One of the UK’s best-loved murder mystery firms, Red Herring Games, has lost a two-year battle to retain trademark ownership of its brand name in the USA.
A company providing a similar theatrical service in Colorado challenged the use after the managing director of the award-winning business failed to tick it off the never-ending to-do list that comes with running such an enterprise.
“It’s a huge disappointment,” said Jo Smedley, the woman behind the Grimsby operation. “Nearly 40 per cent of our customers have been US-based since we began trading in 2007, and up until this we have had no challenges over our brand name in the USA.”
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Mrs Smedley began trading from her home 15 years ago, moving into town centre premises as demands on logistics and resources swelled, creating a retail element too.
Recognised as a leading light by Dragon Theo Paphitis, she successfully filed for the UK trademark in 2011, at which point it was also available Stateside. “We always planned to trademark in the USA as well,” said Jo, “but filing for trademarks isn’t cheap and so we ‘kicked it down the road’ until we could afford the expense.”
The first indication Jo had that her company faced a legal challenge was a ‘cease and desist’ email back in June 2020 - when business owners the world over had already had their lives turned upside down. “I was working 16-hour days back then, helping all of our customers get access to games they could play on Zoom during the pandemic. Each game needed adjusting to make it work, and there just weren’t enough hours in the day to get the job done. Because I didn’t want to let anyone down, I sat at our kitchen table from dawn until dusk each day adjusting games and answering emails. This email came like a bolt from the blue and was devastating. I remember lying awake all night worrying about it, and have had several sleepless nights since then fretting over the situation.
“I’ve always endeavoured to treat others how I’d like to be treated myself. Even when the trademarking issue arose, I tried to reach out. The legal team and I met with the theatre group who were trying to obtain the mark to see if we could work out a coexistence agreement, but sadly this proved impossible.”
Red Herring Productions Inc launched in 1985, touring a series of period, western and holiday shows, run by “It’s extremely upsetting.” said Jo, adding, “I could have understood their reluctance to work with us if I was a faceless, nameless, corporate entity only interested in cash, but I’m just a small independent business like them. What’s really upsetting for me is that I would never have prevented them trading in the USA even if I’d obtained the use of the mark first.
“In the UK, we happily trade alongside many independent murder mystery providers, and we’ve been doing the same in the USA since we launched, often supplying scripts to charities and independent theatre groups hoping to raise funds for their organisations. Because we pivoted quickly during the pandemic, I made time to meet with many murder mystery and theatre groups on Zoom to explain how to run virtual murder mystery events. We supported groups as far away as South Africa as well as in the United States, teaching them how to deliver events on Zoom and redesign their scripts.”
A solution is now being sought to ensure transatlantic sales continue to flow. “Right now we’re looking at alternative branding options for the USA market,” said Jo, a previous small business champion with the Humber Local Enterprise Partnership, and ambassador of the SME. “We’ve built up a great deal of goodwill and have a strong reputation for quality products as Red Herring Games within the USA, so a name change won’t be a business breaker.
“We have many, many repeat customers who we are sure will stand by us whatever we are called, and we will continue to get word of mouth referrals. Who knows, a name change may even add to our customer base!”
Red Herring Productions Inc has been approached for comment.
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