They say:
"Could anybody imagine a $54 billion machinery company coming after a coffee company? I don't think that's even in the cards," said Truby. "The first biggest thing they want us to do is not print the name Cat and Cloud on anything again. I think that is unbelievable. I don't think that's going to hold up."<p>Caterpillar says:
Caterpillar Inc. says its only concern is over apparel, providing Action News with this statement:<p>"Caterpillar serves customers around the world, many of whom earn their livelihood with one or two machines and often a good pair of work boots. We value all of them and strive to provide exceptional products and services. This means we have a responsibility to protect and maintain the brand they love and rely on every day - including our existing trademarks.<p>"We are not suing Cat & Cloud, not targeting a small business and not focused on Cat & Cloud's primary interest: coffee. We've simply asked the U.S. Trademark Office to remove Cat & Cloud's trademark registration on footwear and apparel only, products for which Caterpillar has longstanding trademarks and a considerable business. We hope to resolve this issue quickly."<p>It would seem they are entering the same industry, thus the action by caterpillar seems warranted. Caterpillar is not just a heavy machinery company, and it would seem Cat and Cloud is not selling just coffee.
I love the line "and a good pair of work boots." Marketing at its finest. Are we really supposed to believe that the type of fellow who cherishes a "good pair of work boots" is going to get confused and wear coffee-shop apparel to a worksite? Are we really supposed to believe that this situation will threaten anyone's ability to "earn their livelihood with one or two [Caterpillar] machines?"
Best coffee in santa cruz IMO, also have an incredibly popular podcast <a href="https://catandcloud.com/pages/podcast" rel="nofollow">https://catandcloud.com/pages/podcast</a> . Their sister bakery "companion" has best croissants I've had outside of europe.
"We are not suing Cat & Cloud, not targeting a small business and not focused on Cat & Cloud's primary interest: coffee. We've simply asked the U.S. Trademark Office to remove Cat & Cloud's trademark registration on footwear and apparel only, products for which Caterpillar has longstanding trademarks and a considerable business. We hope to resolve this issue quickly."<p>Sadly they have to defend this or they could risk losing the cat trademark on footwear.
For a company that has their fingers in every strip mine on the planet, this is a pretty audacious move.<p>I wager in a matter of days some VP will get wind of this and scream at the lawyers to slow their roll.