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\n\t\tOpinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.\t<\/p>\n
Talk about a bad case of brain freeze.<\/p>\n
Rebel Creamery has filed for bankruptcy, less than a month after a judge ordered it to pay nearly $24 million to rival Van Leeuwen Ice Cream for copying its packaging, according to the New York Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n The two brands both sell pastel-colored pints with script lettering and similarly styled flavor names: mint chocolate chip, cookies and cream, pistachio. Van Leeuwen sued in 2021, arguing Rebel\u2019s containers were confusingly close<\/a> to its own. Judge Eric Komitee agreed, ruling that Rebel\u2019s founders acted in \u201cbad faith.\u201d He pointed to two red flags: a Wegmans buyer told Rebel\u2019s founder that the pints looked the same back in 2018 and a 2024 complaint from a shopper whose husband \u201cpurchased Rebel by accident\u201d while shopping for Van Leeuwen. \u201cThe likelihood of all these design features converging at random is infinitesimal,\u201d Komitee wrote.<\/p>\n In its bankruptcy<\/a> filing, Rebel said its roughly $14 million in assets couldn\u2019t cover the judgment. The company said it\u2019s appealing and that its products will remain widely available.<\/p>\n Van Leeuwen wasn\u2019t sympathetic. \u201cRebel had every opportunity, during five years of litigation, to cease using the infringing packaging,\u201d a company representative said, accusing Rebel of choosing to keep \u201cprofiting from its infringement\u201d instead.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Talk about a bad case of brain freeze.<\/p>\n Rebel Creamery has filed for bankruptcy, less than a month after a judge ordered it to pay nearly $24 million to rival Van Leeuwen Ice Cream for copying its packaging, according to the New York Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n The two brands both sell pastel-colored pints with script lettering and similarly styled flavor names: mint chocolate chip, cookies and cream, pistachio. Van Leeuwen sued in 2021, arguing Rebel\u2019s containers were confusingly close<\/a> to its own. Judge Eric Komitee agreed, ruling that Rebel\u2019s founders acted in \u201cbad faith.\u201d He pointed to two red flags: a Wegmans buyer told Rebel\u2019s founder that the pints looked the same back in 2018 and a 2024 complaint from a shopper whose husband \u201cpurchased Rebel by accident\u201d while shopping for Van Leeuwen. \u201cThe likelihood of all these design features converging at random is infinitesimal,\u201d Komitee wrote.<\/p>\n