Africa-Press – South-Africa. David Manal, the owner of the newly launched Zuma restaurant in Durban, has denied that there is pending legal action against him over the restaurant’s trademark.
His restaurant shares a name with former president Jacob Zuma and an internationally acclaimed Japanese brand that has restaurants in other parts of the world, including Hong Kong and London.
This week, the international brand said there was a pending legal dispute over the Zuma trademark. It also distanced itself from the Durban-based restaurant and added that it had no affiliation with it.
Manal told News24 on Thursday that the global brand was fighting a losing battle because he had the sole trademark in South Africa.
Although he acknowledged that his eatery had no affiliation with the international brand, he claimed it reached out to him a year ago to seek permission to open a franchise in the country.
Manal told News24 he planned to expand the Zuma brand locally. Asked why he chose the name for his restaurant, he said it worked because it was popular in South Africa and other parts of the continent.
“Many families have the Zuma surname, but it also means peace in Arabic. The concept came about wanting a peaceful dining experience with the South African culture of ubuntu,” he said.
Former president Zuma and his family attended the launch of the Durban restaurant last month. He said the former first citizen, himself no stranger to legal battles, was not affiliated with the restaurant, other than being a regular customer.
“[The Zuma family] loves eating my food. He (Zuma) feels safer being in a place where he’s not going to be judged. He was sitting, taking pictures with people, people were having fun, laughing with him, dancing,” Manal said.
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