What’s in a name? A legal warning from Warner Bros, an expensive rebrand and harsh lessons learned, if you ask Dublin startup BusterBox.
The company began life as ScoobyBox but was forced to change its name after raising the hackles of Scooby-Doo cartoon owner Hanna Barbera, a Warner Bros subsidiary.
The California animation studio argued that the small Dublin venture might confuse the public into thinking that ScoobyBox was related to Scooby-Doo. “It was a terrible blow at the start, as we worked so hard to establish the ScoobyBox brand,” co-founder Liam Brennan explains.
“The ScoobyBox name was inspired by my granddad’s dog, Scooby. We were confident that there was no patent for ‘ScoobyBox’ but ended up having to rebrand anyway. I advise other startups to pay the money to get a solicitor to check these things for you.”
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Launched in April 2016, BusterBox was founded by Brennan and his friends Gary Redmond and Paul Carrick. The business is aimed at aimed at dog owners and is a variation on the subscription gift-box model.
Customers sign up to receive boxes of chewable dog toys, treats and other canine gifts for their pooches each month. Various subscription plans are available, and the 12-month subscription costing €25 per month.
“Our subscriber numbers are now in the thousands and we have seen amazing growth in the UK in the last few months,” says Brennan.
“Our target demographics are young female professionals, and ‘empty nester’ women too. Our customers also include men and married couples.”
The BusterBox founders went on Dragons’ Den in 2017 and convinced Barry O’Sullivan to back them. However, they opted to decline his investment later on, deciding that the business wasn’t sufficiently well developed to warrant it.
With the UK now a big market for BusterBox, Brexit planning is a priority. “Our UK subscribers pay in pounds and we set up a bank account in the north to accept sterling payments. The UK will always be a massive market for us, so no matter what happens we will find a way to make it work.”
Photo: Liam Brennan (centre) with co-founders Gary Redmond (left) and Paul Clarke, and Fingal mayor Mary McCamley
