Defiant Aussie mum wins David vs Goliath battle against $429 billion company
An Australian small business owner has scored a huge win after fending off threats from one of the biggest companies in the world. Rim Daghmash named her brand Kenz Beauty because of her daughter Kenzie, and the name means "treasure of beauty" in Arabic.
But the Queensland mum has accidentally triggered a fight with Louis Vuitton (LVMH), which has a market cap of more than $429 billion. The French fashion juggernaut has dozens of different brands under its umbrella, and one of them is called Kenzo.
LVMH said Daghmash's beauty brand name was "deceptively similar" to theirs.
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Louis Vuitton threw its global weight against the Queensland mum and wanted her to change the name to something different.
Despite the threats, Daghmash refused to back down.
"A five-year-old will be able to tell the difference between Kenzo and Kenz Beauty, they are two totally different names," Daghmash told A Current Affair.
The David vs Goliath fight was revealed in 2023, and the two have been going back and forth over what the Queenslander's business should be called ever since.Some of the suggestions from LVMH were "The Beauty of Kenz", or "Beautiful Kenz".
However, Daghmash stuck to her guns and wanted to stay as close to Kenz Beauty as possible.
"Kenzie is my autistic daughter's name, in Arabic (which is my heritage) it means my treasure," she said on her website.
"I called it Kenz Beauty... because Kenzie's beauty is out of this world, autistic children are so beautiful."
The mum and LVMH eventually came to an agreement that the brand could be called Kenz Beauty & Co.
"I think that they got sick of it as much as we did," Daghmash told the Channel 9 programme.
"[I'm] very relieved because this business is my life. It means everything for me and for my family."
Her victory in the legal battle has allowed her to expand her business.
Daghmash went from selling beauty products from her house to opening the state's only Moroccan hammam, which is a type of ladies-only day spa that she used to attend when she was growing up in the Middle East.
She now has a team of five skin therapists to offer a range of beauty services.Sign in to access your portfolio
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