Ohio rallies around Beaver's Mini Mart in logo fight with Buc-ee's

Buc-ee's, the Texas convenience-store chain known for its buck-toothed beaver mascot, has drawn a backlash across Ohio after suing a small Beavercreek shop over a beaver logo of its own.

Buc-ee's sued Beaver's Mini Mart in late July, four months after the chain opened its first Ohio store less than a half-hour's drive away. The company argues the shop's beaver logo too closely resembles its branded mascot, and it has asked for a jury trial in federal court in Ohio. The lawsuit is one of many the chain has filed against businesses using woodland-creature imagery, according to The Associated Press.

Supporters of Beaver's Mini Mart have attacked Buc-ee's online, boycotted its stores, and raised at least $69,000 through a GoFundMe campaign aimed at keeping the lawsuit from putting the shop out of business. Beavercreek City Council passed a resolution August 10 making the beaver a permanent and official part of the city's 200-plus-year history, ahead of a unanimous vote. John Oliver devoted a segment of “Last Week Tonight” to Buc-ee's trademark history, and #boycottbucees trended on X.

Buc-ee's has defended the suit as protective of its trademark, saying it repeatedly tried to reach owner Vic Boparai after he filed a trade-name registration before resorting to litigation. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, who praised the chain's grand opening in April, called the lawsuit “absurd.” “It is Beavercreek, for heaven's sake,” he told reporters.

The case pits a 74,000-square-foot Buc-ee's with more than 100 gas pumps against a long, low convenience store at a suburban intersection — and, for now, a city that has decided which side of the fight it is on. The Associated Press reported the story from Beavercreek.