Once Again, The Coveted Is The Only The Coveted

We still have yet to receive a response to any of our queries, but Jennine Jacob of The Coveted put out a tweet yesterday letting her followers know that the issue with TheCoveted.com has been resolved without going to court.

Fashionista received an official statement from Erin Kleinberg and Stephanie Mark on the matter:

“After the recent on-line buzz regarding our use of thecoveted.com, we write to advise you that as of tomorrow our business will be rebranded as The Coveteur and henceforth we will be using that name and our new website www.thecoveteur.com. Using the name “The Coveteur”, we will transition to a brand identity that we feel better encapsulates our concept. In regards to the legal issues surrounding our dispute with the-coveted.com, we refer you to our statement on www.thecoveted.com and are happy to be able to put these issues behind us. So, as of February 2, 2011, we will be known as “The Coveteur” and we look forward to bringing you new and exciting content weekly. Thank you for all of your support.

Sincerely,

Erin and Stephanie”

Above all else, changing names was the right move, even if it’s a move that came late. Still if you contrast their statement with Jacob’s:

“I have been advised by the operators of “thecoveted.com” that they are prepared to amicably resolve this matter and that at no time did they have any intention of capitalizing on any goodwill or reputation of “The Coveted” at the-coveted.com. They have indicated that they are in the process of re-branding their project. I and Coveted Media wish Erin and Stephanie the best in their endeavors, look forward to seeing how their venture develops and am happy that we will be able to co-exist with them going forward. I thank all of my supporters for their posts and am hopeful that we can all now put this behind us.”

we can’t help but go back to the same thing that soured us on the Coveted in the first place (besides the possible trademark infringement thing): there’s a distinct feeling of a lack of respect for those who dare to pursue a place in fashion outside the establishment of glossies and big brands.

They feel a different name “better encapsulates their concept”? Why didn’t they use it in the first place? The Coveteur is a good name for their blog, and one that could have saved whatever it cost to have their lawyers (who must have discovered Google by now) draw up that nasty response that did them no favors legally or publicity wise. Not to mention, it was probably freely available for registration from the start, unlike thecoveted.com which was purchased from a domain reseller (likely at a price much higher than the reseller originally paid).

They’re happy to put the legal issues behind them? We bet they are, but not a hint of an apology for their role in kicking the “online buzz” off in the first place? That was a bit of a rhetorical question: surely, they’ve been advised by their attorneys to not accept any responsibility for anything that could be seen as willful violation of Jacob’s trademark, but a little humility here would go a long way – and on that front it looks like they still have quite a way to go.

To end on a more positive note, the petition in support of Jacob’s use of the name ‘The Coveted received more than 1,000 signatures from around the world, including Canada (Kleinberg and Mark’s base), and countries as wide ranging as Indonesia and Ghana.