Trademark lawsuit over name ‘Apple Hill’
By Sam Stanton, Sacramento Bee
Apple Hill has been an autumn destination for decades for Northern California families in search of fresh fruits, Halloween pumpkins, Christmas trees and wine tasting.
Now, it is at the center of a legal fight over who can use the name “Apple Hill” to hawk their farm goods.
The dispute is between the Apple Hill Growers Association, which adopted the name “Apple Hill” in 1964, and the family that runs Boa Vista Orchards, one of the largest farm stand operations in the area just east of Placerville along Highway 50.
Sounds like the Apple Hill Association is being very petty, while the Boa Vista has engaged in a more robust marketing of the area – which brings business to Apple Hill. So what if some (or even the rest) of the farms are not open when the Boa Vista advertises – a “closed” sign does the job there. A very petty lawsuit, which I hope will be thrown out — wastes court time on what is a “control” issue of neighbors. Sad…
Seems as if Boa is better at running a business than the growers association is and more proactive at marketing as well. I hope they win.