Michael Jordan Sues Jewel, Dominick’s Over False Endorsement

Things I remember about the Michael Jordan commemorative Sports Illustrated issue I flipped through off my buddy’s coffee table: it was kind of heavy. It had nice photos.

As you can see, I have an awesome memory. Well, apparently, there was some stuff I missed if the magazine was purchased at a Chicago-area Jewel or Dominick’s. Such as ads with Jordan’s likeness he didn’t approve of. But Jordan’s team didn’t miss this stuff. And now he’s suing both grocery store chains.

The details (via):

According to the suit, the Dominick’s ad featured Jordan’s name and number with the phrase “You are a cut above” and a photo of a steak.

Below the congratulations is an ad for $2 off a Rancher’s Reserve steak. In the case of Jewel, Jordan takes issue with a full-page magazine ad that congratulates him on the Hall of Fame honor.

The pair of basketball shoes, with a number 23 on the tongues, “appear to be an inaccurate and misleading copy of Air Jordan basketball shoes, which are the subject of an endorsement agreement between Jordan and Nike, Inc.

Jordan further takes issue with the text in an ad, which is a riff on Jewel-Osco’s own ad slogan: “Jewel-Osco salutes #23 on his many accomplishments as we honor a fellow Chicagoan who was ‘just around the corner’ for so many years,” according to the suit.

Now, this may sound kind of silly: Jordan clearly doesn’t need the money. Or the exposure. Or really any of the hassle that comes with a lawsuit. But that’s not really what any of this is about. It’s about controlling his image and branding, something he’s always taken seriously.

Not even grocery store chains that only hint at him and his likeness are going to stand in the way. Which means I should probably not run that post later today in which I claim Jordan is sponsoring my celebrity basketball tournament in March. Drat.

Posted at 10:45 am
on December 23rd, 2009
Tags: Basketball, Chicago Bulls, Michael Jordan, NBA