Yeti Lawsuit

[Steve Clarkson]

Just a heads up.....I saw that Yeti just won a lawsuit against RTIC (I think it's the company that sells the knock off stainless steel tumblers at Walmart) and RTIC agreed to immediately stop selling it's products.

I'm wondering if similar lawsuits are in process against other competitors like Polar Camel (sold by JDS).

So if you sell a lot of stainless steel tumblers, you might want to stock up before all the cheap ones are gone.

[Mike Null]

I was surprised that it hadn't happened sooner. Yeti did a superior marketing job and the Chinese and various competitors jumped on the bandwagon with geat success.

Good for Yeti!

[Keith Downing]

I wonder if the infringement related to the shape of the coolers, or the insulation technology? The article I read said they had to cease selling all products until they had made meaningful changes to the design. That could mean anything though.

[Adam Herman]

insulation technology? They can't possibly have a patent on pulling a vacuum. Stanley and other manufactures have been doing it for decades.

edit: they list exactly 0 patents on their site for the "rambler" cups. not even a design patent.

http://yeti.com/patents

[John Lifer]

Said that they werre re designing the products affected. May be cups, may be coolers. Coolere were different size than yetis, rtic has been out of the 20oz for over a month. Id guess they'll change design a bit. Walmart already did this.

[Keith Downing]

insulation technology? They can't possibly have a patent on pulling a vacuum. Stanley and other manufactures have been doing it for decades.

edit: they list exactly 0 patents on their site for the "rambler" cups. not even a design patent.

http://yeti.com/patents

It's funny, because I was thinking "they couldn't possibly have gotten a patent on the shape of a cup or a cooler after all these years of those being made". LOL

[AL Ursich]

I was in Wally mart yesterday and saw a worker with a manual pricing gun putting 10 cent stickers on a bunch of tumblers... She told a passing soccer Mom they were all 10 cents each... I really did not pay attention to it, then I saw this... Must be related....

AL

[Kev Williams]

Don't bother me much, people bring me theirs-- :)

I do more Hydroflasks than anything...

Yesterday I did some SIC cups (Seriously Ice Cold), identical to the big Yeti but physically smaller, only 20 ounces- no infringement? And they're powdercoated, was told they don't even sell a stainless version- and they weigh a ton, pretty sure the air space isn't air...

[Matt McCoy]

I was surprised that it hadn't happened sooner. Yeti did a superior marketing job and the Chinese and various competitors jumped on the bandwagon with geat success.

Good for Yeti!


insulation technology? They can't possibly have a patent on pulling a vacuum. Stanley and other manufactures have been doing it for decades.

edit: they list exactly 0 patents on their site for the "rambler" cups. not even a design patent.

http://yeti.com/patents


It's funny, because I was thinking "they couldn't possibly have gotten a patent on the shape of a cup or a cooler after all these years of those being made". LOL

Apparently both companies were founded by a set of brothers in Texas. YETI lists China as the country of origin for its tumblers and there's an internet rumor that they may even be made in the same factory as the RTIC. YETI included a Chinese manufacturer in its lawsuit. RTIC were sued for a few things, including infringement of trade dress, patents, and unfair competition.

[Kev Williams]

While I don't have an optical comparator, I do have several other measuring devices and loupes and such-- at given times I've a 30oz Yeti (the wife's), some RTIC and Ozark Mountain clones here, and also had the wife's 20oz Yeti and some Ozark Mountain and Members Mark clones...

Other than the logo stamping (none on the MM), they are all virtually identical... Same diameters in the same places, identical height, the bottom caps are exactly the same, same inside diameters, same inside and outside finish-- and I'd bet a buck most of the plastic caps came from the same basic injection mold (which is easy enough to fabricate alternate interchangeable parts for the different logos and openings)...

Just my opinion, but the chance the whole bunch one of them is made in the same building someplace in China is pretty good!

and just for a little conspiracy theory action, it wouldn't surprise me a bit if this whole Yeti-and-the-clones and now the lawsuits are all just one big April fools joke fabricated by these brothers... :D - think about it-- collectively, how many millions of these things have been sold? Talk about laughing all the way to the bank...;)

(hey, it could happen!)

[Glen Monaghan]

Someone said the best way to beat the inevitable knockoffs of successful products is to be the first to knockoff your own product. When (or, preferably, before) going to market with your new sensation, you prepare your own knockoff: you either set up a new company and relabel your product for sale at a lower price than the original, advertising it's "just as good but less expensive", or you set up a different company that substitutes cheaper parts/materials to keep your margins up on the knockoffs. Or do both, allowing you to cover high, medium, and low-ends which makes it harder for third parties to get a foot hold.

[Mike Null]

The primary issue is a term called "trade dress". What it deals with is the identical shape size and general appearance of all those competitors.

In this case there are two sets of brothers involved and they are not related. The suit apparently includes all brands which share the commonality of look and shape.

[Bruce Clumpner]

Do you think that JDS's 2-day sale they started today for their Polar Camel brand is a result of this? Are they trying to clear out inventory before the cease & desist order arrives?

[Mike Null]

I don't think those prices are hot enough to clear their inventory.

[Joe Szymczyk]

Hi Guys,
I am a long time reader of the forum when time allowed but now have taken the plunge to post.

My JDS rep has told me that Yeti and Engle, which manufacture the Polar Camel, are the only 2 that own the patent rights to these type and style of cups. Engle has been in the cooler business for decades.

[Mike Null]

That may be but the JDS stuff appears to be identical to Yeti.

[Chris DeGerolamo]

I contacted JDS a day or so ago and asked. The rep had not heard of anything that would prohibit them from selling their Polar Camel tumblers. She added that if there were an issue, they would put out an e-mail blast stating such.

[Ruben Salcedo]

Hi, is it Engle or Engel? Thanks.

[Joe Szymczyk]

Engel, I should have checked the spelling first.

And maybe the Yeti is identical to the Engel (Polar Camel). I don't know which one was on the market first.