Man Names Shop ‘Singh’sbury Local’ But Denies Link To Sainsbury’s

Mandeep Singh Catha owns an off-license in Wolverhampton, which he has named ‘Singh’sbury Local’ in bright orange font – extremely similar to British supermarket, Sainsbury’s. 

The small business in Wolverhampton has become quite the tourist attraction after the erection of the orange ‘Singh’sbury’ sign. It has drawn people to queue to take selfies outside the borderline novelty store – with many familiar with the name and design. 

Shop owner Mandeep claims that there is a simple explanation for the coincidental similarities.

He has said: “I decided on the name. My name is Singh and it’s on Bushbury Road. It’s just a coincidence. I think the nearest Sainsbury’s is a couple of miles away so it’s not exactly close and we are certainly not competition.

“I am just a small business owner trying to make a living. People keep stopping in their cars to take pictures with the sign and I’ve had many nice comments.

“I have heard nothing from a supermarket which has a similar name, so I see no problem with it. It’s a different logo, a different colour, a different company. Its completely different.”

The former sandwich delivery driver, who opened the store last month, has even registered ‘Singh’sbury Local’ on Companies House.

Mandeep should expect to hear from Sainsbury’s lawyers soon, concerning the shops identity. A identical case emerged in 2017, when businessman Jel Singh Nagra renamed his North Tyneside shop Singhsbury’s. 

Unsurprisingly, Sainsbury’s threatened Nagra with legal action, resulting in him changing his store’s name. However, his innovation continued – renaming his shop ‘Morrisinghs.’ Luckily for him, supermarket Morrisons didn’t object to the change and openly backed the business owner. 

There have been similar situations regarding novelty business names in the UK before. George Georgiou was told by US giant, KFC, to change his business name – Kent’s Tuck In Fried Chicken – on Kent Street in Upper Gornal, West Mids. Georgiou refused and still uses the name today. 

(Images: Twitter)

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George Day

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