Walgreen sues Wegmans, says logo infringes trademarks

Walgreen Co., the Deerfield-based pharmacy retailer that owns more than 7,500 stores in the U.S., sued a New York grocery chain for trademark infringement.

Wegmans Food Markets Inc., of Rochester, New York, is accused of introducing a new store logo that too strongly resembles Walgreens, according to the complaint filed Oct. 27 in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia.

The public is likely to be confused and to consider, falsely, an affiliation or connection between the two entities, Walgreen said in its court papers.

Wegmans, which has stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia and Maryland, has in-store pharmacies, and sells many of the same categories of merchandise, according to the complaint.

Walgreen asked the court to confirm its trademark registrations are valid, and infringed by the grocery chain. Additionally, it asked the court to bar Wegmans from using any mark that's identical or confusingly similar to the Walgreen marks, and seeks an order for the destruction of all allegedly infringing signage, promotional materials and labels.

Additionally, the pharmacy company asked for an accounting of Wegmans' profits and an award that can be attributed to the alleged infringement, together with money damages, and awards of litigation costs and attorney fees. Walgreen claims Wegman's infringement is “flagrant and deliberate” and asked that the damages be tripled as a result.

Walgreen is represented by Bradley C. Wright, Christopher B. Roth, Linda A. Kuczman, and Scott Burow of Banner & Witcoff Ltd. of Washington.