Chippendales Loses Trademark Case

Pop quiz: What brand is inherently represented by shirtless men wearing nothing but bow-tie collars and sleeve cuffs? If you answered "Chippendales," the iconic all-male erotic dance revue founded in the late 1970s, you're wrong. The correct answer is every brand ... or no brand at all.

At least, that is, legally. According to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, and now affirmed by the United States Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit, the "Cuffs & Collar Mark" is "not inherently distinctive." Sorry, Chippendudes!Continue reading...