Greece

Traditional trademarks. Trademarks are the principal IP rights used in the fashion industry in Greece, not only to protect the brand name and the signs under which products are marketed, but also to safeguard distinctive elements of the products themselves. Trademark protection in Greece is governed by Law 4679/2020 (“Greek Trademark Law”), which transposes Directive (EU) 2015/2436 into national legislation and aligns the Greek trademark system with the standards established under Regulation (EU) 2017/1001.

Non-traditional trademarks. With respect to non-traditional trademarks, Article 2(4) of the Greek Trademark Law expressly recognises their registrability, including three-dimensional marks, position marks, pattern marks, colour marks, sound marks and motion marks. Applicants must specify the category of non-traditional marks claimed and provide a representation that meets the requirements of clarity, precision and objectivity, in line with EU standards. Although the law provides for the registration of non-traditional marks, actual filings remain limited. In 2025, for instance, only nine position marks and two pattern marks were registered, while only two sound marks have ever been registered in total. This indicates that the field of non-traditional marks in Greece is still at an early stage of development and leaves considerable room for future growth.

Made in Greece mark. Moreover, the “Made in Greece” mark, which is depicted in Ministerial Decision 67382/04.12.2013, certifies the Greek origin of products and services, highlighting their Greek added value, enhancing consumer trust and protecting producers from counterfeiting and unfair competition. Its use is regulated by Law 4072/2012 and Law 4155/2013 and is supervised by the Hellenic Mark Committee, while eligible beneficiaries are businesses that invest in Greek production, regardless of their size or ownership structure. The Greek mark may also be awarded to fashion items and other industrial or craft products and services, including clothing made in Greece, provided that they meet the applicable criteria; in particular that a specified percentage of production costs is incurred within Greek territory.

Unregistered signs. Unregistered signs in Greece are protected under Law 146/1914 (“Unfair Competition Law”). Pursuant to Article 13, a distinctive sign is any indication by which a person (e.g. trade name), a business (e.g. distinctive title) or a product/service (e.g. mark, shape) is individualised in trade. Protection presupposes that the sign possesses distinctive character — whether inherent or acquired through use — and that it has become established in trade, meaning that it has become known among the relevant commercial circles. Protection is thus linked to actual market use rather than to registration formalities. The concurrent and cumulative application of the general clause of Article 1 of the same law is also possible, where the conduct in question breaches honest commercial practices. Protection under Articles 13–15 lasts only so long as the distinctive sign is used in commerce. Moreover, Article 5(3)(a) of the Greek Trademark Law safeguards earlier unregistered marks against subsequent trademark applications or registrations.

In Greece, fashion-related products and specific elements thereof may be protected as industrial designs under Law 2417/1996 and Presidential Decree 259/1997 (as subsequently amended to implement Directive 98/71/EC on the legal protection of designs). Directive (EU) 2024/2823 has not yet been transposed into Greek law. Greek law follows EU standards, requiring that a design be novel and have individual character. Provided that the application is complete, a certificate of registration is issued by the HIPO without any prior examination of the substantive requirements and under the responsibility of the applicant. The absence of an examination of the substantive conditions is counterbalanced by the possibility of judicial invalidation. Although it was not traditionally common for fashion products to be registered as designs in Greece, this trend has changed in recent years, with an increasing number of jewellery pieces, watches, shoes, fabrics and fabric patterns, leather goods, knitted accessories and similar fashion items being granted design protection. Article 30 of Presidential Decree 259/1997 further stipulates that a registered design is also eligible for protection under copyright law from the moment it was created or fixed in any form. Consequently, the system of cumulative protection applies, provided that the requirements of each relevant legal framework are satisfied. Furthermore, an industrial design may also benefit from trademark protection if it meets the formal requirements for registration as a trademark under the Greek Trademark Law.

Under Law No. 2121/1993 (“Greek Copyright Law”), a work is eligible for copyright protection if it is an intellectual creation, is original, constitutes a work of art, literature or science and is expressed in any form. The originality requirement is not defined in law; however, Greek courts determine whether a work, included in any category of works, may be considered original or not, by following the theory of “statistical uniqueness” or the theory of “creative height”. According to the theory of statistical uniqueness, a work is considered original when under similar circumstances and with the same goals, no other author would be in a position to create a similar work. According to the theory of creative height, a work must present an individual specificity or a minimum threshold of creative height so as to stand out and be differentiated from daily/common works or from other similarly known works. Products related to the fashion industry, such as jewellery, clothes, fashion accessories, eyeglass frames etc., provided that they meet the above requirement, can be protected under copyright law as works of applied art.

Copyright protection may apply in parallel with other IP claims in court proceedings, namely complementing the legal bases of registered (if any) trademarks or industrial designs, as well as constituting the main legal basis in case there is no other protection under other IP claims. Because copyright is not subject to registration and the notion of originality is a more open and conceptually vague standard assessed on a case-by-case basis, it is relatively easy for claimants to assert copyright; however, this does not mean that courts will necessarily recognise protection, as the threshold of originality may ultimately be found not to be met.

Patents

Under Law No. 1733/1987 (“Greek Patent Law”), a patent is granted for any invention that is new, includes inventive activity and is capable of industrial application. Patent protection covers the technical or functional aspects of a product, a process or an industrial application. For this reason, patents are generally not applicable to fashion products as such, since their distinctive features usually relate to aesthetic elements rather than to the method of their manufacture or to any technical function. Patent protection may arise only where a fashion-related product or manufacturing process incorporates a genuine technical innovation.

Geographical indications

In Greece there is no legislation regulating the protection of geographical indications and thus the EU legislation applies. According to Regulation 2023/2411, producers across the EU and beyond may apply to register their craft and industrial products as geographical indications. Such products may be, among others, jewellery, textiles or leathers, according to Recital 5 of the above regulation. To date there have been no registrations from Greece for geographical indications related to such products.

Licence agreements

Licence agreements fall within the scope of contractual freedom under Greek law. In the manufacture of fashion goods, such agreements are crucial when a fashion house authorises a manufacturer to use its IP rights for production purposes. They may be concluded as standalone contracts, but more commonly they are incorporated into the main manufacturing agreement.

Key clauses typically included:

• Identification of licensed rights, limited licence to use the IP solely for manufacturing the agreed products, duration and territorial scope of licensed rights.
• Confirmation that all IP rights in and to the manufactured goods vest exclusively in the fashion house, express provision that the agreed consideration covers any transfer/assignment of rights from the manufacturer to the fashion house.
• Permission to affix the fashion house’s trademark(s) on products and their packaging, a licence to reproduce only the agreed quantities and a licence to use the fashion house’s industrial designs as the conceptual and technical basis for production.
• Binding technical specifications and quality requirements, right of the fashion house to approve samples and conduct inspections to verify compliance.
• Confidentiality and non-competition clauses.

Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs)

Non-disclosure agreements are commonly concluded prior to any commercial cooperation, and their confidentiality clauses are usually replicated in the main manufacturing or licensing agreement. They are a key tool in fashion manufacturing, protecting the fashion house’s confidential information (e.g. pre-launch collections, patterns, textiles, production methods) before products reach the runway or retail, with the parties enjoying broad contractual freedom under Article 361 Greek Civil Code (GCC) to define their scope and content.

Key clauses typically included:

• Detailed definition of confidential information.
• Non-use and non-disclosure obligations, possible non-reverse-engineering clauses.
• Organisational and technical safeguards (restricted internal access to sensitive information and material, secure storage of physical samples and digital files, obligation to return or destroy all confidential material (and copies) upon completion or termination of the cooperation — these measures implement the “reasonable steps” requirement under Directive (EU) 2016/943 on trade secrets).
• Duration of confidentiality obligations (extending beyond termination, often for an indefinite period).
• Remedies (indemnification and contractual penalties).
• Exclusivity/non-competition clauses.

Subcontract agreements with suppliers/in-house manufacturing

In the fashion sector, production is often organised either through subcontracting to external suppliers, or via in-house manufacturing. In both models, the key objective is to ensure that products are manufactured in line with the brand’s technical specifications, quality standards and compliance obligations, while protecting IP and trade secrets. Subcontract agreements in Greece are governed generally by Articles 681–702 of the GCC.

Key clauses typically included:

• Scope of work and deliverables.
• Technical specifications, material requirements and quality standards.
• Sample approval and conditions and process for acceptance of work. Ability to require corrective measures to ensure compliance with technical, aesthetic and sustainability requirements.
• Defects and liability in case of defective performance.
• Allocation of responsibility for supply of raw materials, patterns and prototypes.
• Regulation of the provision and use of patterns, prototypes and technical files.
• IP and confidentiality clauses (incorporating terms of the Licensing Agreements or NDAs mentioned above).
• Production schedule and delivery deadlines; consequences of delay.
• Fashion house’s right to conduct inspections and audits at production facilities.

In-house manufacturing must meet the same substantive standards: compliance with labour and safety law, enforcement of quality-control procedures, protection of trade secrets and adherence to environmental and sustainability obligations. In this model, the fashion house assumes full responsibility for regulatory compliance and supply-chain integrity, while gaining closer control over quality, confidentiality and brand integrity.

Agency agreement

Agency agreements in Greece are generally regulated by Presidential Decree 219/1991, which applies across all sectors and establishes the core legal framework governing the relationship between a supplier and a commercial agent who negotiates or concludes sales on the supplier’s behalf. In the fashion industry, agency agreements follow this general structure, setting out the agent’s mandate, remuneration and commissions, duties of loyalty, reporting obligations and termination conditions, while also incorporating sector-specific provisions relating to the protection and use of IP and confidentiality obligations. Agency indemnity is governed by Article 9, which provides that upon termination, the agent may be entitled to compensation if they have brought new clients or significantly developed business with existing ones, and the supplier continues to benefit from these relationships. The indemnity is capped at the equivalent of the agent’s average annual commission over the preceding five years (or the full term of the relationship, if shorter). Post-contractual non-compete clauses are also common. Article 10 requires that such clauses be agreed in writing, be confined to the geographical area, customer group or product range covered by the agency agreement and not exceed one year after termination.

Selective distribution online in high-end fashion and trademark protection

A selective distribution agreement is a long-term arrangement under which the producer supplies its products exclusively to distributors selected on the basis of predetermined qualitative (and sometimes quantitative) criteria. Distribution agreements are mixed contracts not specifically regulated by statute, with provisions on related contractual types applying by analogy; the rules of Presidential Decree 219/1991 on commercial agency also extend, as per Law 3557/2007, to exclusive distribution agreements where the distributor operates as part of the supplier’s commercial organisation. In the fashion sector, such agreements typically require distributors to appoint only pre-approved resellers meeting defined quality standards, to uphold the reputation and presentation of the branded goods (for which they may be liable together with their resellers), and to use the brand’s trademark only under licence, with any sublicensing limited to authorised resellers. Distributors and resellers must also support trademark protection (e.g. by reporting conflicts or counterfeits), while within the selective distribution system distributors may be prohibited from selling to unauthorised third-party resellers but must remain free to obtain products from, and resell them to, other authorised members of the network.

Co-branding and co-marketing

Co-branding and co-marketing agreements in the fashion sector are designed to expand the participating brands’ market impact and minimise brands’ commercial risks. Key provisions include approval rights over marketing materials, reputational safeguards, clear rules on brand co-existence, allocation and protection of IP rights, management of fees/royalties and distribution of profits. When co-branding involves jointly marketed products under a new brand name, the contracts must also explicitly determine ownership of any newly developed IP right and ensure that advertising and marketing strategies align with both brands’ identity and quality standards.

Franchising and alternative sales model agreements

Franchising is a common sales model in the fashion industry in Greece, especially for well-established brands. Franchise agreements are not specifically regulated by statute in Greece; rather, they are mixed or hybrid contracts, combining essential elements of different contractual types, but ultimately serving to govern a single, economically unified commercial relationship. A franchise agreement typically provides the franchisee with a licence to use the franchisor’s trademarks, trade names and know-how, along with commercial and/or technical support during the term of the contract. The franchisee must promote and sell the franchised products or services in line with the franchisor’s marketing method and uniform standards for store layout and advertising, so as to protect the identity and reputation of the network. In return, the franchisee usually pays an initial entry fee and ongoing royalties, and is often bound by selective distribution, non-compete and/or (quasi-)exclusive distribution obligations.

In the fashion industry, corner store agreements grant a brand the right to sell its products within a designated area of a retailer’s store, typically regulating product range, pricing, quantities, display location, trademark use and any commissions or fees.

Consignment agreements are also widely used and provide that the retailer pays the brand only for products actually sold, usually including detailed clauses on the allocation of responsibility and risk for the products during transport, storage and display in the store, as well as on inventory management, payment terms, returns of unsold or defective items and promotional obligations.

Pop-up store agreements govern the short-term lease of retail space for brand activations, defining the duration, specific areas and timeframes of use, rental fees, liability for damage and the brand’s right to adapt the space for marketing and display purposes.

Employing fashion models

The employment of fashion models in advertising and commercial campaigns requires a written agreement between the fashion house (or the intermediary advertising company) and the model. Depending on the arrangement, this may take the form of a fixed-term employment contract or an independent services agreement, concluded either through a model agency representing the model or directly with the model.

The core element of such agreements is the licence to use the model’s personality rights, including image, likeness, voice and other identifiable characteristics, for specified commercial purposes. Other key clauses typically included:

• Definition of the media, duration, geographical territory and specific campaigns for which the model’s image and/or voice may be used; in case of further assignment of the licence, specific consent from the model is required.
• The agreement may also include provisions on the transfer or licensing of related rights, where the model’s performance actually involves or might be deemed to involve the performance of a protected work.
• Consent to reasonable retouching and modifications of the image while safeguarding personality rights; express consent is required for any modification of the model’s likeness using AI-based tools.
• Confidentiality and non-competition clauses.
• Compensation covering both the services provided as well as the licence to use the model’s personality elements and IP rights, if applicable, plus reimbursements for any expenses.
• Obligations to comply with advertising, consumer protection and data protection laws, especially regarding the lawful processing of the model’s personal data.

Social media, influencers and brand ambassadors/celebrities

In the context of influencer marketing — where an advertiser provides remuneration in exchange for promotional content — advertisers, influencers (also including celebrities acting in the same capacity) and agencies are jointly responsible for compliance with the Hellenic Advertising and Communication Code (the “Code”) and its Annex on influencer marketing. Content produced by an influencer constitutes advertising whenever the influencer receives any form of benefit (monetary payment, free or discounted products or services, sponsored trips/events, gifts, discount codes, etc.). Such content must be clearly identifiable as advertising, through visible disclosures (e.g. “#ad”, “#advertisement”, in Greek or English) or platform-integrated “paid partnership” tools. Influencers must also inform consumers of the use of filters or image-editing techniques and must not use significantly altered images that mislead users about natural appearance.

The Annex further requires all influencer-related communications to comply with the Code’s core principles of honesty, truthfulness, social responsibility and fair competition.

Influencer collaborations are typically formalised through an independent services agreement (either with the influencer personally or with their management company). Key clauses typically included:

• Advertiser’s right to approve content, provide creative guidance, require publication on specific platforms and formats, and approve final posts.
• Transfer or licence to the advertiser of copyrights and related rights in the content, including image and voice rights; scope of rights (duration, territory, media); representations and warranties of originality and non-infringement; and liability for breaches.
• Payment terms and invoicing, including remuneration for both services and rights granted.
• Influencer’s obligation not to make statements or take actions that could harm the advertiser’s reputation.
• Mandatory disclosure of the commercial nature of posts and of any filters or editing tools used.
• Confidentiality and non-competition clauses.
• Obligations to comply with the Code, consumer protection and advertising laws, and data protection requirements; liability for contractual breaches.

Advertising standards, relevant authorities and advertising practice

Advertising standards in Greece — though not sector-specific and thus applicable across all industries — are particularly relevant to the fashion sector, where brands rely heavily on advertising, including seasonal campaigns and intensive digital marketing. They are primarily governed by Article 9 of Law 2251/1994 on consumer protection, which regulates comparative advertising and prohibits unfair commercial practices. Presidential Decree 131/2003 sets additional rules for commercial communications in electronic commerce, while the Digital Services Act (directly applicable as an EU Regulation) imposes transparency obligations for online advertising, including clear identification of ads and their sponsors. Complementing these, the Code, most recently updated in 2023, serves as the key self-regulatory framework. It requires that all marketing communication — including fashion campaigns, digital content, promotions and influencer activity — be lawful, honest, substantiated, transparent and socially responsible, avoiding misleading claims, unfair comparative practices, exploitation of consumer vulnerability and misuse of third-party IP rights.

Consumer protection in Greece is primarily governed by Law 2251/1994, under which any clause creating a significant imbalance to the detriment of the consumer is deemed null and void, unfair commercial practices contrary to professional diligence are prohibited, and abusive General Terms of Transactions are expressly banned. Presidential Decree 10/2017 (Code of Consumer Conduct) complements this by safeguarding consumers’ economic interests, privacy, personal data and health and safety, with special regard to minors. In the fashion retail context, both offline and online, this means contractual terms cannot impose disproportionate burdens, marketing must not mislead or hide key information (price, product characteristics, delivery conditions) and retailers must clearly present offers and inform consumers of their rights (returns, exchanges, guarantees), so that brand image and campaigns remain consistent with legal standards of fairness and transparency.

There is no tailor-made legislation protecting store layouts (physical or online) as such. However, protection may arise for physical fashion stores under copyright law where individual elements — such as artistic installations, characteristic works of applied art (e.g. bespoke furniture) — or the overall organisation of the space (architectural layout or interior design) constitute original works, as outlined in our response to the relevant copyright question above. Protection may also be available under design law where particular features of the layout are novel and possess individual character.

Online fashion stores (i.e. the website/interface) may be protected under the same copyright and design rules where they present a unique combination of graphical elements, structure and overall visual identity that goes beyond standard e-commerce formats. Specific elements of the interface — such as graphic designs, images, text, videos — may likewise be eligible for separate protection.

In addition, characteristic elements of brand presentation, such as non-registered marks, signature colour schemes or other distinctive visual cues, may be protected under Law 146/1914 on unfair competition, preventing imitations likely to mislead consumers.