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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowSteak n Shake Co. has changed the name of its miniature Steakburgers to settle a trademark-infringement lawsuit brought by Miami-based Burger King Corp.
The Indianapolis-based chain was slapped with a lawsuit last month after it unveiled slider-style hamburgers called Steakburger Shots, a moniker Burger King said was “confusingly similar” to its trademarked BK Burger Shots, BK Breakfast Shots and BK Chicken Shots.
The mini-burgers at Steak n Shake now are known as Shooters.
Steak n Shake CEO Sardar Biglari said at the chain’s annual meeting Friday that he simply called Burger King CEO John Chidsey and worked out the dispute over the phone.
In the lawsuit, Burger King had said it registered the names with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and began promoting them in February 2008, well before its competitor unveiled “identical” products.
Biglari on Friday also discussed the chain’s pending lawsuit against Georgia-based The Varnson Group, the advertising firm Steak n Shake hired to replace locally based Young & Laramore.
The company fired Varnson less than three months after inking a $4.36 million, 26-month contract. The chain is seeking unspecified damages and the return of proprietary information, including coupon and advertising templates. Varnson denies it is holding any such materials and says Steak n Shake has acted in bad faith.
Steak n Shake had insisted Varnson employees work out of the burger chain’s local headquarters, where management could closely watch their performance. They didn’t like what they saw.
“Anyone who comes to Steak n Shake needs to be ready to break a sweat,” Biglari said Friday. “This isn’t vacation time.”
He went on to praise the work of Young & Laramore, which held the account for 18 years before Biglari pushed them aside, as “absolutely extraordinary.”
Steak n Shake Co. shares soared to a new 52-week high on Friday after the chain snapped a 14-quarter streak of declining same-store sales and reported a surprise profit. In trading late this morning, the shares were up less than 1 percent, to $11.14 each.
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