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Early Addition
Following up eight months after MTA told Carroll Gardens bagel shop, F Line Bagels (decorated with various official MTA merchandise), to cease-and-desist using the anything-MTA-related in their store, a judge ruled that the store must indeed cease using MTA logos and materials. The judge said the Assad brothers just need to cover up the MTA logos, but the MTA wants the signs totally removed PLUS $5,000 in licensing fees. Clearly, no settlement was ever brokered, but did the Assads' lawyer try hard enough? Like offering free bagels for MTA employees? Faried Assad tells NY1, "t's not like we're stamping the bagels with an F, or an A, or whatever it is. We're not making money from whatever they're providing," and says that the store can't afford to pay the fees - they already spent $1,000 to subway-ify the store! Unfortunately, they will face contempt charges if they can't pay the $5,000.
Some of Gothamist's ideas for a new store name: Eff Line Bagels; Off Line Bagels; Fine Bagels; and our favorite, Feline Bagels. Sure, it won't be pretty, but it'll do the job. And does anyone in the Smith Street area know how F Line Bagels business has been?
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"And does anyone in the Smith Street area know how F Line Bagels business has been?"
Not as good as it will be now. And of course they're making money of what the MTA is making; that's what trademarking is all about. Or do they think they could call it Mickey Mouse Bagels and decorate the shop with things they bought at the Disney store? The lemonade stand days are over, boys. Recline Bagels?
We call it Flying Bagels. For no particular reason. Other than our dazzling wit. F-you bagels might fly.
They do ok. Which is probably the only reason the MTA pushed so hard. The zataar bagel is good. Maybe tomorrow I'll have 2.
The irony, of course, is that you take your bagel into the smith/9th stop which, as you folks recently reported, was ranked one of the ten worst stops in the City. The MTA's notion that a bagel stand wanted to allign its image with the cracked lead paint, rain-infested rathole of a subway station is dubious.
How about 'f-the-mta' bagels? that would be protected speech, no? and they could print bags with the name and people could carry them onto the subway.
You mean the MTA wasted taxpayer dollars on a frivolous lawsuit against a lowly bagel shop? It's not like F Line Bagels is taking business away from the MTA. Isthe MTA logo so respected and valuable that they can't risk the slightest infringement of its trademark? Anyway who would ever want to buy anything with the MTA logo on it?
BTW-you might find it interesting to visit the MTA's gift shop in Grand Central. Among the other seemingly unwanted items for sale is a pair of stiletto boots with a special pocket for an MTA transit card. Just the right holiday present for your favorite dominatrix!
This is really a shame. F Line Bagels is the only decent thing anywhere near the Smith and Ninth stop, as I mentioned in my blog, and the MTA is wasting money trying to shut it down isntead of devoting some funds to cleaning up the disaster that is the Smith and Ninth station. Count on the MTA to have its priorities completely backwards.
I posit that Smith and 9th is the best stop in the New York City subway system.
Did anyone ever consider that the owners were complete morons for using trademarks as their store's name/theme?
Should I be allowed to open a fruit store and call it Banana Republic?
"Should I be allowed to open a fruit store and call it Banana Republic?"
Yes, of course you should, you numbskull. Banana Republic is a common phrase meaning backwards dictatorship (or something similar). As long as you didn't sell clothes, the real Banana Republic would have a hard time demonstrating that you were using "their" phrase unlawfully.
Perhaps the MTA can use the $5,000 to finally FIX the escalators at Smith/9th. And repair the leaks in the roof (something brown and goo-like dripped on my head the other day) and perhaps get someone to clean up the trash outside the station. That said, the bagels at F Line are great.