HUDSONVILLE, Mich. — Michaels craft stores is rushing to remove a product from its shelves bearing a West Michigan company’s logo.
The well-known American craft store, which has locations in most states, admitted it did not have permission to sell an item showing the logo of The Found Cottage, a vintage store in Hudsonville.
The co-owners of The Found Cottage posted multiple photos to Instagram Wednesday posing with a platter marked with the company logo in the center.
“They are using our name and logo without our permission and making money off our hard work and name that we have put our heart and souls into over the past three years,” the post said.
The owners said Michaels ignored their requests to remove the item from stores and the website since Christmas. They asked their 174,000 followers to help get the “big box” company’s attention.
“[The action of] this blatant big box store who already has a leg up on us feels like a slap in the face of not just our small business, but every small business that we choose to love and support,” the post said.
Michaels admitted fault in a statement Thursday:
“At Michaels, we take intellectual property matters very seriously. In this situation, we know we made a mistake and have been actively trying to resolve the matter since we were first notified. We removed the item from our website and are working to remove it from stores as quickly as possible. We sincerely want to find an amicable resolution to this matter with The Found Cottage. Thank you for taking the time to share your concerns with us.”
The Found Cottage said it will work with Michael’s to resolve the trademark issue and thanked its customers in an Instagram post Thursday afternoon.