On February 6, 2025, we obtained a big victory for our client (whom we’ll call “ST”), a Shark Tank winner whose business has thrived and grown after her appearance on the show. With success and fame often comes copycats – and sure enough, a Chinese infringer appeared on Amazon with counterfeit products, designed to make buyers believe they are purchasing genuine ST products.
Success Story – ST (consumer products brand sold online)
Catherine Cavella, ESQ.
Victory for our client!
On February 6, 2025, we obtained a big victory for our client (whom we’ll call “ST”), a Shark Tank winner whose business has thrived and grown after her appearance on the show. With success and fame often comes copycats – and sure enough, a Chinese infringer appeared on Amazon with counterfeit products, designed to make buyers believe they are purchasing genuine ST products.
To add insult to injury, not only did the infringer’s low-quality, fake ST products confuse and damage the brand, but also the infringer filed an application to register our client’s trademark as their own! It turns out, our client was so busy running her empire, she didn’t realize her ST trademark registration had lapsed, creating an opportunity for the infringer to scoop it from her.
When we met her last Fall, she was running a multimillion-dollar company with no registered trademark protecting her key brand, and a counterfeiter on track to register her brand with the USPTO.
Because they had a pending trademark registration, Amazon’s brand registry recognized the infringer as the authentic brand. What a nightmare!
What did IP Works do? We immediately re-filed an application to register her trademark with the USPTO, sent a strong Cease & Desist to the infringer (with a copy to Amazon), and then filed an Opposition at the USPTO’s Trademark Trial and Appeal Board to prevent the infringer’s trademark from getting registered. Our “take no prisoners” pleading, complete with supporting evidence, resulted in a default as the infringer ran away. Today, the infringer’s trademark application was abandoned, clearing the way for our client to get her mark registered again. Congratulations, ST!
- Moral of the story: Do not let your trademark registrations lapse! We have a new subscription service that can help.
Catherine Cavella
