In-N-Out Burger has been no stranger when it comes to protecting the popular fast food restaurant's trademark and name. Headquartered in Irvine, California, In-N-Out burger has over
313 locations centered around the western coast of the United States, unfortunately, however
Wichita, Kansas is not one of them, because the fast food restaurant filed a six count law suit against a Wichita, Kansas dry cleaning company in February 2017, claiming that the business had stolen both their name and unique logo. Included in the law suit, In-N-Out Burger stated that trademark infringement and dilution of distinctive mark were in order.
According to chapter 28 Liuzzo, states that a trademark, is "any word, name, symbol, or device or combination thereof
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This business was accused of using the name distinctive trademark "In-and-Out" as well as similar signage of a golden arrow to advertise their business. As a result, the business did end up changing Nicky's In-N-Out Gyros, to Nicky's Gyros and additionally ridding the restaurant of the sign with the yellow graphic image of In-N-Out Burger's signature yellow triangular arrow. Similarly, In-N-Out burger has filed lawsuit in June 2007 against the fast food restaurant Chaddars, located in American Fork,
Utah based upon trademark and trade dress issues. An article based in Deseret Morning News stated that In-N-Out Burger was claiming the restaurant was copying their menu, serving style, building layout and color scheme. Furthermore the article states that attorneys for In-N-Out said it appeared Chadders had blatantly tried to imitate elements of the California firm's marketing techniques because In-N-Out has a reputation for good food". (Deseret News, 2007). According to Lizzou, trade dress is a distinctive, nonfunctional feature that distinguishes a merchant's or manufacturer's goods or services from those of another. The trade dress of a product relates to
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Despite to these lawsuits, other restaurant businesses throughout the U.S. have continue to try to imitate the restaurant unique trademark and style, leaving In-N-Out burger on the alert to protect their trademark.
In the meantime, In-and- Out Cleaners although obviously not in the same business of selling burgers and fries, were arguably outright deceptive in confusing the public with their false claims of advertisement. KHBS news article also explains that "both of the companies use near-identical fonts with matching yellow and red color patterns. Additionally, there were court documents that stated consumers pointed out the logo to the restaurant chain back around the time the business opened. Some even said they saw the dry cleaner’s signs from far away and were disappointed when it turned out not to be an In-N-Out Burger". (Bonar, 2017) Since filing the law suit In-N-Out cleaners was reported to have changed signs and the entire business name to "Emily's Cleaners" and eliminated the red and gold color sign and logo once posted boldly across the outside of their building.
In conclusion, although some people might argue whether or not In-N-Out Burgers
Citizens of the United States of America enjoy a lifestyle of freedom unlike that of any other country in the world. Companies and businesses are expected to comply with the standards of the average consumer; with that being said, American citizens are much more likely to file a law suit than consumers of a different nationality. In the year 1994 alone, thousands of law suits were filed (FindLaw). The most notable case, with exception to the Denny’s payout, was Stella Liebeck versus the popular fast food chain McDonald’s. Stella sustained third-degree burns when she accidentally spilled a McDonald’s cup of coffee onto her lap. She spent eight days in the hospital, receiving skin grafts for burns on her pelvic region. Stella was awarded $2.86
Upon arrival, it came to our attention that some of the letters of the light up sign above the store were burned out. The building itself looked extremely out dated and was poorly lit outside. Also, there were many homeless people surrounding the shopping center outside of the store. All of these aspects made the store seem a bit sketchy and unwelcoming.
“Subway says boosting sales at existing restaurants is its biggest priority right now (Peterson, 2015).” From 2012 to 2014 Subway saw a decrease in sales and realized some of their competitors like Chipotle were making more money. How were they making more money? Well Chipotle starting advertising with antibiotic free meat. Just recently Subway decided to follow the trend and do the same, at the beginning of 2015 Subway started advertising antibiotic free meat. The restaurant has already seen a drastic increase in profit. Once Subway and Chipotle put these antibiotic free labels on their food they quickly received more interest in their restaurants. This leads to the fact that the American consumer is not very educated about not only where their food comes from, but also how it is processed. These restaurants should not be getting rewarded with an increase in profit for providing the consumer with false information; in order for this to stop people need to realize they are being taken advantage
The additional use of logos promotes consumers to invest in
Logos is one of the three parts of the rhetorical triangle. In the Chick-Fil-A commercial the message that the cows are portraying is “Eat mor chikin” (cow campaign). The reason why the cow wants the audience to eat more chicken is because in their mind if people “eat more chicken, they will in turn not be eaten. (Meet the cows behind Chick-fil-A 's most successful campaign). The cows don’t necessarily show that they have emotions because they are supposed to be “fearless cows” (cow campaign) but if you connect the dots from my point about how it’s ironic to have a cow as the main character for a Chick-Fil-A commercial to the other point about the message “eat mor chikin” and to my last research point about why the cows want the audience to eat more chicken, then you would realize that they do have emotions. The literary term for emotion that appeals to the audience is called pathos. Pathos is the second part of the rhetorical
The plaintiffs of the case were Alexandra Gacic and her sister and brother in law, Liliana Gacic and Branislow Circic. A food critic and reviewer for the John Fairfax Publications company, Matthew Evans, sued by the proprietors of the restaurant, ‘Coco Roco’. The review by Evans titled, ‘Crash and Burn’, published on September 30, 2003 in the Sydney morning herald newspaper, was found to include three imputations (Identify what is defamatory matter) that were considered defamatory. Evans had stated that the restaurant ‘Coco Roco’ had; sold unpalatable food, provided bad service, and stated that one of the proprietors’ was incompetent as an owner of a restaurant as he had employed a chef who made poor quality food. The article in whole suggested that the restaurant was not worth attending and urged potential customers to stay
Fast food restaurants in America can be located on almost every street corner in almost every city. The enticing aroma of a burger and fries can be found at several locations in nearly every city, town, or suburb. According to Alaina Mcconnel, the 5 most popular fast food restaurants of 2011 are McDonalds, Subway, Starbucks, Wendy’s and Burger King (Mcconnell, A., & Bhasin, K., 2012). Fast food joints have a ruthless history of being fattening, greasy, and unhealthy with films like Super-Size me and Food Inc. giving the...
Every year fast food kills many or infects many with a higher chance of heart attacks diabetes and more. Caesar Barber of New York had a heart attack. He weighed 300 pounds and ate fast food 4-5 times a week. Barber claims “It should have a warning label it claims 100% beef”. The areas Caesar went to were Burger King, KFC, Wendy’s, and McDonald's. Caesar Barber sued the restaurants for like I said earlier 100% beef. I believe it is Caesar’s fault for his problems because of all the reports.
With the continued growth of fast food restaurants, low priced food, and fast friendly service, these restaurants have become very appealing to the average consumer. With this increase in popularity, there has come many problems for these companies associated with the fast food industry. These stores are being blamed for the rise of obesity and other health issues in America; leading to many wanting a ban or probation on these fast food restaurants. The Government has stepped in on this issue and is trying to coming up with solutions for this so called “epidemic”. “One ordinance has passed by the Los Angeles City Council that bans the issuance of permits relating to the construction of any new fast food restaurants in South Los Angeles, California to promote healthy eating choices” (Creighton, 2009, p. 249). This law stops fast food restaurants from building any new stores in South Los Angeles. This law tells people that the “government is better at making choices for people than the people are for themselves” (Creighton, 2009, p. 249). It is like the government is treating their citizens like children making decisions for them, because they do not know better. Fast food restaurants should not be blamed for the consumers’ health problems, because it is the consumers’ choice to eat there, and these restaurants are not as bad as anti-fast food activists make them out to be.
The New York Times bestseller Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal is one of the most riveting books to come out about fast food restaurants to date (Schlosser, 2004). Fast food consumption has become a way of life for many in the United States as well as many other countries in the world. The author Eric Schlosser an investigative reporter whose impeccable researching and bold interviewing captures the true essence of the immense impact that fast food restaurants are having in America (2004). Beginning with McDonald’s, the first fast food restaurant, which opened on April 15, 1955 in Des Plaines, Illinois to current trends of making fast food a global realization McDonald’s has paved the way for many fast food restaurants following the same basic ideal that is tasty foods served fast at a minimal cost (2011). Schlosser explains how fast food restaurants have gained substantial market share of the consumers; he also shows that by marketing to children and offering less unhealthful fare, that are purchased from mega-companies which are often camouflaged with added ingredients and cooked unhealthful ways, that these companies are indeed causing irreparable harm to our country (2004).
Rappeport, Alan. "Chains relish 'better burger' challenge." Financial Times (London, England). (September 17, 2011 Saturday): 477 words. LexisNexis Academic. Web. Date Accessed: 2014/04/28.
Mark Hughes (2008). "Logos that became legends: Icons from the world of advertising". Retrieved March 27, 2008, from www.independent.co.uk/news/media/logos-that-became-legends-icons-from-the-world-of-advertising-768077
Now that we know what the problem is, we are able to examine various options to fix the problem. The first and foremost approach Burger King can engage in is differentiation. They need to bring variety to their menu and include a plethora of healthy options. Obesity is rapidly growing especially within the United States, as well as, the amount of fast food chains. Burger King can set themselves aside from other chains by providing those healthy, yet delicious menu choices. For example, Burger King can introduce a children’s meal that provides a choice of fruit as their side and a healthy drink such as apple, orange, or pineapple juice. This would be appeal to parents of young children, especially when parents are in a big rush and look to fast-food restaurants for quick food fix.
Kotler’s (1997) definition of branding is that: “A name, term, sign, symbol or design, or combination of them, intended
People move away from their extended families, and traditions can fade, which is why it is important to have a trademark that easily identifies your ...