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Nando's Is Suing An Restaurant Called Fernando's For Infringing Copyright

Nando's Is Suing An Restaurant Called Fernando's For Infringing Copyright

The peri-peri chicken chain is suing the restaurant in Reading for breach of copyright, urging it to change its name, logo and signage.

Mike Wood

Mike Wood

Every crappy high street is filled with knock-off fast food joints called things like Krunchy Fried Chicken - which are not only terrible rip-offs but high quality (lol, jk) providers of grease to the drunk.

It's taken as given that the big names that suffer the compliment of having their brands piggybacked by imitators just let it slide, given that it's basically harmless - it isn't like anyone is going to confuse Krunchy Fried Chicken for the Colonel's real deal - and if anything, provides them with free marketing.

Of course, that isn't always the case. Nando's are proving themselves less than cheeky in taking on an upstart restaurant in Reading called Fernando's

BPM Media

Nando's have sent a letter warning the owner, Asam Aziz, that he must change the name, logo and signage of his restaurant to avoid a legal challenge for infringement of copyright.

Aziz denies the claims of plagiarism, saying that, if anything, he nicked the name off Take Me Out and their famous Isle of Fernando's.

"For the moment I'm left aghast;" he told the Metro. "I really don't know what to do to be honest with you because we had no intention of copying Nando's,' Mr Aziz said.

'We wanted to sell peri peri chicken, being of Portuguese origin, we use the chicken which I believe is a Portuguese chicken and the name Fernando's is a Portuguese name, it's also a place which is famous from TV show Take Me Out."

BPM Media

It's a perilous - or peri-perilous, if you will - situation for Asam Aziz, who claims that he is unable to take on such a large company as Nando's on his own and that a legal battle with the chicken giants could see him go out of business.

"I'm frustrated," he said. "We're a new business and I've invested every penny I have, a potential law suit will make me go under."

"The worst case scenario is I'll have to give up the rights to Fernando's, I'll have to give up the rights to the chicken and I'll have to give up rights to the chilli and start re-branding from the beginning, so I'll have to have a new name, new rights and everything."

Nando's insist that they are not looking for a fight, rather to protect the brand that they have built up.

"We are really proud of our brand and we know it means a lot to our customers," a spokesman said. "That's why whenever we think there is trademark infringement we try to sort it out amicably.

"We have asked this restaurant to re-brand because we believe it is trying to benefit from some of things that make us who we are - our menu, logo and even our name."

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Food, UK News, News, Nando's