The owner of Chanelle
Nailbar got a nasty surprise: Fashion and beauty empire Chanel was not amused by the use of its name
and promptly sent a cease and desist letter.
Owner Le Ngyun was surprised, she came
up with the name by combining the first name of her daughter (Chanel) with her
own family name (Le). Business is booming - her Chanelle Nailbar became a household name when it was
mentioned as the best nail studio in the Netherlands by the Dutch TV channel RTL.
According to the lawyer of Chanel, Ms. R. van der Straaten, she infringes on the IP of Chanel since Chanelle Nailbar profits from the appeal of the well-known Chanel brand.
Chanel is willing to forfeit any claims, providing that Ms. Le changes her trade name to avoid confusion. The company understands that is was never Le’s intent to infringe on the IP of Chanel. That’s why Chanel is willing to find a new name together with Ms. Le. Chanel does however claim a penalty of 1,000 euro per day that Ms. Le keeps on using her Chanelle trade name, as well as 750 euro in legal fees.
Ms. Le is uncertain what to do. She is attached to the Chanelle trade name since it has personal and emotional value as well as commercial value.
The (social) media got involved - making all kinds of suggestions for new names such as “Chanaile” and “Nachelle”. A legal secretary of a law firm situated opposite of the nail studio used it as an opportunity to drum up business for her bosses and wrote that Ms. Le can drop in anytime for advice.
What do you think? Brands such as Chanel invest a lot of time and money to build and protect their brand, so it makes sense that they take an aggressive approach. But small entrepreneurs might also use a similar brand for legitimate reasons.
Ms. Le is uncertain what to do. She is attached to the Chanelle trade name since it has personal and emotional value as well as commercial value.
The (social) media got involved - making all kinds of suggestions for new names such as “Chanaile” and “Nachelle”. A legal secretary of a law firm situated opposite of the nail studio used it as an opportunity to drum up business for her bosses and wrote that Ms. Le can drop in anytime for advice.
What do you think? Brands such as Chanel invest a lot of time and money to build and protect their brand, so it makes sense that they take an aggressive approach. But small entrepreneurs might also use a similar brand for legitimate reasons.
Who is right in this case? The jury is out…
