Juniper Frozen Yogurt to Pinkberry: Please Sue Us
April 14, 2008 by Sean Kelly
Filed under Business
(FranchisePick.Com) Related: WILL PINKBERRY BECOME THE NEXT STARBUCKS?, Pinkberry Gets $27.5 Million Infusion from Starbucks Founder, , Will Pinkberry Stop Offering Franchises?, PinkBerry Settles FauxGurt Class Action Suit; Investigation of Soylent Green Continues
Perhaps Grace and Christina Kim once considered buying a Pinkberry franchise, but decided they could save the money and do it on their own. After all, how hard could it be?
When you don’t know what you don’t know.
The problem with many non-franchise start-up business owners is that they don’t know what they don’t know. So, if you’re thinking about blatantly knocking off a trendy, high profile retail concept, franchised or not, here are a couple of tips.
#1: Try a little subtlety with your infringement. Trademark infringement lawsuits are based on whether you’ve created a “likelihood of confusion” between brands. Think that might be a problem here?
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| photo: uglyagnes | photo: dorkula |
#2: Don’t pick a brand that just got an infusion of $29M.
Venture capitalists are a quirky bunch. They get antsy when people threaten their multimillion dollar investments. When a group like those at Starbucks Howard Schultz’ investment firm invests $29 million into a tiny chain with nothing more than its trendy persona and its Paris Hilton autographs, you can be sure they’ve got a team of lawyers looking to protect both their brand and their own quota of billable hours.
Reference: Pinkberry Gets $27.5 Million Infusion from Starbucks Founder
#3: Hope you get your Cease & Desist Letter before you print your cups
According to a story in The Brown Daily Herald, Juniper Frozen Yogurt is located at 229 Thayer St. in Providence, RI. Sisters Grace and Christina Kim opened the shop with their parents on Dec. 22, 2007.
As I’m sure Pinkberry and Starbucks executives are regular readers of FranchisePick.com, I’ll use this opportunity to ask them to hasten the inevitable cease & desist letter to Juniper Frozen Yogurt, and to explain the definitions of “trademark infringement,” “likelihood of confusion,” “frozen yogurt,” and “all natural” to the Kim sisters before they get in any deeper.
Reference: For Thayer, more sushi but less music
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Juniper is delicious. Stop picking on them – we love the fro yo!
jerry bo berry:
I’m not pinking on them. I’m trying to warn them before those PinkBerry FroYo stormtroopers melt their hopes and dreams with a big ol’ trademark infringement suit. Or a little one. Or, more likely, a cease and desist the moment they get their cups printed and their logoed FroYo YoYos ordered from their ad specialty rep.
If you know these nice folk, please direct them to this warning.
OR you could tell them your name is Haris Pilton and get them to pay you to eat FroYo in their store while your friends pretend their paparazzi and shoot your picture with disposable cameras.
Clearly you were so right since they’re out of business now….. If you have such a problem with it just go and eat in NYC!
If you have such a problem with it just go and eat in NYC!
I don’t understand this comment, but I love to eat in NYC.
As soon as I save up $25 for a fro yo, that’s where I’m going.
It’s sad that Juniper closed, but as one who creates brand identities for a living, I have trouble mustering sympathy for those who blatantly rip off other people’s trademarks and trade dress.
If Juniper people had the creativity and self respect to create their own concept instead of stealing Pinkberry’s, maybe they’d be in business still.
Probably not, but maybe.
People who live in glass houses shouldn’t fro yo.
Hey, dude’s right that was blatant disregard for Pinkberry. If you’re getting into it you’ve got to be original (or at least try, for crying out loud!!). I mean their logo was nearly identical–come on!!!
There is a place in Warren, RI that teeters on the edge of PinkBerry-itis but at least they have a more original logo! Let the FrYo wars begin!!!!
I think the war was a short one. Juniper is already out of business. At least they coulda lost with their own idea
Is Juniper really out of business? I heard they were expanding to Boston, and I read somewhere that they just took their name and logo off the awning.
hmmm. Styrofoam cup with frozen concoction inside and fruit on top. Maybe, just maybe, this was done even before dingleberries came along. OOPS, just let my cat out of the bag. Expect to see these opening up soon. Except, I’l switch the colors so the swirl will be green and the letters will be red – set for life!!
I just heard that several LA yogurt stores have had cease and desist orders from the State Agriculture dept as their products do not meet the legal term of yogurt and hence; are comitting felonies by selling the products.
Scary for anyone trying to get into the business.
Ice cream maker:
There was a big controversy with Pinkberry because it doesn’t meet the definition of “yogurt.”
However, there’s no law against selling the product, it’s just that there are restrictions as to what you can call it in advertising.
As an ice cream maker, I suspect you know that… just trying to melt them evil froyoers, are ye?