Trade mark dispute: Boss Pets shows Hugo who’s Boss

A small Liverpool based pet supplies store is the latest company to make headlines for receiving a cease-and-desist letter from international fashion giant, Hugo Boss in a trade mark dispute.

Boss Pets

Boss Pets is a small business selling pet health supplies based in Liverpool and run by Mr Ben McDonald. Mr. McDonald founded the company in February 2024, and subsequently built a website, designed a logo, and attempted to ensure the name of the business was safe to use prior to submitting a trade mark application for ‘Boss Pets’ on 2 June 2025.

Despite Mr. McDonald being advised ‘Boss Pets’ was a legally sound name to use, he received a letter from Hugo Boss ordering him to exclude the word ‘Boss’ from the brand name. The fashion house claimed it infringed its registered trade mark, and gave him 10 days to rebrand, removing the word ‘Boss’.

Understandably concerned about how he was going to fund rebranding his company, Mr. McDonald’s lawyer began negotiations with Hugo Boss.

After several weeks of back-and-forth, the two parties reached an agreement which allowed Boss Pets to continue using the name, provided it does not sell pet clothing or accessories with the name attached.

Co-existence agreement

This type of negotiated co-existence agreement is not uncommon when dealing with two similar trade marks owned by companies operating in non-competitive sectors. It allows both brands to continue using the trade marks for marketing purposes but without interfering in each other’s enterprises.

How Hamlins can help

Our Commercial and Tech team supports clients across multiple industries to deliver intellectual property, trade mark, commercial, regulatory and structuring, data and data protection expertise.

If you need further information or guidance around trade marks, or the negotiation of co-existence agreements, please get in touch to find out how we can help.