With over 600 locations and lines often out the door, Crumbl has become one of the fastest growing restaurant chains. Its rotating menu that introduces new cookie flavors on a nearly weekly basis has become a customer favorite.
And competitors have clearly taken note, as Restaurant Business reported.
Can’t handle the competition, get out of the cookie kitchen pic.twitter.com/uKQgq61Hhq
— Dirty Dough (@thedirtydough) September 23, 2022
While many feel that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Crumbl clearly disagrees. The cookie chain is suing two smaller businesses, Dirty Dough and Crave, because it claims their packaging and presentation are too similar to its own, according to CNBC.
Neither Dirty Dough or Crave are going down without a fight, though, and both companies have been able to capitalize off the press and social media buss. According to CNBC, Dirty Dough’s founder says sales have doubled, and Crave says it’s seen a 50% increase in sales since the lawsuits.
Dirty Dough has decided to have fun with the lawsuit with a billboard campaign that reads “Cookies so good—we’re being sued” and an advertisement where an SUV shuts down a kids’ lemonade stand because “you’re selling cookies—that’s our thing,” CNBC reported.
The mockery stems from the fact that neither business sees any merit in the lawsuits. Neither Dirty Dough nor Crave seem to think their branding is similar, and the fact that they also rotate flavors isn’t something they feel they should be sued for, considering that’s a common business practice.
Perhaps in an attempt to remain on top, Crumbl recently launched its first-ever national broadcast campaign featuring Michael Buffer, a famed boxing announcer known for his “Let’s get ready to rumble” catchphrase. The Crumbl ad says “Let’s get ready to Crumbl!” as noted by Restaurant Business.
These cookie wars have created questions. Which company, ultimately, is right? At what point does copying another business go too far?
The results of the aforementioned lawsuits could provide some interesting answers that the rest of the industry can learn from.
