Business partners clash over use of restaurant’s name

A businessman has defended the use of a restaurant’s name as a fight between four former friends over the Chez Sonia wine shop escalated.

Ernesto Gonzalez accused their former partner Salome Kiende Ibeere of lying to court to take away the restaurant’s name and disenfranchise their customers after they worked so hard to market and build it.

“Her claim for the restaurant’s name is misconceived, ill-advised and abuse of the court process. She is lying that she owns the restaurant’s trademark name when she is aware that it was derived from my partner Sonia Mansioui’s first name,” said Gonzalez.

The four traders who were once a unit before the fallout are fighting in court over the ‘Chez Sonia’ trademark name- a popular wine shop and restaurant (above) in Westlands, Nairobi. 

The back and forth started last week when Salome sued her former colleagues Sonia Mansioui, Ernesto Gonzalez and Esther Muriithi for allegedly stealing and using the trade name ‘Chez Sonia’ to run the restaurant without her consent.

According to Salome, she is the one who registered the trademark name of Chez Sonia Limited, but her friends fraudulently turned it into their own and used it to operate the restaurant after they fell out.

But Gonzalez in his response swore that he was the one who registered the ‘Chez Sonia’ name and denied Salome’s allegations that they stole it from her after she walked away from their partnership and opened another restaurant.

“Chez Sonia has become associated with the three of us and we enjoy goodwill among the general population. It should not be taken away from us through lies, misconception, ill-will and abuse of the court process,” said Gonzalez.

He added that they did not need any consent from Salome when they registered Chez Sonia and opened the restaurant, adding that Salome is only jealous of the success they have made in popularising the restaurant.

Salome in her case stated that she is the one who registered the name Chez Sonia Limited as a sole director before she met Mansioui, who also had an ambition of entering into the restaurant business after which she incorporated her as a co-director and co-founder of Chez Sonia Limited.

She said they jointly opened the restaurant in January 2019 but fell out after which Mansioui approached Ernesto Gonzalez and Esther Muriithi to continue with the business and instead of registering another name.

“It is because of the name Chez Sonia Limited that the restaurant became popular as one of the best wine joints in Nairobi. They continue using the name while aware that I am the one entitled to its exclusive use,” swore Salome.

According to Salome, she has opened another restaurant within the same area using the name of Chez Sonia Limited,  making her customers even more confused given her rivals are also using a similar name.