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Balmuccino, whose leaders have included a sister-in-law of TV
doctor Mehmet Oz, filed its complaint on Friday in Manhattan
federal court.
The filing followed a Seattle federal judge's July 2023
dismissal of an earlier version of the lawsuit on procedural
grounds, the second such dismissal.
Starbucks, based in Seattle, had no immediate comment.
Balmuccino said it began developing coffee-flavored lip balms in
2016 and pitched them at an October 2018 meeting in Starbucks'
New York office, where it provided prototypes and other
confidential information.
The Los Angeles-based company said Dr. Oz had brokered the
meeting, when he contacted Starbucks Chief Executive Howard
Schultz to suggest a possible joint venture.
Balmuccino said Starbucks "stole" its fully developed concept
for lip balms by launching its "S'mores Frappuccino Sip Kit" in
April 2019.
The kits included lipstick and gloss in four shades: Campfire
Spark, Chocolicious Bliss, Graham Glam and Marshmallow Glow.
Balmuccino said Starbucks did not compensate it for selling Sip
Kits, and is seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive
damages.
It said its lawsuit is not too late because New York lets some
plaintiffs put statutes of limitation on hold when they sue in
the wrong forum and, "as here," a court finds it lacks
jurisdiction.
Balmuccino originally sued Starbucks in Los Angeles in October
2019.
The case is Balmuccino LLC v. Starbucks Corp, U.S. District
Court, Southern District of New York, No. 24-06214.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; Editing by Sandra Maler)
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