‘Threatened’ and ‘victimized’: NC restaurant responds to Whataburger’s trademark lawsuit
A 70-year-old North Carolina restaurant has responded to a lawsuit from Texas-based Whataburger, saying its future is being threatened by the fast food giant.
On Tuesday, the San Antonio-based chain filed a lawsuit against What-A-Burger #13 for “trademark infringement and unfair competition,” as first reported by The Charlotte Observer news partner WSOC-TV.
According to the lawsuit, obtained by The Charlotte Observer, Whataburger originally contacted Zeb Bost, owner of the North Carolina restaurant, in 2022 about the “likelihood of confusion” between the two restaurants ahead of the Texas company’s expansion into North Carolina.
The two companies, according to the suit, made a confidential agreement about limited use of the What-A-Burger #13 mark for its food truck and restaurants in Mount Pleasant and Locust, N.C., under “controlled conditions,” to go into effect May 19, 2023.
But days before signing the agreement, the Texas chain claims that Bost formed another LLC without their knowledge, and then later broke their agreement multiple times with the food truck in ways that were not allowed, nor disclosed in the suit
“[The] unauthorized use of the What-A-Burger #13 Mark falsely indicates to the purchasing public that Defendants, their business, and their services originate with Whataburger; or are affiliated or associated with Whataburger; or are sponsored, endorsed, or approved by Whataburger; or are otherwise related to Whataburger or its services,” the lawsuit says.
But the law firm representing Bost stated that the Texas chain actually broke another agreement separate from the one his restaurant is being sued for, according to a statement provided to The Observer:
“What-A-Burger is a small family business that originally opened in the 1950s in Kannapolis, North Carolina. Now in its third generation of ownership by the Bost family, Zeb Bost, who is the grandchild of one of the founders, operates two What-A-Burger restaurants in Stanly and Cabarrus Counties. Starting in 1970, the Bost family entered into an agreement with the then-owner of WhatABurger out of Texas that it would operate without interference in Stanly and Cabarrus Counties. The Texas company broke that agreement in 2022. Now, after being in business for seventy years, What-A-Burger’s future is being threatened by this large national retailer, and the Bost family is being victimized by big money interests.”
Whataburger’s expansion to NC
Whataburger originally opened in Corpus Christi, Texas, in 1950. Since then, the chain has opened more than 900 restaurants across 14 states with its new North Carolina locations expected to open in 2025 in Charlotte, Raleigh and across the Triangle.
What-A-Burger #13, which originally opened in 1969, is the only North Carolina restaurant with the ‘What-A-Burger’ name being sued by the Texas fast food giant.
As stated in the response from the attorneys representing Bost, the restaurant was founded in 1956 and “originally claimed 15 locations,” the Mooresville-South Iredell Chamber of Commerce website says.
The other remaining locations — around Concord, Kannapolis and Mooresville — are open under different operators, Michael Bost, president of What-A-Burger Drive-Ins, Inc., confirmed to The Charlotte Observer.
The Observer has reached out to Whataburger in Texas for clarification about the other agreement What-A-Burger #13 claims was broken, and for more information about possible suits against other North Carolina locations.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
News & Observer staff writer David Raynor contributed to this report.
This story was originally published June 21, 2024 at 6:00 AM.
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