US Supermarket Trader Joe’s Takes Legal Action Against Crypto Project Over Name Resemblance

cryptonews.com:

Popular US supermarket chain Trader Joe’s has sued decentralized exchange (DEX) Trader Joe for federal trademark infringement.

According to the filing, the DEX’s branding is designed to allow it to profit from the supermarket’s reputation by “causing confusion as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement” of the DEX’s website and services.

The crypto project neither asked for nor received Trader Joe’s permission to name their platform after the grocery shop chain, it said.

Trader Joe’s sent Trader Joe several cease-and-desist letters since September 2021, but the latter “failed to respond, let alone comply.”

Trader Joe's seeks to shut down Trader Joe, statutory and punitive damages, cost of suit, attorneys' fees, and other relief.

Trader Joe's also asks for a jury trial.

Trader Joe has violated a number of Trader Joe’s intellectual property rights, says the suit.

The DEX uses the domain name traderjoexyz.com, and has also registered trader-joes.site and trader-joe.website.

Imagery is also deliberately similar, the company alleges, evoking Trader Joe’s business and brand, the company said, adding:

“An image of “Trader Joe” donning a red cap (the famed color of Trader Joe’s logo, store motifs, and memorabilia) serves as the platform’s avatar.”

There is also a Trader Joe app, enabling users to consume the platform’s goods and services under the “Trader Joe” name.

Trader Joe also operates a number of social media sites under the same name to publicize the platform and promote its services. These include Twitter/X, Reddit, Github, LinkedIn, Substack, Telegram, and Discord.

Trader Joe “engaged in fraud” to hold onto the platform and domain name as long as possible, the suit alleges.

“Defendants committed fraud to obscure that