Starbucks brews up fresh design dispute over “nearly identical” logo

Coffee connoisseur Starbucks has once again entered a design dispute over a similar logo, which the company alleges copies its iconic green siren emblem. Starbuds Flowers – a marijuana retailer based in New York City – appears to take design cues from Starbucks' trademarked logo, which has prompted the global coffee chain to take legal action against the business.

The Starbucks logo has a long design legacy that's helped to build the brand's recognition since its creation in 1971, so it's no surprise that the brand has historically been militant when protecting its trademark.

According to legal documents, the Starbuds Flowers logo allegedly infringes on several of Starbucks' intellectual properties. The double-ringed green circle, crowned siren design and capitalised font supposedly replicate the notable features of the Starbucks logo while the 'Starbuds' title allegedly mimics the global coffee chain's name. Starbucks claims that the similarities “clearly" trade on "recognition of the extensive consumer recognition of Starbucks,” which could supposedly mislead customers.

In filing the copyright claim, Starbucks is calling for Starbuds to remove its similar logo from its converted food truck van and destroy the branding from all existing products. The chain is also calling for Starbuds to hand over any profits it has garnered since using the alleged copycat logo design.

This isn't the first logo dispute we've seen from Starbucks – the global coffee brand recently reentered a legal battle with Siren-themed coffee brand Mountains and Mermaids after similar claims that the logo would confuse customers. For more design stories, check out the big brands with ridiculously similar logos that are giving us serious deja vu.