“Nuts & Choc”: No trademark registration for descriptive name of nut bars

The European Union Trademark Office (EUIPO) has ruled that the name "Nuts & Choc" for nut bars cannot be protected as a (word) trademark because it is purely descriptive. A trademark must possess a certain degree of originality and distinctiveness to be eligible for protection. While a graphically original design often helps to register a trademark as a word/figurative mark, "common advertising" stylistic devices alone are not sufficient.

In the case of the word/figurative mark "NUTS & Choc," the EUIPO found that the application consists solely of a descriptive word element and decorative, ornamental elements. This combination forms an overall arrangement that does not go beyond the descriptive meaning of the individual elements. It lacks any actual distinctiveness or imaginative excess.

If the logo had contained an imaginative pictorial element that represented more than ordinary advertising elements such as asterisks, it would probably have been sufficient to qualify the trademark as eligible for protection.