The Celtic-themed sports pub filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against The Kilted Caddy Club & Café, which operates a caddy business out of Azalea Sands Golf Club in North Myrtle Beach, S.C. As part of the agreement, the business changed its name to Thee Dollhouse Caddy Club, strengthening its ties to a nearby adult gentleman’s club, and is permanently prohibited from using the words “Kilt” and “Kilted Caddy” for products or services.
The resolution of a trademark infringement lawsuit filed by the Tilted Kilt restaurant chain against The Kilted Caddy Club & Café has resulted in a change in name and operating model for the business at Azalea Sands Golf Club in North Myrtle Beach, S.C., Myrtle Beach-based Sun News reported.
The Kilted Caddy Club—which was the creation of Michael J. Peter, the longtime owner of Thee DollHouse in North Myrtle Beach—has changed its name to Thee DollHouse Caddy Club and has strengthened its ties to the adult gentleman’s club, the Sun News reported.
The Kilted Caddy Club & Café opened in June 2014 featuring female caddies dressed in plaid kilts, knee-high socks and logo-bearing golf shirts, as well as a festive atmosphere and similarly-dressed female waitresses and bartenders in the Azalea Sands clubhouse’s renovated bar and grill area, the Sun News reported.
Tilted Kilt filed its lawsuit two weeks after The Kilted Caddy Club’s opening, the Sun News reported.
Kilted Caddy Club president Kevin Brady stated prior to its opening that despite their ties, Thee DollHouse and the caddy club would remain separate entities and no female DollHouse employees would also be working at Kilted Caddy Club. But the businesses have now embraced the connection, the Sun News reported.
“Thee DH Caddy Club caters to a golfing clientele during the day and then provides a Mercedes van (for transportation), VIP tables and top notch service in the evenings,” Peter said. “While having fun in the evening with your buddies you can hire your cocktail waitress or entertainer to caddy if she’s completed the caddy training, or just have her pour your drinks and keep score.”
Peter termed the case’s resolution as a sale of the Kilted Caddy Club to Tilted Kilt that is “part of a mutually beneficial settlement agreement.”
“We acquired some of the rights to the names and it has been resolved to our satisfaction,” said Mike Lynch, corporate counsel for Tilted Kilt and the brother of company CEO/president Ron Lynch.
Though it now owns the name, Lynch said Tilted Kilt has no intention of opening Kilted Caddy businesses. “We’re not going to be doing the same thing they’re doing on the golf course,” Lynch said. “We have [Tilted] Kilt girls present at golf events, but we’re not going to be using the caddy club. We do have rights, but we have our own brand.”
The case concluded on October 30 with a Stipulated Judgment on all of Tilted Kilt’s claims against The Kilted Caddy Club “pursuant to a confidential settlement agreement between the parties…with all parties bearing their own costs and fees,” wrote U.S. District Court of South Carolina judge Bruce Howe Hendricks.
Under the agreement and judgment, The Kilted Caddy Club is permanently prohibited from selling products, offering services or creating an internet entity using the words “Kilt,” “Kilted Caddy” and/or “Kilted Caddy Club & Café,” or using its previous logo or caddie uniform. Caddies are now wearing a plaid green skirt and polo golf shirt with the new DH Caddy Club logo as well as socks over the calves, the Sun News reported.
The Tilted Kilt is also taking over all websites and social media accounts affiliated with Kilted Caddy Club, and it appears the websites, Twitter and Facebook accounts for Kilted Caddy Club have all been taken down or transitioned to Thee DH Caddy Club, the Sun News reported.
The Kilted Caddy Club & Café has been operating through a five-year food and beverage vendor lease, with an option for an additional five years, with East Coast Golf Management, which manages Azalea Sands and its pro shop through a lease and management agreement with the course’s owners. Brady said the contracts with East Coast have been transferred to Thee DollHouse Caddy Club, whose executives hope to expand to other markets were Peter has adult clubs, the Sun News reported.
The Tilted Kilt lawsuit listed as defendants The Kilted Caddy Club & Café, East Coast Golf Management, Thee DollHouse, Michael J. Peter and Associates, and Michael J. Peter. All claims against defendants were dismissed. The case was set to go to trial sometime after July 11, 2016, the Sun News reported.
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