Trademark Win! SABINEA BLENDS v. SABINSA

Mark: SABINEA BLENDS

Goods/Services: Coffee; Tea; Herbal tea; Tea-based beverages; Tea-based iced beverages; Tea bags (Class 030)

Refusal Grounds: Likelihood of Confusion with the registered mark SABINSA for multiple-herbal supplements, multiple-herbal tea for medicinal purposes, and food supplements (Class 005)

When our client applied to register SABINEA BLENDS, the USPTO hit back with a refusal, arguing it was too close to the registered mark SABINSA. The Examining Attorney focused on the shared “SABIN” letters and claimed the goods—coffee and tea versus medicinal teas and supplements—were close enough to cause confusion.

We knew this wasn’t the full picture. We pushed back hard, showing that when viewed as a whole, SABINEA BLENDS and SABINSA look, sound, and feel completely different. The “BLENDS” portion, the soft, melodic pronunciation of “SABINEA,” and its cultural tie to Dominica’s national flower all give it a unique commercial impression. We also dismantled the goods-relatedness argument, pointing out that just because coffee and supplements can be sold in the same store doesn’t make them related in the trademark sense—otherwise, beer would be related to potted plants simply because they both appear in Whole Foods.

Finally, we demonstrated that the trademark register is already crowded with other “SABIN”-type marks coexisting peacefully. With no evidence of actual confusion and a clear distinction between the goods, we persuaded the USPTO to withdraw the refusal. SABINEA BLENDS is now a registered trademark, and another win is brewing for our clients.