Fried Chicken Joint Faces a Fine for Using Louis Vuitton Name

The restaurant owner will have to pay almost $13,000.

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While designer fried chicken seems like a great way to attract customers, you might want to reconsider giving your restaurant the same name as a French fashion house.

A restaurant owner in South Korea is now facing a $13,000 fine after refusing to change its name from "Louis Vuitton Dak" ("tongdak" means whole chicken in Korean). 

According to The Korea Times, in an earlier court ruling the owner, identified by his surname Kim, was banned from operating his business under a name that parodied the luxury brand. He had apparently also made a logo similar to Louis Vuitton's, which he printed on napkins and wrappers.

Last September, Louis Vuttion asked the court to ban the restaurant from using its name, claiming that it damaged the originality and value of the brand. The court ruled in its favor and ordered Kim to pay $440 for every day he continued to use it. The restaurateur attempted to subtly change the name to "chaLOUISVUI TONDAK," but the court ruled that it was still a parody and slapped him with a $12,750 fine.

This isn't the first time we've seen luxury brands go after those that attempt to use their name. Recently, Saint Laurent and Chanel settled a lawsuit with the brand What About Yves after it  sold parody products.

 

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