Austin-based Tequila 512 accuses the supermodel's tequila brand of copying its 'distinctive black lettering inside a vertical yellow rectangle' on its bottles.
- Feb 18, 2022
AceShowbiz - Kendall Jenner's 818 tequila brand has been slapped with a new lawsuit. The company, owned by K & Soda, LLC, is reportedly being sued by Austin-based Tequila 512 for ripping off the latter's "immediately recognizable" logo and color scheme.
In the suit filed on Wednesday, February 16, Tequila 512 stated that it has sold its products "using a highly distinctive logo and color scheme that has been in place since 2015." Although the application for registration of its trade dress is still pending, the brand said it has a federal trademark registration for 512.
"And out of the entire world of colors and shapes to use for product design, Defendant chose to copy Plaintiff's distinctive black lettering inside a vertical yellow rectangle," the legal docs further read.
Aside from "blatantly" copiying 512's branding, the plaintiff also accused the model's brand of similarly using an area code for the baverages' names. The company argued that the similarity create confusion among customers.
512 also pointed out that its bottle was mistakenly brought up on Kim Kardashian's mobile app game, "Kim Kardashian: Hollywood". The lawsuit read, "Either Defendant intentionally used Plaintiff's bottle, hoping to further blur the lines between the two products, or Defendant was itself confused about the difference between the two brands."
Kendall first announced the launch of her 818 Tequila brand in mid-February 2021. Sharing videos and photos of the drink, she wrote, "for almost 4 years i've been on a journey to create the best tasting tequila. after dozens of blind taste tests, trips to our distillery, entering into world tasting competitions anonymously and WINNING."
"3.5 years later i think we've done it," the older sister of Kylie Jenner went on to gush. "this is all we've been drinking for the last year and i can't wait for everyone else to get their hands on this to enjoy it as much as we do! @drink818 coming soon."
Just less than 24 hours after the announcement, however, Kendall was accused of cultural appropriation by many Twitter users. One person in particular argued, "Something about Kendall Jenner making tequila rubs me the wrong way..like the idea of white celebrities taking from local Mexican artisans and profiting off our traditions and agricultural business yet only visit Cabos and Puerto Vallarta for vacation spots."
