Kendall Jenner's 818 Tequila sued for trademark infringement, accused of 'copying' competitor Tequila 512
The owners of Tequila 512 claim model's brand 'intentionally copies' its branding
Kendall Jenner's tequila brand is being accused of allegedly "copying" the branding of a competitor in a new lawsuit.
The owners of Tequila 512 filed a complaint against Jenner's 818 Tequila on Wednesday for federal trademark infringement, unfair competition, and false designation.
Plaintiff ClipBandits, LLC claims 818 Tequila, owned by K & Soda, LLC, "intentionally copies" its tequila brand and that "the similarities are so striking that this cannot be the result of a coincidence."
IS KENDALL JENNER'S TEQUILA THE NEXT BILLION-DOLLAR CASAMIGOS?
The plaintiff shared a photo of both brands' bottles next to one another. (United States District Court Central District Of California)
In the complaint obtained by Fox Business, the plaintiff says it sells a tequila under the brand name 512, and has had a "highly distinctive logo and color scheme that has been in place since 2015."
The plaintiff claims it has a federal trademark registration in its 512 brand and a "pending application for registration of its trade dress that includes the distinctive and immediately recognizable 512 mark in black lettering inside a vertical yellow rectangle."
KENDALL JENNER SUED FOR $1.8 MILLION OVER ALLEGED BREACH OF MODELING CONTRACT
ClipBandits, LLC claims 818 "simply and blatantly copied the branding" of 512.
The model and reality TV star launched 818 last year. ((Photo by Don Arnold/WireImage))
"In particular, out of the entire world of naming options open to it, Defendant chose a 3-digit brand name with a central 1 that, like Plaintiff's 512, is a prominent area code. And out of the entire world of colors and shapes to use for product design, Defendant chose to copy Plaintiff's distinctive black lettering inside a vertical yellow rectangle that has acquired so much goodwill over the years," the plaintiff argues in the filing
The plaintiff also calls out Jenner for her "notorious celebrity" status and referenced the "cultural misappropriation" scandal she came under fire for shortly after the brand released an advertising campaign in 2021.
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE
The lawsuit also accuses 818 of promoting its tequila on Jenner's sister Kim Kardashian's mobile app, Kim Kardashian Hollywood. The lawsuit claims the image the defendant used in the app "was a bottle of Plaintiff's 512 tequila. Plaintiff did not authorize this use in any way."
Kendall Jenner wears a turtleneck pullover, a black fluffy long coat, outside Longchamp, during New York Fashion Week Fall-Winter 2020, on February 08, 2020 in New York City. (Edward Berthelot/Getty Images | Stock photo: iStock)
"Either Defendant intentionally used Plaintiff's bottle, hoping to further blur the lines between the two products, or Defendant was itself confused about the difference between the two brands. Either way, the incident further shows how invidious Defendant's infringement is, and that it must be stopped," the plaintiffs write.
The lawsuit claims when contacted about the app incident, the defendant "changed the branding on the bottles in the app to a green circular branding very different from the yellow rectangle branding that Defendant uses on its actual bottles."
ClipBandits is a limited liability company based in Austin, Texas. Meanwhile, K & Soda, LLC is a Delaware limited liability company with a principal place of business in Los Angeles.
818 has yet to file a response to the lawsuit, and representatives for Jenner's tequila brand did not immediately return Fox Business' request for comment.