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