James Tenser

The North Face Vs. The South Butt

January 8, 2010

FROM RETAILWIRE:
The North Face has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against The South Butt, a parody company started by a 19-year old allegedly to help him pay for college. What's your ethical view in infringement cases involving the parodying of brands? Should The North Face have sued The South Butt?      [more...]

North Face should be a bit red about now due to its clumsy handling of this matter. Its too-public legal threats have given South Butt a favorable kick--precisely opposite of the intended outcome.

Brands are public entities and are therefore subject to public speech. North Face is no exception to this, and it might choose to regard the South Butt parody as further confirmation of its own brand equity.

Yes, the creator of South Butt is earning a few bucks from his online store, but it's a stretch to claim that those dollars are in any way subtracting from North Face's sales.

My view: North Face is creating a self-fulfilling prophecy by pursuing this legal action. It should fire its lawyers, who evidently have nary a clue about the marketing implications of their hard-line advice.