Russia may start producing energy drinks and soft drinks under the Wagner brand

The Ryazan manufacturer of soft drinks “Vega” has filed an application with Rospatent for the registration of the trademark “Wagner” (Wagner), according to the service “Online Patent”. It belongs to the 29th and 32nd classes of the International Classification of Goods and Services (ICGS). That is, if approved, he will be able to produce soft drinks, beer, and meat snacks under this brand. The representative of Vega specified that the company has plans to produce energy drinks and lemonades under this name, however, at the moment it is premature to talk about this. According to him, the choice of the name is due to the personal sympathy of the owner of the company Vladimir Korolyov for the work of the German composer Richard Wagner. The latter is called the reformer of the 19th century opera. It is believed that he was the favorite composer of Adolf Hitler.

However, the Wagner brand in Russia has recently been associated with the private military company of the same name (PMC), created by businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin (he probably died in a plane crash on August 23). In this regard, problems may arise during the examination, says Victoria Makarova, patent attorney at Online Patent. According to her, such a brand can be classified as a designation that is contrary to the public interest, which is the basis for refusal of registration. Stanislav Kaufman, the owner of the Kaufman branding agency, also points to this. According to him, when making a decision, Rospatent will focus not only on the historical context, but also on the modern one. Ambiguous associations and ambiguity in the name can also be grounds for refusal of registration, the expert explained.