Big League Chew sues Erie County company to protect trademark

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Big League Chew, the iconic shredded bubblegum company, has filed a federal lawsuit against a licensee to protect its trademark and intellectual property rights.

Big League Chew Properties LLC and The Rob Nelson Co. Inc. filed a complaint Monday in U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Illinois against Ford Gum & Machine Co. Inc., which has been licensed to make and sell Big League Chew for more than 14 years.

The complaint seeks to prevent Ford Gum from violating its license agreement and making unauthorized trademark claims.

“Ford Gum betrayed Big League Chew and its millions of fans by unfairly and willfully trading on the reputation and success of Big League Chew’s distinctive, world-famous brand of shredded bubble gum,” according to the complaint.

Big League Chew’s legal team includes Rochester attorneys Edward P. Hourihan and Jeffrey F. Allen of Bond, Schoeneck, & King PLLC.

“Private equity acquired Ford gum in 2022. Since that time, they have made multiple attempts to push Rob Nelson to sell. Now they have brazenly attempted to take his brand and company. We filed for an injunction to immediately put a stop to this,” Hourihan said.

“We cannot allow the Big League Chew brand to be misrepresented, misappropriated and tarnished. Big League Chew is more than just a product, it’s a cherished part of sports culture, and we are dedicated to protecting its intellectual property so we can continue delivering the same experience fans have enjoyed for over four decades,” Allen said.

In addition to seeking an injunction to stop Ford Gum’s trademark application, the complaint asserts that Ford Gum has breached the terms of its license agreement.

Under the agreement, Ford Gum was authorized to manufacture and distribute Big League Chew products but is prohibited from claiming ownership of the “unique shredded gum trade dress or any trademarks associated with the brand.”

Ford intentionally infringed on Big League Chew’s trademark by filing a trademark application claiming ownership of Big League Chew’s “famous shredded bubble gum configuration and distinctive product configuration,” the suit claims.

Ford Gum’s trademark application “falsely claims … that it was the very first company to offer and sell shredded bubble gum,” according to the suit.

Big League Chew authorized Ford Gum to make shredded bubble gum in 2010 and provided Ford Gum with the equipment necessary to make the gum, according to the complaint.

Big League Chew and The Rob Nelson Co. Inc. are based in Vancouver, Wash. Ford Gum was incorporated in Illinois and is based in Akron, Erie County, according to the suit.

Nelson is the founder, president and owner of Big League Chew Properties LLC and The Rob Nelson Company Inc. He created Big League Chew shredded bubble gum and owns the brand, according to the suit.

Nelson came up with the idea for Big League Chew in 1977 when he was a pitcher for the minor league Portland Mavericks. Since 1980, when it was first sold, more than one billion pouches of Big League Chew shredded bubble gum have been sold, according to the lawsuit.

Big League Chew entered into a license agreement with Ford Gum on July 16, 2010.

The companies “maintained an excellent working relationship under the Ford Gum license agreement until 2022 when Ford Gum was purchased by Chaver Capital Partners and Greyrock Capital Group,” according to the suit.

After Ford Gum was purchased by the private equity investment firms disputes began to arise and Ford Gum began to badger Rob Nelson to sell Big League Chew and all its intellectual property, the suit claims.

Shortly after Ford Gum was acquired, the new owners started making purchase offers to buy Big League Chew and its intellectual property.

“Ford Gum’s efforts to acquire Big League Chew and all its intellectual property have continued and increased in intensity in recent months despite Rob Nelson’s refusals to sell,” according to the complaint.

“Ford Gum has unlawfully asserted ownership of the shredded bubble gum trade dress, including by filing a fraudulent … trademark application to register the shredded bubble gum mark,” according to the lawsuit.

“Ford Gum, as a licensee of the Big League Chew trademarks and shredded bubble gum trade dress for 14 years, was well aware of Big League Chew’s longstanding ownership rights … at the time it filed the trademark application,” the suit claims.

In September, after Nelson learned that Ford Gum had filed the trademark application, he called Lerner and “Lerner immediately suggested to Rob Nelson that they discuss a ‘buy-out’ of Big League Chew by Ford Gum,” according to the suit.

Nelson told Lerner he was not interested “and would not engage in a ‘buy out’ discussion unless his concerns about the unauthorized trademark application were resolved,” according to the suit.

Lerner flew to Portland, Ore., to ask Nelson about a buy-out, but “Nelson told Mr. Lerner that he would not discuss anything unless and until his concerns over the unauthorized trademark application were resolved,” according to the suit.

“Lerner would not engage in such a discussion and told Mr. Nelson he didn’t know much about the Trademark Application,” according to the suit.

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