Mornington Peninsula Leader "Macs The Taste Test"

We Mac The Taste Test

Tina McGuffie

12 February 2007

IS IT really possible to mistake a burger from Rosebud eatery Macdonald's Gourmet Burgers for one from global fast food giant McDonald's?

Those in charge at McDonald's evidently think so, which is why they've launched a Federal Court challenge in an effort to stop cafe owner Ian Macdonald from selling burgers under his own name.

In a statement of claim lodged by the corporations lawyer's recently, McDonald's alleges Mr Macdonald's trading name and his top selling burger, the Maccas Special, are "substantially identical or deceptively similar'' to theirs.

While McDonald's claims it has suffered "substantial loss and damage'' at the hands of Mr Macdonald, he in turn has vowed to go to jail rather than sacrifice the business into which he has sunk every last cent.

With the phrase "the proof of the pudding is in the eating'' in mind, Leader headed down to Rosebud to judge for itself whether there was any substance to what is shaping up as the Battle of the Burgers.

An absence of golden arches, a children's playroom and drive-through facilities are the first thing that strikes the eager-eyed observer upon entering Mr Macdonald's eating establishment.

A glance at the menu provides a further point of difference: a 160 gram prime scotch fillet burger smothered in triple cream brie cheese and finished with a generous dab of quince paste is not your typical Happy Meal fare.

A single bite out of one of Mr Macdonald's burgers would be enough to persuade even the most unobservant diner that they were not at a McDonald's restaurant.

At an average of $13 each (compared with a Big Mac at $3.45), Ian Macdonald's burgers are in a league of their own.

END OF ARTICLE

We continue to be mesmerised with the extraordinary support that we are receiving during this battle of a worthwhile Australian principle.

Ian Macdonald

www.TheFlashDuck.com

Ian Macdonald Gets Back on the TV

Ian Macdonald appeared on the national television show "9am" on Channel Ten for an 8 minute segment last week.

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Network Ten states:

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"Ian Macdonald of Macdonald's Gourmet Burgers situated in the Melbourne suburb of Rosebud, has just fulfilled his dream of opening a gourmet food establishment with his name on it.

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As soon as he opened, takeaway giant McDonald’s threatened Federal court action over the name.

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Even if Ian wins the case, he will lose a fortune which he can’t afford."

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Ian Macdonald

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www.The Flash Duck.com

Burger Man in Pickle

Holly Ife, consumer reporter

February 01, 2007

ROSEBUD burger baron Ian Macdonald almost bit off more than he could chew when he went public about his bunfight with fast food giant McDonald's.

Yesterday his business, Macdonald's Gourmet Burgers, had the busiest day in its short history as it was flooded with supportive customers.

"I am on my way to buy another 150kg of beef now because we have completely sold out," Mr Macdonald said yesterday afternoon, before reopening for the dinner rush.

"It has been absolutely crazy. I really have to apologise to everyone for the delays, but it was just so unexpected."

Yesterday, the Herald Sun reported that US burger chain McDonald's was threatening Federal Court action over the use of the company name.

McDonald's Australia spokeswoman Sarah Gibbons said "McDonald's" and "Macca's" were registered trademarks of McDonald's Corporation.

"McDonald's, like any company with intellectual property, wants to protect its investment in its image and brand," Ms Gibbons said.

Mr Macdonald said after investing up to $300,000 in his burger joint, he could not afford to change the business name or go to court.

"The only thing I can do is sit here and keep trading. I am stuck in a corner and I have no other options."

Mr Macdonald said he had no wish to hurt the local McDonald's restaurant, which is less than 2km from his business.

"I'm not competition for them. They have their own customers, and I have mine. It's a very different product."

Mr Macdonald said his business name was also his surname and it had been his dream.

"It is all my work. I thought of it, I brought it to life, and I am passionate about it.

"I like to say, with the 'A' (in Macdonald's) you get gourmet," he said.

END OF ARTICLE

Stay tuned!! There is more to come.

Ian Macdonald

www.TheFlashDuck.com

Gourmet Burgers Pack Bigger Punch Than Arch Rival

Gourmet Packs Bigger Munch Than Arch Rival

31 January 2007

By Simon Plant

LET'S not mince words. The Big Mac, at McDonald's, is a benchmark burger. A fast food icon.But that does not mean it reigns supreme.

At Macdonald's Gourmet Burgers in Rosebud, Ian Macdonald is pounding out a "Macca's Special" triple the size of a Big Mac, at nearly quadruple the price ($13.50 versus $3.45).Is it worth the investment?

We visited Macdonald's Point Nepean Rd business and the Golden Arches down the road.

Visually, there was no contest. The Macca's Special is a tower of power and packs plenty of flavour under its toasted Baker's Delight bun. There's beetroot, tomato and a runny egg (free range), rindless bacon, caramelised onion and iceberg lettuce.

The Big Mac was paltry by comparison.

The lettuce far from "crisp", the onion anything but "tasty", and the pickle? Almost missing in action.Buns are a matter of taste. The Big Mac takes the soft option.

McDonald's also prides itself on 100 per cent beef. But the patty I sampled was no match for Ian Macdonald's generous slab of quality scotch fillet steak.

It's partnered with a piquant homemade tomato sauce that puts the "world famous Big Mac sauce" to shame.

Macdonald reckons big competitors "will never make the sort of burger I do" because the raw ingredients are costly.

But McDonald's need never worry about feeding customers faster.

Yesterday afternoon, we had a Big Mac in our hands in just under a minute. The Macca's Special took 22 minutes.

Is it worth the money?

Macdonald's burger certainly outshines its competitor in flavour and freshness.

It's a gourmet treat but not everyone wants a meal when they order fast food.Just a bite.

END OF ARTICLE


Ian Macdonald

www.TheFlashDuck.com

It's a David and Goliath Battle of the Burger

Ian Macdonald of Macdonald's Gourmet Burgers, appeared last week on Channel 7 in Australia.

Reporter: Jonathan Creek

Broadcast Date: January 30, 2007

Ian Macdonald is in a "David and Goliath" fight with hamburger giant McDonalds over his cafe name. And he refuses to back down.

It is not often Ian 'Macca' Macdonald is the small fry in a fight, but in this case the humble burger flipper is taking on the Big Mac of fast food chains.

"I've been known as Macca since I was three years old, which is a hell of a lot longer than they've been in business, I'm sure," Mr Macdonald said.

"I've also been known as Big Macca, Little Macca and lots of other Maccas."

Last year, Ian opened up a gourmet burger restaurant in Rosebud on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula, bearing his Macdonald family name.

He knew he might cop more than just heat off the grill from lawyers representing the other Macdonalds, so went to painstaking lengths to make his upmarket menu and single-fronted shop look a lot different.

"You'll see I have gone to great lengths to have nothing that resembles their product, there's no golden arches, the colours are totally different," Mr Macdonald said.

"We are licensed, we have wine and beer and BYO as well, there's no licensed McDonalds in Australia I'm aware of."

Lawyers representing McDonalds family restaurants are now ordering Ian to change the name of his gourmet burger outlet or close down.

Documents filed with the Federal Court claim Ian is in breach of the McDonalds trademark.The worldwide chain fears customers might confuse Ian's shop and his gourmet burgers with their world famous brand.

"They are saying they have trademarked my name," he said. "They say they have trademarked Macca and how they have done that has got me beat because there is no 'a'."

"They can trademark Mucca or Micca but you can't trademark Macca," Mr Macdonald said. thats my name and anyone else who is called macdonald, macguiness or macguila cutty. They are all known as maccas.

Also in the lawyers' sights is Ian's number one burger: the Macca special. Standing an impressive 22cm tall, it dwarfs its opposition.

But to be fair, the two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame seed bun, has one ingredient Ian's does not: the pickles.

"Maybe I should call mine the Big Macca," he said.

It seemed there was no confusion among the customers.

"If they are out to bankrupt me, good luck to them, but I've got nothing to lose," Mr Macdonald said.

"I'll go to jail rather than be pushed out and obliterated and bullied into shutting the business.
"I am going to stay open, sell my burgers, protect my family name and they can go to blazes."

Good on ya Macca. You're fighting for every honest hardworking business owner in Australia.

Don't let the Turkeys get ya down!!

Ian Macdonald

www.TheFlashDuck.com

Macdonald's Gourmet Burger Battle With The Lot

Well we have been causing quite a stir all over the country!

Macdonald's Gourmet Burgers Swings From The Arches

Above is the front page of the local paper, The Mornington Peninsula Leader, that started the landslide of sympathy for our client, Ian Macdonald, of Macdonald's Gourmet Burgers.

As you can see from the postings in this blog, lots have happened since . . . including radio and TV appearances all over the country.

Ian Macdonald is making great leverage of his plight, on his website at www.macdonaldsgourmetburgers.com, when discussing his situation with the press and the media.

THE ARTICLE READS:

Macdonald's Gourmet Burgers Swings From The Arches

THE humble hamburger is at the centre of a fast food war that looks set to be battled out in the Federal Court of Australia.

Rosebud trader Ian "Macca'' Macdonald, who since early last year has run Macdonald's Gourmet Burgers in Pt Nepean Rd, Rosebud, has vowed he would rather be thrown in jail than agree to what he calls "bully tactics'' by the US-based arm of the McDonald's Corporation.

Mr Macdonald, who says he has been known only as "Macca'' for more than 50 years, this month received court orders over claims he is in breach of the Trade Marks Act.

Fast food giant McDonald's, which has a franchise about 2km from Mr Macdonald's store in Rosebud, has demanded the burly trader immediately shut down his small-time burger-flipping operation.

In the statement of claim, lodged by legal firm Spruson and Ferguson Lawyers, it is alleged Mr Macdonald's trading name, and his top-selling burger called the Macca's Special, are "substantially identical or deceptively similar'' to the 'McDonald's' and 'Macca's' trademarks.

"The (McDonald's) Corporation has suffered substantial loss and damage and will continue to unless the conduct of the respondents is restrained by the court,'' lawyer Simon Williams said.

But Mr Macdonald said he had invested every cent he had into the business and vowed to fight the battle all the way.

"I can't see what the problem is. My shop colours are completely different and my burgers are made with 160 gram scotch fillets; people come from all over Melbourne for them,'' he said.

"I could have called my burger the Big Macca because I am Macca and it's obvious I'm pretty big.''

Mr Macdonald said he was puzzled why the legal challenge had come after he had already spent $100,000 fitting out and advertising his shop.

"I don't have the money to fight them in court so they'll have to send me to jail.''Melbourne University trademark expert Jason Bosland said the case would be decided on a number of key factors, including whether the similar names were likely to mislead customers.

"There is also a defence if the trademark is someone's personal name, but it must be proved that it was used in good faith and not to try and trade off the good will of the well-known McDonald's brand.''

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END OF ARTICLE

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Thanks Darrell for the wrap!

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Ian Macdonald

www.TheFlashDuck.com