The Unicorn Frappuccino from Starbucks quickly became known for two things: 1) it looked cool on Instagram, and 2) it tasted like, in the words of the Washington Post, “sour birthday cake and shame.” Now, Starbucks is being faced with a $10 million lawsuit over the beverage from a Brooklyn coffee shop who says the coffee giant ripped off their idea.
In a lawsuit filed this week, The End Brooklyn accuses Starbucks of copying the idea for the Unicorn Frappuccino from their Unicorn Lattes, reports the New York Daily News.
“The size of and scope of Starbucks’ product launch was designed so that the Unicorn Frappuccino would eclipse the Unicorn Latte in the market, thereby harming [The End] and confusing their customers,” the lawsuit states. “In addition to having a highly similar name, Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccino shares visual similarities to the Unicorn Latte in that both were brightly colored and featured the colors pink and blue prominently.”
The End applied for a trademark on their Unicorn Latte in January and the application is pending.
For a comparison, here is Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccino:
And here is the Unicorn Latte from The End:
The End is suing for $10 million, according to People.
Starbucks released a statement to The New York Daily News regarding the lawsuit, “We are aware of the claims and believe they are without merit. The Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccino blended beverage was inspired by the fun, spirited and colorful unicorn-themed food and drinks that have been trending in social media. The beverage was offered for a limited time in April and is no longer available in our stores.”
