Nestlé Takes Legal Action Against Seattle Coffee Brand Over Name Confusion

Can you trademark a city name? That seems to be what big food and drink corporation Nestlé is trying to do against a smaller coffee company in Seattle.

Seattle's Best vs Seattle Strong, in the world of caffeinated drinks, would you get confused? That's what the legal system is about to figure out.

Nestlé recently got the courts involved to force a Seattle drink company named Seattle Strong to stop operating under that name. Nestlé (based in Switzerland) is claiming that customers may be confused between their "Seattle's Best" brand, which they purchased in 2022 and Seattle Strong.

Nestle's Legal Issues Against Seattle Strong

Nestlé feels that they've spent 'substantial amounts of money' in building their brand of Seattle's Best, that consumers 'will likely be confused, mistaken, or deceived as to the source of the parties’ respective goods' thinking they're buying a Nestlé product when they are not.

"As a result of decades of commercial success, advertising, and unsolicited third-party recognition, Nestlé's SEATTLE'S BEST mark has become a household name and has been well-known and famous for years."
- US Patent & Trademark Office Document

Seattle Strong's Reply To The Trademark Legal Notice

Seattle Strong, formed in 2017 as a college project and received its trademark in 2022, focuses on cold brew drinks, whereas Seattle's Best sells a variety of coffee products.

Seattle Strong has launched a GoFundMe to help cover legal battles and released the video below.

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Can You Trademark 'Seattle'?

Technically you can trademark Seattle, although it would be tough. According to the United States Patent & Tradmark Office (USPTO), locations are usually meant to be descriptive, where the thing is from, so not unique enough for a trademark, but something like Seattle, where thanks to companies like Seattle's Best and Starbucks, you think of coffee, you may just think of Seattle.

Do you think Nestlé has a point? Do you think they can trademark "SEATTLE"? What would happen if someone released a "Seattle's Most Delicious Cracker"? Would Nestlé get the courts to stop that company as well?

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