Do You Know The UGG Boots ? If You Are The Fans.

This article is about the type of footwear. For the brand known as "UGG", see UGG Australia. 

A pair of ugg boots

Ugg boots (sometimes called uggs) are unisex sheepskin boots, made of twin-faced sheepskin with fleece on the inside and with a tanned outer surface, often with a synthetic sole. Ugg boots are believed to have been first developed in New Zealand or Australia, although the exact date is uncertain.

There has been a dispute between manufacturers of ugg boots, as to whether "ugg" is a generic term and thus ineligible for trademark protection, especially in the region of origin. Deckers Outdoor Corporation holds the UGG trademark in more than 100 countries worldwide. Notable exceptions are Australia and New Zealand where the term is considered generic. 

Cutting ugg boot pieces from a sheepskin using a cutting press

Stitching the innersole of an ugg boot

History

The origins of the ugg boot style are disputed, with both Australia and New Zealand claiming to have been the origin of the footwear. Nevertheless, it appears that "fug boots" (thought to be a shortened form of "flying ugg boots") were used by aviators during World War I, and that they were present in rural Australia during the 1920s. While it is not clear when manufacturing started, by 1933 ugg boots were being manufactured by Blue Mountains Ugg Boots, and Mortels Sheepskin Factory were making the boots from the late 1950s.

In regard to naming, it appears that ugg boots, ugh boots and ug boots have been used as generic terms for sheepskin boots in Australia and New Zealand since at least the 1970s,although individual accounts have suggested that the terms (or variations thereof) were employed earlier. The 1970s saw the emergence of advertising using the names, but Brian Smith, (who founded Ugg Holdings Inc), has stated that the boots were referred to as "uggs" long before the word was trademarked, The Mortel Skeepskin Factory has been making ugg boots since 1958 with Frank Mortel claiming he named them Ugg boots after his wife commented that the first pair he made were "ugly".

In the 1960s, ugg boots became a popular option for competitive surfers, who used the boots to keep their feet warm after exiting from the surf. Surfing helped popularise the boots outside Australia and New Zealand, when surfer Brian Smith started selling the boots in the United States through the company Ugg Holdings, Inc. in 1979. After this was sold to Deckers Outdoor Corporation in 1995, ugg boots emerged as a fashion trend in the United States through Deckers' promotion of their brand, with celebrities such as Kate Hudson, Sarah Jessica Parker and Pamela Anderson wearing the boots,(although Anderson renounced ugg boots in 2007 upon realising that they were made from animal skin). Deckers' actions to promote their product "led to an exponential growth in the brand's popularity and recognizability." Deckers has reported sales of US$689 million under the UGG brand in 2008, an increase from US$14.5 million in 1995.

Design Fashion ugg boots

Ugg boots are made from sheepskins with fleece attached. The fleece is tanned into the leather and the boot is assembled with the fleece on the inside. The soles of the boots are made from rubber, and the stitching is often prominent on the outside of the boot. The fleece draws away moisture, keeping the feet dry and at body temperature. Today they come in a variety of colours, including black, pink, blue, chestnut, and fuchsia. They are available in both slip-on and lace-up varieties and their height can range from just above the ankle to above the knee.

Ugg boots often have a synthetic sole, although this is not universal. They are available in a range of different colours as both slip-on and lace-up varieties, and they are produced by a number of manufacturers. The natural insulative properties of sheepskin gives thermostatic properties to the boots: the thick fleecy fibers on the inner part of the boots allow air to circulate and keep the feet at body temperature.This means that ugg boots can be worn without socks even in relatively cold weather.

Some variations of ugg style boots have also been made from kangaroo fur and leather. There are also synthetic boots. Although derided as "fake" by some in the industry, their lower price made them appealing to large retail chains such as Myer.

Trademark disputes

Further information: UGG Australia

The UGG trademark has been the subject of dispute in several countries. The term "ugg" has been removed from the trademark registry in Australia and any ugg boots may be marketed there using the term "ugg." Outside Australia and New Zealand, UGG (written in capital letters) is a registered trademark of Deckers Outdoor Corporation.

In 1971, an Australian surfer, Shane Steadman, began selling ugg boots and registered the name UGH as a trademark. In 1979 Brian Smith, another Australian surfer, brought several pairs of Australian-made uggs to the United States and began selling them in New York and to surfers in California. He set up Ugg Holdings Inc., acquired the Australian mark from Steadman, and in 1985 registered a U.S. trademark on a rams head logo with the words "Original UGG Boot UGG Australia". In 1995 he sold his interest to Deckers. In 1996 Deckers registered a trademark for "UGG" in the United States.

In 1999, Deckers began asserting its new trademark and sent out cease and desist letters to Australian manufacturers, but did not press the issue beyond that. In the early 2000s, demand for ugg boots was soaring, partly as a result of US$8 million spent on marketing by Deckers, but also due to several celebrity endorsements. Australian manufacturers began selling uggs over the Internet, and Deckers' law firm Middletons of Melbourne began a serious effort to halt the Australian companies' sales. In 2004, Deckers sent cease and desist letters to a number of Australian manufacturers, including Mortels Sheepskin Factory, preventing them from selling uggs on eBay or from using the word in domain names.

In response to these actions by Deckers, Australian manufacturers formed the Ugg Boot Footwear Association to fight the corporation's claim, arguing that "ugg" is a generic term referring to flat-heeled, pull-on sheepskin boots. They further argued that Australian manufacturers had been making and trading this style of boot for decades, including into the United States. One of these manufacturers, Perth's Uggs-N-Rugs, appealed to Australian trademark regulators, who in 2006 ruled that "ugg" is indeed a generic term and stated that it should be removed from the trademark register. The officer who heard the case stated that the "evidence overwhelmingly supports the proposition that the terms (ugg, ugh and ug boots) are interchangeably used to describe a specific style of sheepskin boot and are the first and most natural way in which to describe these goods." The 2006 ruling only applies in Australia and Deckers still owns the trademarks in all other jurisdictions, including the United States, China, Japan and the European Union.

In 2005, the validity of the UGG trademark was challenged in federal court in California; the court ruled for Deckers, stating that consumers in the United States consider UGG to be a brand name. In his final order, the judge stated that the defendants had provided anecdotal evidence the term's generic usage, but Deckers countered through submitting declarations from four professionals in the footwear industry who stated that "UGG" is widely recognized in the industry as a brand name, not a generic term. The case applies only to U.S. usage.

During a trademark infringement and trade dress case, a generic term defense was rejected by a Dutch court. La Cheapa distributed sheepskin boots on an Internet site from the Netherlands, describing them on its website as "100% authentic Ugg Australian boots!!!" with "UGG logo on the heel" in boxes virtually identical to Deckers packaging. Ruling in favor of Deckers, the officer who heard the case stated it cannot establish as fact that "ugg" is considered a generic name in the Benelux, based on the opinion of one or more companies in Australia.

Concern for animals

Being one of many clothing products made from animal skin, the production of ugg boots has been the subject of criticism by the animal liberation movement. In the decade beginning in 2000, the group called for the boycott of Ugg Boots and their replacement with alternatives not made from animal skin.

In 2007, Pamela Anderson, realising that ugg boots were made of skin, wrote on her website: "I thought they were shaved kindly? People like to tell me all the time that I started that trend — yikes! Well let's start a new one — do NOT buy Uggs! Buy Stella McCartney or juicy boots." In February 2008, the Princeton Animal Welfare Society staged a campus protest against the fur industry, particularly attacking the ugg boot industry, popular amongst male and female college students. "[S]tudents lay in the newly fallen snow on the Frist Campus Center's North Front Lawn on Friday afternoon, feigning death, wearing coats covered with fake blood and sporting signs that read, 'What if you were killed for your coat?

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