"Luckin" failed to fight counterfeiting in Thailand!This statement may sound absurd, but it is true.
On December 8, 2023, the Commercial Court of Bangkok, Thailand, announced that the Chinese coffee chain brand Luckin Coffee sued Luckin Coffee, a subsidiary of the Royal Thai 50R Group, for trademark infringement in Thailand, and ruled against China Luckin. This means that Luckin Thailand can continue to use the trademark "Luckin" in Thailand. This trademark lawsuit can be said to be an important setback for "Luckin" in its overseas development.
The key reason for the defeat of Luckin is that Thailand Luckin registered its trademark in Thailand earlier than China's Luckin.
Thailand's Luckin registered the "Luckin" trademark in October 2019, while China's Luckin only applied for the registration of the "Luckin" trademark in Thailand in November 2020.
According to Thailand's trademark law, a trademark registered first has priority. Therefore, the Thai court found that Thailand Luckin enjoyed the right to use the trademark, and the claim of China Luckin was not established.
In addition to the time factor of trademark registration, Thai Luckin has opened a number of physical stores in Thailand and has a certain reputation, which is also an important factor in the Thai court's decision in favor of Thai Luckin.
The verdict of this lawsuit has profound implications for the overseas development of "Luckin".
First of all, when an enterprise registers a trademark overseas, it must pay attention to the time factor and register the trademark as soon as possible to avoid the trademark being preemptively registered.
Secondly, when enterprises develop overseas, they must do a good job of market research and understand local laws and regulations to avoid losses caused by not understanding local laws.
Finally, when enterprises develop overseas, they must do a good job in brand building and improve brand awareness, so that they can obtain the support of the court when encountering trademark disputes.
"Luckin's failure to crack down on counterfeiting in Thailand is a lesson and a reminder." If "Luckin" wants to succeed in overseas markets, it must pay more attention to trademark protection and strengthen brand building in order to stand out in the fierce competition.
Luckin Coffee lost a trademark dispute in Thailand