Yuppiechef and Yuppie Gadgets fight over ‘Yuppie’ name
The prolonged legal battle between Yuppiechef and Yuppie Gadgets regarding the use of the word “Yuppie” culminated in a victory for Yuppie Gadgets in a Supreme Court ruling on 15 September.
The fight started in November 2011, when Yuppie Gadgets received a legal letter, demanding it to stop using the word “Yuppie” in its name.
Yuppiechef had registered the name ‘Yuppiechef’ as a mark, and it felt Yuppie Gadgets was trading on its good name and was causing it harm.
Yuppie Gadgets refused to stop using the word Yuppie, and the battle progressed to the Western Cape High Court – which ruled in favour of Yuppie Gadgets.
Yuppiechef appealed the ruling, and the case was heard by the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) in Bloemfontein on 1 September 2016.
The SCA held that the two marks Yuppiechef and Yuppie Gadgets are not so similar that the use of Yuppie Gadgets was calculated to deceive or cause confusion among shoppers.
It also held that the Yuppie Gadgets mark was being used for a business not related to the goods in respect of which Yuppiechef’s mark was registered.
The court further held that there was no evidence of blurring or the tarnishing of the Yuppiechef mark.
The Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal by Yuppiechef, with costs. The full ruling is available here.
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