“Beaver” is a fairly ubiquitous name for a town in the US; Beaverton, Beaverlick (shoutout to Kentucky!), or Beaver + any body of water. I have a friend who visits a Beaver Lake every summer, where he proudly notes that the town hall has a “petrified beaver” on display. (Because we’re children, we’re incorrigibly amused by the phrasing.) For today’s legal misadventure, we’re stopping by Beavercreek, Ohio, a suburb of Dayton with a population of approximately 48,000 (humans, not beavers). Fittingly, the town has a handy local store called Beaver’s Mini Mart. Adorably, the shop’s cartoon mascot is a beaver. The current proprietor of the mini mart, Vik Boparai, has owned and operated the store for over a decade, meaning his presence in Beavercreek precedes the opening of another beaver-mascotted business in April of this year. Yes, folks, I’m talking about Buc-ee’s gas stations & convenience stores. Fresh off of John Oliver putting them on blast for aggressively suing smaller companies over trademark infringement, the buck-toothed bullies are at it again. Buc-ee’s has filed suit against Beaver’s Mini Mart, claiming the similarity in logos could do “irreparable harm” to the billion-dollar company. Dam it, GMAFB!
Legal advisors for the giant Texas-based travel center Buc-ee’s have filed a lawsuit against a much smaller mini mart claiming that the much smaller store’s branding and mascot too closely resemble that of Buc-ee’s. There is a concern, at least among the Buc-ee’s legal team, that the confusion could do irreparable harm to the Buc-ee’s trademark and business model.
It seems filing lawsuits against smaller businesses has become almost a pastime for the legal team at Buc-ee’s. The stores have been involved in so many copyright and trademark battles that late-night host John Oliver called the Texas travel centers out and invited them to sue him.
But this isn’t a late-night stunt to garner ratings; this is a real court case between Buc-ee’s and the owners of Beaver’s Mini Mart in Beavercreek, Ohio. Buc-ee’s has recently opened a location in Huber Heights, Ohio, which is about 16 miles away from the Beavercreek store named in the lawsuit.
The suit alleges that the Beavercreek mascot, a cartoon beaver, is too similar to the Buc-ee’s trademarked logo. The suit alleges the Beavercreek mascot has “wide eyes and a smile,” and the predominant color used in the logo is red, which is also similar to Buc-ee’s.
Yeah, that is a beaver. Yeah, he’s got a smile. Yeah, the words are written in red. But the bigger question, at least to me, who has no working knowledge of the law, is which one of these places was there first?
The answer to that is Beaver’s Mini Mart. It’s been a part of the Beavercreek economic scene for decades. Buc-ee’s just opened in April of this year. As you might imagine, the local folks are rallying around the smaller beaver, and I do mean smaller.
…And if you own a grocery store and it has a mascot that looks anything close to a beaver, you might want to rethink your design because when Buc-ee’s opens in April of 2027 near Ruston and later the same year near Lafayette, you know the legal beavers are going to be scouring the landscape for “threats”.
No, small businesses, don’t consider redesigning your animal mascots — that’s how the bullies win! And while beavers are obviously first in the firing line of Buc-ee’s legal sights, ALL animals are at risk! Buc-ee’s has sued over moose and alligators and bears, oh my! You know, cause it’s so freakin’ hard to tell the difference between a beaver and an ALLIGATOR. As Beaver’s Mini Mart owner Vik Boparai told The Cincinnati Enquirer, “It’s Buc-ee’s acting like they control all the animals across the world. Are they going to sue the schools and the city next?” Even more insulting (yet in no way surprising), Boparai says NO ONE from Buc-ee’s reached out to him before filing the lawsuit. So I say the best retaliation is exactly what Beavercreek is doing, with local businesses rallying to the mini mart’s defense by redoing their own logos with beavers. Even if it’s a temporary move, the message is clear: when you come after one of our beavers, you’ll have to answer to all of our beavers.
PS — John Oliver’s Buc-Off merch is still available for another month; help fight the good fight!
Beaver Logos via Facebook: The Root Beer Stande, Eric’s Pretzels, Bellbrook Candle Company, Rabbit Hole Books, Beaver Creek, Ohio Beavers
Gawd forbid Buc-ees ever goes to Canada! They’ll sue that whole country, where the beaver is a national symbol.
I was just thinking that. Good luck to them. (not.)
Canadians are smart enough to know Buc-cees mascot doesn’t even look like a beaver. IDK what that is, an imaginary woodchuck gopher creature? We have beaver logos in Canada that look like actual beavers.
But yeah FAFO for a litigious American franchise if they were to set up shop in Canada now (you’ll find no market, remember…we have nothing you need). And also claiming ownership of beavers? Please come on and try us I would love to see the carnage just for entertainment purposes.
Teddy’s mart in Georgia is asking to have the suit against them thrown out due to Buc-ee’s basing their logo on a toothpaste beaver mascot from the 1950s. Pretty sure they watched Jon Oliver last week lol https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/atlanta/teddys-market-fights-back-against-buc-ees-lawsuit-over-logo-infringement/7FR2KNVUGNB2XEEZHSKQPCIQKM/
Who is going to confuse a tiny mom & pop minimart with a Buc-ees?
Pro-tip Buc-ees: What is going to hurt your brand is bs like these lawsuits.