clients on the legal mechanisms necessary to protect and encourage the growth of their businesses.
Among their clients are: Superdry, Sunspel, Trespass, Orla Kiely, John Smedley, Holland and Sherry, Hi Tec, Daks and Addict and they have a great website at www.fashionlaw.co.uk.
The seminar will begin at 4.30pm. Afterwards there will be a Q&A session with the Fox Williams team, and an opportunity to meet your fellow delegates.
Cost per ticket:
Members £10.00 + VAT (£11.75)
Non-members £35.00 + VAT (£41.13)
Places are limited and demand is likely to be high, so please book your place now, using the form overleaf, and return it with your cheque or credit card details to:
Laurian Davies
UKFT
5 Portland Place
London W1B 1PW
Tel: 020 7636 5577 Fax: 020 7636 7848
E-mail: laurian.davies@ukft.org
