When it comes to trademark infringement, it’s not always clear whether a company’s logo can be confused for another one. But that’s what Spearmint Rhino, the parent company of the Santa Maria strip club, is alleging against a doughnut shop in a lawsuit filed in Florida federal court.
The Riverside County-based chain of “upscale” strip clubs is suing Boca Raton-based chain of Rhino Doughnuts and Coffee for trademark infringement and unfair competition because the doughnut shop’s logo looks like a rhinoceros.
But it’s not just any rhino. It’s the outline of a rhino’s head—horns and all—that the strip club company says looks “remarkably similar” to theirs and might confuse customers into believing that they’re about to get a lap dance instead of breakfast.
Spearmint Rhino’s chain extends to 20 strip clubs located in the U.S. and overseas, including two clubs in Santa Barbara County—the one in Santa Maria and a second in Santa Barbara.
According to the lawsuit, Spearmint Rhino owns several federal trademarks that they say are “well known” throughout the state of Florida, even though the company has only one club in the entire state—in West Palm Beach, which is in the same county as the doughnut shop.
However, Spearmint Rhino’s vice president and general counsel Peter Garrell, who also represents the company in the lawsuit, told the Sun that the lawsuit speaks for itself.
The evidence surrounding the alleged infringement, according to the lawsuit, is based on the fact that the doughnut shop’s owner, Athan Prakas, operated several nightclubs in the past several decades, including one in Ft. Lauderdale, where Spearmint Rhino was previously located.
“Our logo is different than an actual rhino,” Garrell said. “Their logo doesn’t look like a rhino. It looks like our logo.”
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida on Dec. 14.
This article appears in Dec 24-31, 2015.