In Russia, Starbucks has taken squatter Sergei Zujkov to court for holding the rights to the Russian trademark for Starbucks LLC.Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz said trademark infringement is a concern for the company worldwide. In Russia, Starbucks has taken squatter Sergei Zujkov to court for holding the rights to the Russian trademark for Starbucks LLC.While the case winds its way through court, Zujkov has offered to sell back the trademark to the company for $600,000, according to reports. For now, Starbucks' only Russian cafe operates on U.S. embassy land. In Japan, the brand Mount Rainier Espresso & Milk sells canned coffee in stores with a round green logo that's suspiciously similar. In lieu of Starbucks' green mermaid in the center, it carries a rendering of Mount Rainier. Schultz said he was "cautiously optimistic" that his company will prevail in Chinese courts based on discussions with government officials and his own attorneys. "I also think it's an important test case for China," he said, "where I believe they want to demonstrate that the road is one of safety and preservation — and one of predictability — for companies that are coming into China for the first time." Like it or not, U.S. companies must consider legal challenges — and the fees that come with it — a cost of doing business in China. "It's not a lawless place," Dickinson said. "But if you don't build the cost of taking them to court into your cost structure, you've made a mistake."
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