An international dispute over trademark rights has been going on for days between Frisby Colombia, the iconic fried chicken chain founded in Pereira, and Frisby España SL, a company registered in Europe and operated by a Belgian citizen and a Spanish lawyer. The case has ignited not only legal alarms, but also an unprecedented wave of popular support on social networks.

The controversy dates back to Frisby Colombia's 2005 registration with the European Union's Intellectual Property Office. According to Frisby España, the South American company lost the rights to the name when it did not use the trademark in European territory during the following years.

The legal process for the use of the name in Europe, according to a press release from the Spanish company, has already been resolved in its favor by the authorities of the continent, although no official pronouncements have been made yet. In response, Frisby Colombia publicly denounced the "improper use" of its identity and announced legal actions to defend it.

Cases such as this one highlight a key principle in European trademark legislation: whoever does not use his trademark for five years may lose his exclusivity. This principle, designed to avoid the monopolization of registrations without commercial activity, is what the Spanish company is taking advantage of to keep the name.

Frisby Colombia, which has 280 restaurants, more than 5,600 employees and sales of more than 200 million dollars in 2023, assures that its brand is not only active, but also part of the Colombian cultural heritage. For this reason, the case has been assumed not only as a legal dispute, but also as a matter of identity.

The case reaches the networks

The citizen response was not long in coming. In a few days, the tags FrisbyEsColombia and "Apollo" (a clever play on words combining “pollo” -chicken in spanish- and “apoyo” -support in spanish-) exploded on social networks and turned the controversy into a viral phenomenon full of memes, messages of support and even historical references.

Former President Álvaro Uribe posted a photo eating at Frisby with the message: "In the belly Frisby the original". The National Navy, the Registraduría and companies such as Alpina, Qbano and KFC Colombia also joined the campaign, among jokes and creativity. "First the gold and now the chicken?", ironized El Colombiano newspaper.

With humor and nostalgia, users also recalled the classic "Frisby chicken" with a red cap that danced in the commercials of the nineties. "Would you go to war with Spain over the Frisby chicken? I'm very clear about it," read one viral post.

The context is not minor: Spain is the country with the third largest number of Colombians in the world, with at least 578,000 registered residents. The brand, in addition to being commercial, has an obvious emotional weight in this migrant community.

More than a chicken: a country brand

Founded in 1977, Frisby is not only a fast food chain, but one of the most recognized brands in the country. Its slogan "Nobody does it like Frisby does it" has been installed for decades in the collective memory, and the attempted appropriation on another continent has generated a reaction that transcends the legal.

Although the legal dispute is still ongoing, and the ways to reverse a ruling in Europe are limited, Frisby Colombia has found an unexpected source of support from its citizens. The company has channeled this moment to reinforce its identity, and although it has not launched a formal campaign, the viral endorsement is already acting as a powerful branding strategy.

The legal fight continues. But the emotional battle, at least for now, seems to have been won by the Colombian chicken.

With information from AFP