Call off the Wolves, Jack !
10 10, 09 Topic: General Design
To Jack Wolfskin GmbH & Co. KGaA
Dear Jack,
Guten Tag !
My name is Jolyon Yates. I live in Newcastle upon Tyne, Northern England.
It’s not as pretty as Idstein .. but we too have a great tea shop and a Black and Decker outlet !
As for my profession, I am a lone designer / maker.
Dear Jack,
Guten Tag !
My name is Jolyon Yates. I live in Newcastle upon Tyne, Northern England.
It’s not as pretty as Idstein .. but we too have a great tea shop and a Black and Decker outlet !
As for my profession, I am a lone designer / maker.
I design and make carved wooden chairs, bowls, bookends, and also hanging mobiles and decals. Despite following my passion for design, I can barely call what it gives me “a living" - but one must work hard and hope for a bright future, right ?
I have a small black pussy cat. Her name is Princess. I have attached an image of Princess to help you visualise our modest lives.
Princess is a pretty cat, quiet and sweet and not at all vicious, so don’t be concerned !
However, recently - both Princess and I have become rather unnerved by the actions of your fine global corporation, Jack Wolfskin GmbH & Co. KGaA
It appears that your company has threatened serious legal action against me, my cat and my modest business.
It turns out that despite only being formed in 1981, Jack Wolfskin GmbH & Co. KGaA (now the world’s biggest outdoor retailer) owns the rights to cat’s paws .. Now, who would have thought that !?
I must let the ancient Egyptians, Walt Disney and the Pink Panther know at once !
Seriously - I thought you might have the market for Wolf’s paws sewn-up - but not ALL paws, surely ?
The problem, to be precise .. is that one of the products I make is a small decal (sticker) - that I sell for very modest sums of money, usually to cat-loving housewives through harmless craft websites like Dawanda.com. I’ve only sold three sets so far .. I realise that’s at least €30 .. but hell - €30 doesn’t get me far in my 300 tonne luxury Superyacht : )
Joking aside, these little decals are about 2/3 of an inch across and are in the shape of a domestic cat’s footprint .. actually they are based on the pesky little marks that Princess leaves on the kitchen floor when she comes in from the muddy garden !
I have enclosed a picture of the offending decals for your perusal, as well as an image of the offending furry feet. (You don’t own the rights to fur too, do you ?)
I have also attached a copy of your logo, which I’ve borrowed (only temporarily, I promise) from your website.
Perhaps you can compare the two - and I’m sure you’ll agree with me that the two are entirely dissimilar.
Despite the fact that Princess’s cat prints do not have the large bold words “Jack Wolfskin” attached to them in big orange letters, they can surely be seen to be quite a different shape - they are in fact small and round and cute .. with clean edges and no visible signs of any aggressive claws !
Now, I appreciate for example that Apple (or say Blackberry !) must protect it’s brand-mark - stopping people from using brand-marks that resemble it’s own .. particularly within the technology field. Last time I looked however, my local fruit shop still sold Apples (and Blackberries !) and what’s more - from boxes with images of Apples (and Blackberries !) printed on them. (Perhaps we should keep it quiet). My local art gallery still has paintings of fruitbowls, often including Apples (and Blackberries !) .. and the words of the famous cockney rhyming slang for stairs (apples and pairs) are still - I believe, in popular circulation.
Likewise, if Princess’s paws remotely resembled the ones you use to promote your fine global outdoor leisure business and I used that to gain traction in selling - say - leather hiking boots, fluffy bobble hats or fleecy fingerless gloves, well then I might understand your legal department throwing their weight around in the direction of me, Princess and my modest business.
It’s clear however to me - and I hope to you - that this can only be a silly misunderstanding and that neither Princess’s paws nor my stickers pose any danger to your global corporate monolith - in any way.
I like your company and never believed for one moment that your legal team would wittingly waste it’s resources in such a way, nor that a company of such high repute would partake in corporate bullying !?
So, what do you say, Jack and co ? .. please call off the Wolves and let Princess and I get on with our modest lives without legal threats.
We look forward to hearing back from you very soon !
With Kind Regards
Jol + Princess
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I have a small black pussy cat. Her name is Princess. I have attached an image of Princess to help you visualise our modest lives.
Princess is a pretty cat, quiet and sweet and not at all vicious, so don’t be concerned !
However, recently - both Princess and I have become rather unnerved by the actions of your fine global corporation, Jack Wolfskin GmbH & Co. KGaA
It turns out that despite only being formed in 1981, Jack Wolfskin GmbH & Co. KGaA (now the world’s biggest outdoor retailer) owns the rights to cat’s paws .. Now, who would have thought that !?
I must let the ancient Egyptians, Walt Disney and the Pink Panther know at once !
Seriously - I thought you might have the market for Wolf’s paws sewn-up - but not ALL paws, surely ?
The problem, to be precise .. is that one of the products I make is a small decal (sticker) - that I sell for very modest sums of money, usually to cat-loving housewives through harmless craft websites like Dawanda.com. I’ve only sold three sets so far .. I realise that’s at least €30 .. but hell - €30 doesn’t get me far in my 300 tonne luxury Superyacht : )
Joking aside, these little decals are about 2/3 of an inch across and are in the shape of a domestic cat’s footprint .. actually they are based on the pesky little marks that Princess leaves on the kitchen floor when she comes in from the muddy garden !
I have enclosed a picture of the offending decals for your perusal, as well as an image of the offending furry feet. (You don’t own the rights to fur too, do you ?)
I have also attached a copy of your logo, which I’ve borrowed (only temporarily, I promise) from your website.
Perhaps you can compare the two - and I’m sure you’ll agree with me that the two are entirely dissimilar.
Despite the fact that Princess’s cat prints do not have the large bold words “Jack Wolfskin” attached to them in big orange letters, they can surely be seen to be quite a different shape - they are in fact small and round and cute .. with clean edges and no visible signs of any aggressive claws !
Now, I appreciate for example that Apple (or say Blackberry !) must protect it’s brand-mark - stopping people from using brand-marks that resemble it’s own .. particularly within the technology field. Last time I looked however, my local fruit shop still sold Apples (and Blackberries !) and what’s more - from boxes with images of Apples (and Blackberries !) printed on them. (Perhaps we should keep it quiet). My local art gallery still has paintings of fruitbowls, often including Apples (and Blackberries !) .. and the words of the famous cockney rhyming slang for stairs (apples and pairs) are still - I believe, in popular circulation.
It’s clear however to me - and I hope to you - that this can only be a silly misunderstanding and that neither Princess’s paws nor my stickers pose any danger to your global corporate monolith - in any way.
I like your company and never believed for one moment that your legal team would wittingly waste it’s resources in such a way, nor that a company of such high repute would partake in corporate bullying !?
So, what do you say, Jack and co ? .. please call off the Wolves and let Princess and I get on with our modest lives without legal threats.
We look forward to hearing back from you very soon !
With Kind Regards
Jol + Princess
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