Hershey’s Counter-Sues Cookie Brand Over Logos Seemingly Cut From Same Mold
Image via Hershey’s
When people think of the Hershey Company, the first thing that comes to mind is Hershey’s Kisses. The foil-wrapped chocolate drops and their unique cone-like shape is iconic, along with the logo of the same silhouette.
Recently, the brand filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against The Cookie Department Inc, alleging the cookie maker was using the familiar Kisses logo on its packaging.
Image via Hershey’s and The Cookie Department
According to Penn Live, Hershey’s brings in US$490,000 per year in Kisses sales just in the United States alone. It’s no wonder the company is notoriously protective of its trademarks.
In the lawsuit, Hershey’s gave examples of packaging from The Cookie Department that had small and large conical logos, which it feels are “substantially similar” to how it markets Kisses. It also claimed the brand’s site featured the same icons on a map of its locations.
Image via The Cookie Department
However, the story goes back even further. In fact, it was The Cookie Department who first sued Hershey’s, back in December 2020. The former had accused the latter’s ‘One Protein Bars’ of infringing on its trademark, as per Baking Business.
Since 2012, The Cookie Department has been selling its ‘Tough Cookie’ protein snack, and took issue with Hershey’s using the tagline ‘Tough Cookies Only’ on the packaging, advertising, and marketing material of its new chocolate bar.
Image via One Bars and The Cookie Department
As for Hershey’s recent Kisses complaint, the Brooklyn-based cookie maker said the icon it used depicted the “universally known” shape of a chocolate chip, and was not a specific copy of Kisses.
Additionally, it felt Hershey’s was suing it as a “strategic ploy” to gain the upper hand in the ‘Tough Cookie’ case, as per Reuters.
A ubiquitous depiction of a chocolate chip, or a Kisses copycat? With things getting more heated between the two brands, it doesn’t seem like this feud is going to end anytime soon.
[via Penn Live and Baking Business, images via various sources]
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