• Welcome to AlpineZone, the largest online community of skiers and snowboarders in the Northeast!

    You may have to REGISTER before you can post. Registering is FREE, gets rid of the majority of advertisements, and lets you participate in giveaways and other AlpineZone events!

Specialized Publicity

Nick

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Joined
Nov 12, 2010
Messages
13,176
Points
48
Location
Bradenton, FL
Website
www.alpinezone.com
I've always liked Specialized bikes. Kinda surprised to see them go after this guy. I'm not really sure how this guy naming his store Roubouix could in any way possibly be a negative affect to Specialized the company or damage them in any way. If anything, it will make the name even more common and make people think of the Specialized bike.
 

BackLoafRiver

New member
Joined
Nov 19, 2008
Messages
1,608
Points
0
Location
Augusta, Maine
I too have always like Specialized but this is a case of a big company flexing their muscle saying they "own the trademark" to the name Roubaix. It's a total crock. And their attitude about it doesn't seem to be getting better.
 

Abubob

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 9, 2010
Messages
3,531
Points
63
Location
Alexandria, NH
Website
tee.pub
Why are American companies the bullies of the world? Suing the Hobbit Pub and now this. Maybe the Roubaix region of France should sue Specialized. What gives them the right to reach across borders anyhow?
 

mlctvt

Active member
Joined
Mar 24, 2006
Messages
1,533
Points
38
Location
CT
I don't like it either, especially since I bought a Roubaix Expert earlier this year.

What about Fuji and their Roubaix bikes? Seems like a much more blatent case. Oh yeh they were around BEFORE Specialized came out with their Roubaix. I wonder if Fuji sued Specialized over this?

There's a long thread about this case on bikeforums.com
 

drjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2006
Messages
19,183
Points
113
Location
Brooklyn, CT
They are getting hammered on a bunch of bike social media sites right now for sure!

My guess is that they figure that #1 they're so big and #2 that their customer base is so vast and #3 that there's likely a decent chance that many of the people lambasting them on social media right now probably don't ride a Specialized, and likely wouldn't be buying one in the future anyway that in the overall scheme of things, it's not a big deal

That being said, I personally think that it's a jerk move by Specialized
 

BackLoafRiver

New member
Joined
Nov 19, 2008
Messages
1,608
Points
0
Location
Augusta, Maine
Total Jerk move but it appears that it has a happy-ish ending.

From Cafe Roubaix's Facebook:

Folks,

We can announce that your voices have been heard. We are now back in discussions with the other party. We are aware of recent announcements by third parties within the industry.

We thank you for your continued support. Also note, we are working on getting a pre-order sorted out for our popular shop jersey. Made by Santini. On our online sales - YOU are amazing people. Needless to say, we will be sorting out orders for a while. Over the weekend, we have received over 3500 emails, hundreds of phone calls and messages, how many #s and @s? Tweets? Do numbers go that high? Our little studio is just barely 900 sqft and cycling fans, cyclists, Velomintus, industry leaders & big shots, pro riders, and icons have all made their voice heard.

Thank you.

And from Bicycleretailer.com:

The trademark owner says Specialized's enforcement of the trademark was out of lineBOULDER, CO (BRAIN) — Specialized Bicycle overstepped its bounds when it registered the Roubaix trademark in Canada and then tried to prevent a Calgary retailer from using the name, Advanced Sports International’s CEO told BRAIN on Monday.
ASI says it owns the worldwide rights to the Roubaix trademark — it’s had a Fuji Roubaix road bike model in its lineup since 1992 — and has licensed it to Specialized since 2003. ASI’s Pat Cunnane said the company has no problem with retailer Dan Richter using the name on his store, Cafe Roubaix.
“We have reached out to Mr. Richter to inform him that he can continue to use the name, and we will need to license his use, which we imagine can be done easily,” Cunnane said.
Richter told the Calgary Herald this weekend that lawyers representing Specialized told him he had to rename his store and transfer its website’s URL to Specialized. Besides the store, Richter sells Cafe Roubaix-branded wheels. The general manager of Specialized Canada told the Herald that Specialized had to protect its trademark or risk losing it. Specialized’s U.S. office has not commented on the situation, despite negative press and an outpouring of support for Richter over the weekend on social media.
Cunnane said his company left a message for Richter but has not communicated with him yet. Cunnane also said he has reached out to Specialized with no response yet.
“We are in the process of notifying Specialized that they did not have the authority, as part of our license agreement, to stop Daniel Richter … from using the Roubaix name,” Cunnane said in an email to BRAIN. “While ASI does have the authority to object to Mr. Richter’s use of the name and while we at ASI understand the importance of protecting our bicycle model names, we believe that Mr. Richter did not intend for consumers to confuse his brick-and-mortar establishment or his wheel line with our Roubaix road bike. And we believe consumers are capable of distinguishing his bike shop and wheel line from our established bikes.”

According to the Canadian Intellectual Property Office, Specialized registered the Roubaix name in 2007 for use on “Bicycles, bicycle frames, and bicycle components, namely bicycle handlebars, bicycle front fork, and bicycle tires.”
But Cunnane said that registration was “inappropriate.”
“Like many trademark owners, ASI does not register its trademarks in every country and never tried to register the mark in Canada. ASI only recently learned of Specialized’s registration of the Roubaix trademark in Canada and ASI’s position is that Specialized’s registration of the mark in Canada was inappropriate under the terms of their license agreement. ASI has used the mark in Canada for well over 10 years, giving it first-use trademark rights in Canada.”
In a phone call, Cunnane noted that ASI has been able to reach amicable agreements with several other brands over trademarks. For example, ASI owns the U.S. rights to the name Gran Fondo for use on bicycles, while BMC owns the rights in Europe. The two brands have a co-existance agreement to share the name in both markets.



Besides Fuji, ASI owns the Breezer, Kestrel and SE Bikes brands.

It definitely shows the power of social media.
 

snoseek

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 7, 2006
Messages
6,260
Points
113
Location
NH
They have history for being a bully company. They make nice stuff im sure but im all set, refuse to give my money to a company that habitually acts this way.
 

bvibert

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 30, 2004
Messages
30,394
Points
38
Location
Torrington, CT
Unfortunately Specialized is not the only company that acts like a big bully.. I understand wanting/needing to protect your brand/trademark etc.. but some of these companies take it way too far.
 

snoseek

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 7, 2006
Messages
6,260
Points
113
Location
NH
Unfortunately Specialized is not the only company that acts like a big bully.. I understand wanting/needing to protect your brand/trademark etc.. but some of these companies take it way too far.
I don't keep up with things in the bike industry world too much, what are some others?
 

C-Rex

New member
Joined
Mar 4, 2010
Messages
1,350
Points
0
Location
Enfield, CT
I love my Enduro, but that's because I got a great deal from a friend on it. I wouldn't buy a new one. There are a lot of small bike companies that make fantastic bikes, have better customer service, and don't charge nearly as much. Trek, Specialized and Santa Cruz are the most over priced brands on the market. $8-9000 for a mountain bike is ridiculous.
 
Top