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It’s been close to a year since Tiger Woods launched a new venture in the form of Sun Day Red, the apparel brand he created after ending his lengthy relationship with Nike. Now, its logo has once again ended up in the crosshairs of another company with Puma asserting it’s a bit too similar to its own.
Tiger Woods spent more than 25 years serving as the face of Nike’s golf brand after the company wisely inked the burgeoning superstar to an endorsement deal in 1996, and it obviously reaped the benefits of having its signature swoosh prominently displayed on the shirt of the most influential golfer in the history of the sport for decades.
The two sides inked a ten-year contract extension in 2013, but Nike’s decision to sunset its golf equipment brand just a few years later almost certainly played a role in the parties deciding to go their separate ways after a grand total of 27 years.
Tiger’s best days may be behind him, but he’s still a force to be reckoned with on the marketing front. As a result, it was no surprise a new suitor quickly swooped in with a new offer in the form of TaylorMade, which partnered with Woods to launch the apparel brand dubbed “Sun Day Red” toward the start of 2024.
The decision to style the name in that unconventional manner seemingly stemmed from a preexisting trademark that was filed in 2009, and in September, Sun Day Red found itself dealing with another legal issue when a company called Tigeraire claimed the new brand “unlawfully hijacked” its logo.
Now, a new challenger has entered the arena thanks to Puma, as CNBC reports the German sportswear giant that was founded in 1947 believes Sun Day Red’s tiger-centric logo is a bit too similar to the one of the leaping feline it’s been using since 1969.
USPTO
The complaint in question was filed by Puma on January 2nd and argues the Sun Day Red logo “will cause confusion” among consumers and has the potential to “dilute the strength and fame of Puma’s marks.”
Sun Day Red has until February 11th to respond to the challenge, and it’ll be very interesting to see how this ends up playing out.