College Dropout is a burger chain in Melbourne, Australia.[1][2][3][4]

The restaurant is known, in-part, for having made international headlines after being unsuccessfully sued by Kanye West for intellectual property infringement.[5][2][6]

It was initially named for the Kanye West album 'The College Dropout' without his permission or endorsement. Initially, the restaurant also included the 'Dropout Bear' as a mascot, and had burgers named for other things in Kanye West's career.

Description

The restaurant debuted in Ivanhoe, Victoria.[2] It later opened a location on the CBD campus of RMIT campus.[7] It was opened by Mark Elkhouri, also responsible for the Melbourne dessert chain 'Nuts-about-tella'.[8]

Initially, the burger restaurant was heavily styled based on the music career of Kanye West. Menu items at the restaurant were named for things associated with West; such as songs, albums or lyrics. Examples included the 'Graduation' which was essentially a classic smashed beef burger, the 'Gold Digger', which was a fried chicken burger, and a breakfast burger named the 'Good Morning'.[1][9]

The aesthetics of the restaurant also borrowed heavily from Kanye West's intellectual property. Signage of the Ivanhoe location included images resembling 'Dropout Bear', West's mascot.[2] None of the restaurant's reliance upon West's intellectual property occurred with his permission or endorsement.[2]

In 2022 the restaurant made international headlines after it was sued by Kanye West. Reportedly, the rapper followed the restaurant through its stories on Instagram, which the restaurant owner mistook as West's approval for the restaurant.[10][11][12] Later, West contacted the owner and sued the restaurant.[1] The restaurant changed its logo and the names of its burgers after being contacted by West, but continued to trade under the same name.[2]

The basis of the lawsuit was that Elkhouri had engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct by falsely associating himself with Ye and his brand.[Note 1] In 2023 the case was dismissed by Justice Shaun McElwaine, because Ye and his lawyers had failed to comply with Australian Federal Court rules of procedure.[2][13][3] The restaurant was represented by Craig Smith SC.[3] In April 2023 the owner of the restaurant flew to the US to pursue West for legal damages.[14]

After the lawsuit, the names of the burgers were renamed to celebrities that had dropped out of college. Examples include the 'Zucker burg", and other burgers named for Bill Gates, Brad Pitt, and Steve Jobs.[10][13]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ 'Personality Rights' do not exist as a form of intellectual property in Australia. Celebrities therefore need to rely upon 'misleading and deceptive conduct' as a basis for protecting their image and likeness

References

  1. 1 2 3 Juanola, Erin Pearson, Marta Pascual (2022-10-24). "Rapper Ye takes Melbourne restaurant College Dropout Burgers to Federal Court". The Age. Retrieved 2023-06-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Thompson, Jesse (2023-03-03). "Rapper Ye's lawsuit against Melbourne burger shop thrown out following 'very unsatisfactory' conduct". ABC News. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  3. 1 2 3 Estcourt, David (2023-02-10). "'Done nothing': Ye's burger case goes cold after no response from rapper". The Age. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  4. ↑ Fry, Courtney (2022-06-30). "Kanye West Sent A Melb Burger Joint A Cease & Desist For Using His Albums To Sell Grub". PEDESTRIAN.TV. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  5. ↑ Gallagher, Alex (2022-07-01). "Kanye West reportedly demands Melbourne burger restaurant to change logo and burger names". NME. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  6. ↑ "Kanye West burger case thrown out of Melbourne court after US rapper's lawyers' no-show". The Guardian. Australian Associated Press. 2023-03-03. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  7. ↑ honeypenguin (2019-05-13). "The College Dropout". The Penguin Eats. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  8. ↑ Elmas, Matthew (2018-11-05). "Extravagant dessert retailer Nuts About Tella collapses amid ongoing pain for food operators". SmartCompany. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  9. ↑ "Nuts About Tella, The Famous Nutella Dessert Shop Is Dropping A New Kanye West Inspired Burger Joint". www.theurbanlist.com. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  10. 1 2 Graham, Jackson (2022-06-30). "Not rapt: Kanye West orders Melbourne fan to change store logo, burger names". The Age. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  11. ↑ Andriyashchuk, Yuriy (2021-12-31). "Australian Restaurant Is Making Kanye 'College Dropout' Burgers". The Blast. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  12. ↑ Staxxssss (2022-07-02). "Australian Burger Joint Forced To Rebrand After Kanye West Sent Them A Cease And Desist Letter For Naming The Restaurant "College Dropout Burgers"". Baller Alert. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  13. 1 2 "Major development in Kanye West's lawsuit against Aussie burger shop". 7NEWS. 2023-03-03. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  14. ↑ "Fresh twist after Kanye West's lawsuit against Aussie burger shop". 7NEWS. 2023-04-06. Retrieved 2023-06-27.

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