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What’s a nurdle? Well, Colgate and Glaxo are sparring over the word
To paraphrase William Shakespeare, would a nurdle by any other name still be a nurdle?
For those who don’t know, a nurdle — a wave-like gob of toothpaste applied on a toothbrush — is at the center of a trademark lawsuit filed by consumer product company Colgate-Palmolive against rival GlaxoSmithKline.
Colgate sued Glaxo, which owns the Aquafresh brand, seeking a court order that its packaging for Colgate toothpaste does not infringe trademarks held by Glaxo, which had filed a trademark application for the nurdle design.
Glaxo loves the word so much that it even created Nurdle World, the home of Milky, Lilly and Billy (pictured above). To wit: “Nurdle World helps children (and parents) understand more about healthy gums, strong teeth and fresh breath, while having fun,” the company said on the web site.
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