{"id":42109,"date":"2023-10-20T15:18:48","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:18:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/startupsmart.test\/2023\/10\/20\/you-chews-forced-to-change-name-after-cease-and-desist-letter-why-it-was-the-best-thing-that-could-have-happened-for-the-sydney-startup-startupsmart\/"},"modified":"2023-10-20T15:18:48","modified_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:18:48","slug":"you-chews-forced-to-change-name-after-cease-and-desist-letter-why-it-was-the-best-thing-that-could-have-happened-for-the-sydney-startup-startupsmart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/uncategorized\/you-chews-forced-to-change-name-after-cease-and-desist-letter-why-it-was-the-best-thing-that-could-have-happened-for-the-sydney-startup-startupsmart\/","title":{"rendered":"You Chews forced to change name after cease and desist letter: Why it was the \u201cbest thing that could have happened\u201d for the Sydney startup – StartupSmart"},"content":{"rendered":"
You Chews has been forced to change its name after receiving a cease and desist letter earlier this year, with the Sydney startup now going by the name Caitre\u2019d.<\/p>\n
But founder Liz Kaelin says this was the \u201cbest thing that ever happened\u201d for her startup.<\/p>\n
Kaelin was sent a cease and desist letter in April from another business with a similar name using \u201ctwo very common words put together\u201d.<\/p>\n
After the initial shock, the founder says she resolved to use this to her advantage.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did some detective work and made the decision that this isn\u2019t going to be the end,\u201d Kaelin tells StartupSmart<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cI decided I wasn\u2019t going to fight it or get angry.<\/p>\n \u201cI said, \u2018this is something we\u2019ll have to get over, I don\u2019t know how but we\u2019re going to make it happen\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n After consulting with a lawyer, she was given some pointed advice: \u201cJust change your name\u201d.<\/p>\n And instead of just coming up with the name, Kaelin resolved to use this as an opportunity to tackle some of the broader issues that You Chews was facing.<\/p>\n \u201cThey said to take it as an opportunity to change the business completely,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have to weigh up your customers and reputation, and if you\u2019re early-stage you\u2019re better off doing something completely different.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was an awesome opportunity to improve the business. We thought, \u2018what would we do if we were building a competition?\u2019 We took everything we\u2019d learnt and used it as if we were competing with ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n This process led the small startup team to shift the company\u2019s focus onto the users.<\/p>\n \u201cThat one little change \u2013 from we to your \u2013 has made such a difference,\u201d Kaelin says.<\/p>\n \u201cIt forced us to take a step back and think about why it wasn\u2019t working. It wasn\u2019t customer-focused enough. It\u2019s not about us, it\u2019s entirely about them.<\/p>\n \u201cIt changed the entire culture of the company.\u201d<\/p>\n Across a three-week process, the team talked extensively with users about why they were on the You Chews platform. It was when one customer referred to You Chews as being \u201clike a maitre\u2019d\u201d that Kaelin had a lightbulb moment.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought, \u2018holy shit\u2019,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n \u201cThat changed our entire brand and our entire business.\u201d<\/p>\n After swapping a letter to focus on the startup\u2019s catering offering, Caitre\u2019d was created. And it comes with added security from any further challenges.<\/p>\n \u201cThe benefit of the new name is we\u2019ve actually created it, so it\u2019s much easier to protect,\u201d Kaelin says.<\/p>\n With a new name and newfound purpose, she says Caitre\u2019d is like a whole new business.<\/p>\n \u201cThe new brand is really reflective of entrepreneurial tenacity,\u201d Kaelin says.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I started You Chews I literally had no idea what I was doing. I made a lot of mistakes on that journey and this is the 2.0 version.<\/p>\n \u201cSomething so cataclysmic and potentially really damaging and negative can actually be the best thing that ever happened.\u201d<\/p>\n And none of it would be possible without the dedicated Caitre\u2019d team, she says.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been really chaotic, messy and stressful and they\u2019ve handled it like pros,\u201d Kaelin says.<\/p>\nMore than just a name change<\/h3>\n
The ‘holy shit’ moment<\/h3>\n