Be careful what you name your dog
Why? Because if you happen to name your business after your family beagle, and you named your beloved pooch Macy, for instance, sooner or later you’re going to get a letter from the legal department of a very large company asking you to find a new name pronto. Then what do you do?
First, plead ignorance: “We didn’t know we were trying to infringe on anything,” said Lisa Wendler, the beagle’s mom.
Second, bite the bullet and change your name–don’t even think about fighting the big company, if they’ve beaten you to the trademark office:
“Paul Wendler said he passed on the idea of contesting the matter with Macy’s.
“All I could imagine was paying enormous amounts of money,” he said.
Smart man.
Finally, move on with a stronger brand than you had before, a win-win for all concerned:
Despite the confusion and need to change their company name, the Wendlers said they have not noticed any drop-off in business.
They’re coming out of the experience wiser.
Choosing a name, they now know, matters and can be costly.
“I can see Macy’s point,” Paul Wendler said. “There could be confusion between the two of us.”
Lisa Wendler hopes that other small business owners won’t overlook the matter of obtaining trademark protection.
“It was a huge lesson that we learned,” she said.
Presumably, Macy the the beagle can keep her name. Macy Gray would not return our telephone calls, but so far appears to have no intention of opening an eponymously named large retail chain, or a floral design business for that matter.
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