RICHMOND, VA. — A sugar-fueled legal battle over the late-night cookie delivery market in Cavalier country has a Richmond company on the defensive.
Locally based Red Eye Cookie Co. this month fired back at a lawsuit brought against it in Charlottesville federal court, denying it has infringed on the trademark of competing national chain Insomnia Cookies.
Insomnia sued Red Eye on Jan. 26, claiming five counts including trademark infringement and unfair competition, largely related to similarities in the companies’ brands, logos and business models.
The case argues that Red Eye’s logo bears too much resemblance to Insomnia’s crescent moon logo, especially visible with stores across the street from one another in Richmond and – as of last month – in Charlottesville.
Red Eye filed its response to the suit March 3, denying the allegations and calling for the case to be dismissed.
That year, Insomnia claims in the lawsuit, it sent two letters to Red Eye with concerns about the brands’ similarities. The company claims it received no response from Red Eye.
That dispute came to a boiling point earlier this year in Charlottesville, as Red Eye prepared to open a store on Feb. 18 a block away from Insomnia’s location near The Corner, a popular commercial district near the UVA campus.
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