Coachella accuses ‘Coachillin’ Business Park of trademark infringement

The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival's organizers have accused a cannabis business park in California of trademark infringement for adopting and using the term "Coachillin".

Coachillin Holdings and several associated entities have been accused of taking advantage of a common hashtag and expression associated with the music festival.

In the lawsuit, AEG’s Goldenvoice, the owner of the Coachella Festival, alleged that “The public has come to associate the phrase ‘Coachillin’ to refer to the Coachella Festival” and “not merely to refer to the Coachella Valley – and certainly not Coachillin Holdings or its Coachillin Business Park."

“For many years, attendees of the festival, celebrities and musicians have referred to the Coachella Festival and commented with respect to their attendance, their outfits, or the culture related to the Coachella Festival by using the phrase ‘Coachillin,'” it continued.

Coachillin trademark was initially registered in 2014 by Jeremy M Joseph, who wanted exclusive rights to the term in connection to Coachillin branded apparel and subsequently in relation to e-commerce activities.

Coachillin Holdings purchased the trademark from Joseph while seeking to register its own Coachillin marks to pursue various projects using the brand, including the cannabis cultivation-focused business park.

Coachella launched proceedings to cancel Joseph’s trademarks, mainly on the grounds that he had never actually used them for the Coachillin branded products he planned to sell.

During that process, Joseph revealed that his Coachillin brand was tied to the “chill” feeling at the Coachella Festival.

Even though original Coachillin trademarks were canceled, Coachillin Holdings continued to seek to register its own Coachillin brand.

Coachella's attorneys claim they had made numerous requests to Coachillin to stop using the name since 2018, but the company and its owners had ignored them completely, claiming they were unaware the term "Coachillin" was associated with Coachella.

As a result, Coachella was forced to file a lawsuit.

Coachella has sued numerous businesses on various occasions. Last year, it sued concert promoter Live Nation for selling tickets to "Coachella Day One 22," a New Year's Eve event held on a nearby Native American reserve. Last month, it filed a lawsuit against a West African corporation over a festival called "Afrochella”.

PitchMark helps innovators deter idea theft, so that third-parties that they share their idea with get the idea but don’t take it. Visit PitchMark.net and register for free as a PitchMark member today.