Blazing the Trademark Trail: Herbs ‘R’ Us Gets Smoked
Canadian cannabis dispensary Herbs ‘R’ Us, rolled out a logo a little too reminiscent of the well-known Toys ‘R’ Us logo.
Toys ‘R’ Us, feeling a little burned by the effort, sought to bring them down, and sued in Canadian Federal Court.
They claimed Herbs ‘R’ Us infringed its trademark and left consumers in a haze about where the brand came from. Oh, yeah, and diluted* the buzz attached to the Toys ‘R’ Us trademark.
Puff, Pass… and Pay: The Court Weighs In
The Court accepted the case, but blunted the infringement and confusion complaints, having found it would be highly unlikely that consumers would be either dazed or confused into thinking Toys ‘R’ Us had started selling pot.
Buzzkill: $30K Damage for ‘Herbs’ Hijinks
The Court did, however, find that Herbs ‘R’ Us logo would, in fact, depreciate the Toys ‘R’ Us brand and ordered Herbs R Us to cease using the name, deliver up any packaging in possession for destruction, and pay $30,000 CAD in damages.
* dilution is a technical term in trademark infringement. You can find a good definition of it on our Trademark Infringement and Litigation FAQ page, along with other terms relevant to this case.