Ivanka Trump's Cadie wedge sandals look strikingly similar to Derek Lam's Ayami wedge sandals. Could it be a case of the age-old adage that great minds think alike? Not according to Lam, who immediately sent a cease-and-desist letter to warn the former model, the Trump Footwear company and its licensee, Marc Fisher Footwear. The order was to pull the Cadie sandals off the market in seven days. Leaving no stone unturned, Lam's lawyers are also working on obtaining sales records -- past and future -- of the Cadie wedge.
According to a WWD reporting, the shoes, which Lam said are " blatant and intentional" copies of the Ayami shoes were discovered by one of Lam's shoe designers who was shopping at the time on Bloomingdales' website. Jan-Hendrik Schlottmann, chief executive officer for the Derek Lam label said he had ordered the Cadies but hasn't received them yet.
However, mums the word from Ivana Trump and Marc Fisher Footwear representatives. Even though Lam's Ayami shoes sell for $780, and Trump's for $150, lawyers for Lam argued that consumers would be confused by the two shoes due to it's similarities. Besides, according to Schlottmann, the amount of time and money that went into investing in the shoe is a lot. "We had to protest this," he said in the article.
The Ayami sandals feature three tone wedged heels and large white stitches along the bottom of the heels. The leather toe pieces intertwine and criss-cross, while the ankle-support pieces feature five slingback straps and buckle closures. The Cadie sandals description? Exactly the same.
After Schlottmann ordered the Cadies from Bloomingdales, he mentioned that he couldn't find them anywhere on Trump's website. "I'm sure Ms. Trump doesn't know her wedge is [a] copy because it's through a license," He concluded.
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