---
title: "Adweek: Cheerios’ Failed Case for Yellow Shows Why It’s So Hard for Brands to Trademark Colors"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/77d8e778-153b-4df7-896d-51e78e8ab042
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/adweek-cheerios-failed-case-for-yellow-shows-why-its-so-hard-for-brands-to-trademark-colors-2703969
category: "General"
published: 2017-08-31T14:09:32.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T02:32:03.607Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/a0a99f0d7b21829653b9853b38ef16208960.jpg
---

# Adweek: Cheerios’ Failed Case for Yellow Shows Why It’s So Hard for Brands to Trademark Colors

**TL;DR:** General Mills' attempt to trademark the color yellow for Cheerios packaging was denied. The company will continue to work towards protecting the yellow box despite the court's rejection.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2017-08-31. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/adweek-cheerios-failed-case-for-yellow-shows-why-its-so-hard-for-brands-to-trademark-colors-2703969).*

## Story

Throughout advertising history, several brands have successfully trademarked certain color combinations. However, according to a recent article in Adweek, this is not always the case. General Mills attempted to trademark the color yellow for its Cheerios packaging and was denied.

"These nontraditional trademarks like product shape and color are just not seen by consumers as trademarks, so you have to go out and prove that the public has come to recognize these things as marks. It’s a high burden, so you start behind the eight ball," said attorney John Welch.

The decision comes after two years of the brand working to secure the trademark. Despite the court's rejection, the brand remains dedicated to the protecting the yellow box and will return to the drawing board to work towards its goal.

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- General (sector)
- General Mills (company)
- trademark law (topic)
- packaging design (topic)
- color trademark (topic)

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Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/adweek-cheerios-failed-case-for-yellow-shows-why-its-so-hard-for-brands-to-trademark-colors-2703969). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/77d8e778-153b-4df7-896d-51e78e8ab042).