Michael Atkins - Seattle Trademark Lawyer

The Seattle Times’ Feb. 15 Retail Report offers a cautionary tale for business owners who adopt a trademark before talking to a trademark attorney:

”Zenith Vineyard in Oregon’s Willamette Valley might win the viticultural prize for having the most names in the shortest period. D.A. Davidson food-industry analyst Tim Ramey settled on Zenith after trademark disputes over his vineyard’s two other names.

“Two years ago, London-based Diageo opposed the first name, Belle Provenance Vineyard, saying it was too close to that of Provenance Vineyards in Napa Valley. Ramey then tested the name Belle Orgine Vineyard but ran into trouble with Albertsons over its private-label wine called Origin. Finally, last year he changed the name to Zenith Vineyard.

“‘We were never willing to hire a trademark attorney for $10,000, so that’s why we got all this wonderful on-the-job education,’ Ramey said.”

This is frustrating for a trademark lawyer to read — though obviously not as frustrating as it was for Mr. Ramey to live through. For one thing, it doesn’t cost $10,000 to talk to a trademark lawyer. But even if it did, think of all the goodwill that Mr. Ramey built up and then lost in his first brand, then built up and lost in his second brand, then had to build up again in his third (and hopefully final) brand. Not to mention all the money he invested in advertising, marketing, signage, and labeling for all three brands. I’m sure to Mr. Ramey, $10,000 now sounds like a bargain.

Learn from this gentleman’s mistakes. Invest in strategic trademark advice up front so you don’t waste precious resources later on.

Update on February 24, 2008 by

Michael Atkins

Mr. Ramey contacted me this evening about this post. I want to say I am sorry if it caused him any embarrassment or distress. That certainly was not my intent. I didn’t know anything about the facts underlying the story other than what I read in the Seattle Times, which I posted in full above. Mr. Ramey says he did not build up or lose any goodwill in his first or second brands. He also says he didn’t invest any money advertising or developing his brands, and did his on-the-job training when it didn’t have an impact on his business. I trust what Mr. Ramey says is true, and I apologize if I led anyone to think otherwise. I wish Mr. Ramey and his company nothing but the best.