Red Bull targets US gas station in grey market goods lawsuit

Red Bull has taken legal action against a US gas station for its unauthorised sales of grey market Red Bull energy drinks.

In a complaint filed at the US District Court for the District of New Jersey on January 18, Red Bull said New Jersey gas station, Milton Lukoil, is “injuring” the energy drink producer’s image and reputation with US consumers.

The filing stated that Red Bull manufactures, distributes, markets and sells its good in the US plus 171 other countries. Products sold outside of the US are “grey market” and are only authorised for sale in specific regions or countries.

Grey market products are tailored to specific geographic regions to reflect material differences in terms of language, government regulations and units of measurement.

Red Bull said Milton Lukoil’s sale of grey market Red Bull that is intended for sale in South Africa violates federal law and infringes Red Bull’s various trademarks such as its two-bull logo and signage. The trademark registrations named in the filing include numbers 3,092,197, 3,479,607 and 3,197,810.

It said that South African Red Bull does “not travel through authorised supply chains” in the US and is not subject to Red Bull quality control standards in the country such as being transported in climate-controlled containers.

The complaint alleged that the South African products do not have a UPC code, which is used to track US products in case of recall. 

Additionally, Red Bull claimed that the nutritional information on the grey market drinks does not comply with the Food and Drug Administration’s requirements.

It also accused the gas station of causing consumer confusion. Red Bull said the variation of the English language used on the South African products differs from American English, such as the spelling of colour instead of color.

Red Bull’s complaint added that the expiration date—in the format DD-MM-YYYY—would be unfamiliar for American consumers and may cause them to be confused about the correct expiration date of the products.

The grey market cans present information on volume and nutrition using the metric system instead of the standard US system, and they direct consumers to Red Bull’s South African website instead of its American website, the filing said.

In its argument, the drinks company said consumers are likely to believe Red Bull authorises and controls Milton Lukoil’s sale of grey market Red Bull, which could damage its brand.

This is because consumer dissatisfaction due to the differences between authorised and grey market Red Bull will injure the company’s reputation with consumers in the US, as well as its business reputation and relations with retail accounts, the filing said.

Red Bull asked the court for an injunction against the gas station and an order to destroy all grey market Red Bull products in its possession.