Iceland (the country) has won a decade-long trademark war over Iceland (the store) over the supermarket’s exclusive rights to the “Iceland” name. The trademark disagreement culminated this week when Richard Walker, the executive chair Iceland (the store), said he would not appeal a European Union court decision that ruled in favour of Iceland (the country) and cancelled the chain’s trademark for “Iceland,” reports The New York Times.
According to Richard, going to the highest European Court would cost the company thousands in fees, and he doesn’t see the point in continuing.
Richard said the company will mark the end of the dispute by offering 50 percent discounts on selected frozen items, including French fries and chilli chicken pizza, in Iceland starting today, while stocks last.
The trademark war dates back to 2014, when the store secured exclusive EU trademark rights to the name “Iceland” for certain food products. Iceland (the country) sued Iceland (the store) in 2016, bringing the case before an EU court. The trademark was annulled in 2019, and subsequent appeals by the supermarket were rejected in 2022 and again in 2025.
In its ruling, the EU’s General Court said the trademark could create confusion among consumers, who might assume products branded “Iceland” originated in Iceland (the country) rather than from the U.K.-based supermarket chain. The court also emphasised that geographic names should remain available for public use. The decision does not require the supermarket to rename itself, but it does allow other companies to use “Iceland” to describe the origin of their goods.
Today, Iceland (the store) has nearly 1,000 stores in the U.K., plus stores in Europe, Asia, Africa and South America. It has three locations in Iceland (the country).
Iceland (the country) welcomed the end of the legal trademark war. It is valuable for Icelandic companies “to be able to clearly refer to their Icelandic origin, with all the underlying thoughts of clean air and pristine nature that it carries,” said Foreign Minister Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir in a statement after the EU court ruling last year.
Brynhildur Georgsdóttir, a lawyer for Business Iceland, which represented Iceland (the country) in the lawsuit against the Iceland (the store), said that the Iceland (the store) had virtually no chance of another successful appeal. “To me, it always sounded crazy,” she said, “and it sounded unbelievable that a foreign company could get full ownership of the word ‘Iceland,’”Brynhildur said.
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