The boss of the British supermarket chain Iceland, Malcolm Walker, is in no mood to show Iceland, the country, any leeway regarding the usage of the word Iceland in marketing campaigns around the European Union.
As we have previously reported Iceland is looking into how it might reclaim its name from the British supermarket, which sells frozen foods in the UK and also operates stores in other countries around the world.
Malcolm Walker is having none of it and made abundantly clear in the British press during the weekend that he is sure about the supermarket’s claim to the name.
'What possible hope have they got? We’ve got five million customers every week – they’ve got 300,000 people living there. So we’ve got more of a claim on the name than they have. The name is ours really,’ he told The Daily Mail. (We actually are 331.000 here in Iceland).
The cocky English boss conveniently skips the part that Iceland, the country, has more than a 1.100 years-long claim to the name.
The British supermarket chain has a trademark registration for the word Iceland in the European Union (EU), and as we reported last week the chain has demonstrated against the slogan “Inspired by Iceland” in marketing campaigns by Promote Iceland, a public-private partnership aiming to improve the competitiveness of Icelandic companies in foreign markets.
The Icelandic government is considering legal action but no decision has been made.
To be continued.
The boss of the British supermarket chain Iceland, Malcolm Walker, is in no mood to show Iceland, the country, any leeway regarding the usage of the word Iceland in marketing campaigns around the European Union.
As we have previously reported Iceland is looking into how it might reclaim its name from the British supermarket, which sells frozen foods in the UK and also operates stores in other countries around the world.
Malcolm Walker is having none of it and made abundantly clear in the British press during the weekend that he is sure about the supermarket’s claim to the name.
'What possible hope have they got? We’ve got five million customers every week – they’ve got 300,000 people living there. So we’ve got more of a claim on the name than they have. The name is ours really,’ he told The Daily Mail. (We actually are 331.000 here in Iceland).
The cocky English boss conveniently skips the part that Iceland, the country, has more than a 1.100 years-long claim to the name.
The British supermarket chain has a trademark registration for the word Iceland in the European Union (EU), and as we reported last week the chain has demonstrated against the slogan “Inspired by Iceland” in marketing campaigns by Promote Iceland, a public-private partnership aiming to improve the competitiveness of Icelandic companies in foreign markets.
The Icelandic government is considering legal action but no decision has been made.
To be continued.
