CHICAGO -- Robert Corr is proud of his family name and not about to quit using it on his soda pop just because the folks who make Coors beer don't like it.
'I am ready and willing to defend myself against the Adolph Coors company and fight for my rights and the integrity and good name of my company,' Corr said Monday.
Corr, 36, founded Corr's Natural Beverages Inc., which manufactures natural sodas, in 1978. He did about $4 million in business last year.
The Adolph Coors Co., a billion-dollar conglomerate based in Colorado and best known as the maker of Coors Beer, filed a lawsuit Oct. 7 in U.S. District Court in Denver. It charged the smaller company with trademark infringement and unfair competition. Named as co-defendant was Corr's bottling franchise, Columbine Beverage Co. of Denver.
Corr called a news conference Monday to discuss his response to the suit.
He said his radio ads don't sound the same, his beverage cans don't look the same, and a Coors representative who contacted him in 1980 indicated he saw no problem in the name, once he learned Corr was the legitimate family name.
'When I was growing up in Chicago I didn't know a thing about Coors Beer but I did know that my great uncle, Frank J. Corr, had been mayor of Chicago in the 30s and that he also founded a football team, the Corr Flashes.
'I was proud of my name then and I'm proud of it now. Isn't it in the great American tradition that you can name your company after your family name if you choose?'
