Bar Owner vs. Starbucks: Argument over the F-Word

To Jeff Britton it’s just the F-word. No, it’s not what you might be thinking. It’s frappuccino: a sticky, sweet coffee drink sold by the American coffee chain Starbucks. Britton, owner of the small bar Exit 6 in the U.S. state of Missouri, is more likely to feel like laughing than swearing because Exit 6 had a frappuccino beer which the coffee giant’s resourceful lawyers got wind of. They threatened to sue Britton because they thought the spelling was too similar.

But Britton knew enough to fight back. He formally answered the lawyers in the same style that they used when they wrote to him — namely, that Britton, as host and representative of Exit 6, is the proud owner of absolutely no rights whatsoever. At Exit 6, which holds an important position in the market, he regrets that three proud customers had ordered the beer with the F-word. Britton went on to say that it was “our mistake” that his beer-drinking customers assumed that in Exit 6, of all places, they could be served a coffee that is available at any one of the numerous Starbucks cafés on every corner. But luckily, he’s committed to his letter. As an apology and an attempt to avoid further legal action, he sent a check for $6.00, his total income from the sales of the drinks, along with it. He promised to remove the name from the menu along with an alleged Starbucks-McDonalds-Coca Cola-Marlboro honey lager.

The correspondence between the two “small business owners,” as Britton called them, is available to read in the Huffington Post. The host has had it published, and is being celebrated for it. One doesn’t have to idly speculate on what that means for Starbucks. Jeff Britton is handling the situation well: The beer will continue to be sold under its code-name — the F-word.