Leigh ice cream parlour changes name (From Southend Standard)

Leigh ice cream parlour changes name

12:00pm Friday 13th July 2012 in Southend By Jasmin McDermott

AN ice cream parlour in Leigh has changed its name.

Bosses at the Hokey Pokey were sent a letter from sweet sellers the Chocolate Society informing them they had trademarked the name.

The company had bought the rights to use the name for its homemade honeycomb, barring any other business from using the name in any of its products.

The ice cream shop, in Elm Road, had only been open for two weeks when the letter landed on the doormat informing them of the trademark and asking them to stop using the name.

Owners Lucy and Joe Donnelly considered taking action in a bid to keep the name, but decided to rebrand instead as Poco Gelato.

Lucy, 39, said: “When we got the letter it was completely out of the blue. If we challenged it, it would have meant us going to court and it would have been too expensive.

“When we were thinking of what to name the shop we didn’t think you could trademark the name because it is a name that is known all over the world.”

Not only is “hokey pokey” a generic name for vanilla ice cream mixed with honeycomb pieces, it was also the name for Italian ice cream street sellers.

The ice cream parlour has been trading under its new name for a week.

Despite the name change business has been going from strength to strength for the brother and sister team, who are the great-grandchildren of Massililiano Rossi, who helped set up Southend’s famous Rossi brand.

As well as offering traditional gelato flavours, the shop also sells unusual flavour combinations, including chocolate and chilli, green tea and white chocolate and cardamom.

Lucy added: “The response we have had to the new name has been really positive.

“Business is going really well, and it seems like we can’t make the ice cream quick enough at the moment.”