4 ms·

> OTOH, calling your new product "Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl" is starting to bump up against the place where I'd agree, "yeah, I could see an argument for cu

> OTOH, calling your new product "Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl" is starting to bump up against the place where I'd agree, "yeah, I could see an argument for customer confusion". But what is the customer confusion here? Are people choosing to go to Sweetgreen in order to purchase a product they believe is from Chipotle? I find that unlikely. What is the actual damage to Chipotle?

mikestew 4y ago
"Oh, they have some cross-promotion with Chipotle to sell their burrito bowls here." isn't an outlandish line of thinking. Ignoring, of course, that they called their product "Chipotle Burrito Bowl", which ought to make the complaint obvious. But let's go with your argument. Hyundai decides to make an automobile called the "Corvette". Are people going to to Hyundai dealers to purchase a product they believe is from Chevy? Maybe, maybe not, but you don't get to call your car "Corvette" unless you're Chevy. And you don't get to call your chicken bowl "Chipotle Burrito Bowl" unless your restaurant's name is "Chipotle".
- adrianmonk 4y ago
  Chipotle Mexican Grill has a side item called "Chips & Tomatillo-Green Chili Salsa". Is that infringing on the trademark for Chili's Grill & Bar[1]? What about the trademark for La Salsa Fresh Mexican Grill[2]? ---- [1] https://chilis.com/ https://chilis.com/ [2] https://www.lasalsa.com/ https://www.lasalsa.com/
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
- tshaddox 4y ago
  If the other automobile manufacturer’s name is “Compact SUV” then I’d probably tell them to suck it up when other automobile manufacturers also sell compact SUVs.
- fineIllregister 4y ago
  > "Oh, they have some cross-promotion with Chipotle to sell their burrito bowls here." Who is going to Sweetgreen or their website to even encounter this information when they're trying to get Chipotle? As for the rest, Chipotle Burrito Bowl is nothing like Corvette. Burrito bowls are an incredibly common dish and chipotle is a very common flavor with a major impact on the dish. This is more like naming your hot dog business "Beef" and getting mad when people sell beef hotdogs. This trademark was genericized before Chipotle existed.
- addisonl 4y ago
  > Hyundai decides to make an automobile called the "Corvette". Very bad analogy as Corvette is not a generic automotive term.
fatnoah 4y ago
There may really be no damage to Chipotle, but the nature of trademark law is that failing to defend your trademarks can result in you losing the ability to enforce them. By not going after this likely non-damaging case, Chipotle could run the risk of not being able to defend against an actually damaging use.

mikestew 4y ago

"Oh, they have some cross-promotion with Chipotle to sell their burrito bowls here." isn't an outlandish line of thinking. Ignoring, of course, that they called their product "Chipotle Burrito Bowl", which ought to make the complaint obvious. But let's go with your argument. Hyundai decides to make an automobile called the "Corvette". Are people going to to Hyundai dealers to purchase a product they believe is from Chevy? Maybe, maybe not, but you don't get to call your car "Corvette" unless you're Chevy. And you don't get to call your chicken bowl "Chipotle Burrito Bowl" unless your restaurant's name is "Chipotle".

adrianmonk 4y ago
Chipotle Mexican Grill has a side item called "Chips & Tomatillo-Green Chili Salsa". Is that infringing on the trademark for Chili's Grill & Bar[1]? What about the trademark for La Salsa Fresh Mexican Grill[2]? ---- [1] https://chilis.com/ https://chilis.com/ [2] https://www.lasalsa.com/ https://www.lasalsa.com/
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
tshaddox 4y ago
If the other automobile manufacturer’s name is “Compact SUV” then I’d probably tell them to suck it up when other automobile manufacturers also sell compact SUVs.
fineIllregister 4y ago
> "Oh, they have some cross-promotion with Chipotle to sell their burrito bowls here." Who is going to Sweetgreen or their website to even encounter this information when they're trying to get Chipotle? As for the rest, Chipotle Burrito Bowl is nothing like Corvette. Burrito bowls are an incredibly common dish and chipotle is a very common flavor with a major impact on the dish. This is more like naming your hot dog business "Beef" and getting mad when people sell beef hotdogs. This trademark was genericized before Chipotle existed.
addisonl 4y ago
> Hyundai decides to make an automobile called the "Corvette". Very bad analogy as Corvette is not a generic automotive term.

fatnoah 4y ago

There may really be no damage to Chipotle, but the nature of trademark law is that failing to defend your trademarks can result in you losing the ability to enforce them. By not going after this likely non-damaging case, Chipotle could run the risk of not being able to defend against an actually damaging use.