Chipotle is beefing in court with a fast-casual food nemesis … suing Sweetgreen over the competitor’s latest offering — the “Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl.”
According to a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Chipotle claims Sweetgreen just came out with the menu item last week, and it takes issue with Sweetgreen using the word “chipotle.”
Chipotle claims Sweetgreen is trying to profit off its brand name and even claims the restaurant is trying to confuse or deceive customers.
In the suit, Chipotle claims Sweetgreen is marketing the “Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl” with ads featuring colors and styles that are nearly identical to Chipotle’s trademarks.
Chipotle is accusing Sweetgreen of trying to trade off Chipotle’s goodwill … claiming comments on a social media post announcing the new bowl show folks clearly understanding “the association Sweetgreen is trying to draw between its product, Chipotle’s products, and the famous CHIPOTLE brand.”
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After Sweetgreen started its ad blitz, Chipotle claims it reached out to its competitor with a request to re-name the item or use the word “chipotle” a different way … but Chipotle says Sweetgreen didn’t respond.
Chipotle is suing for money, and it wants Sweetgreen to stop using its “CHIPOTLE” trademark in promotions.
Sweetgreen tells TMZ … “We are aware of the lawsuit Chipotle Mexican Grill has filed over the name of our new bowl. However, we do not comment on pending litigation.”