The Creator’s Dream: 

Evan Van Auken (Vanader)  is not your typical corporate executive, or artist. Before revolutionizing the world of crafting, he served his community as a firefighter and paramedic. Bringing that same sense of urgency and precision to his business, he invented the SCORCH MARKER™, an innovative tool that allows for safe, chemical woodburning. 

What started as a side project in his garage exploded into a 7-figure brand. Throughout this growth, Evan has built a community of over 1.6 million people across his social media, rooted in a philosophy of radical transparency, where he shares both his failures and his wins.

I SUED 184 Chinese Copycats and WON $702,000 (Complete Story)
 

When an Ally Becomes Your Worst Business Enemy: 

The massive success of the SCORCH MARKER™ wood burning tool eventually attracted dangerous attention, and the threat came from within. The very manufacturer entrusted with producing the markers decided it was more profitable to steal the business than to be a part of it. 

They didn’t just copy the product; they stole Evan’s original photography and plagiarized his marketing, word-for-word. Almost overnight, the market was flooded with unauthorized sellers offering cheap knockoffs of his product. The empire Evan had built was being suffocated by his own creation. Those who were once partners were now competitors in the same marketplace. 

Fighting a Losing Battle: 

By the time Evan reached out to us, he had done everything he could to battle the onslaught of counterfeit sellers online, with little to no success: 

• Sending individual “takedown notices”:  Each online platform has a process for reporting infringing listings. These can be time-consuming and confusing, often requiring detailed responses. And sometimes the platforms themselves reject your claim, allowing the infringer to continue selling their knockoffs. When a listing is taken down, often the seller will simply create another new listing (or three) that infringes your IP
  

• Sending Cease-and-Desist letters: Sending a letter demanding the infringer stop often results in them simply closing one “shell” store and opening three new ones the next day under different names.

• Relying solely on platform tools: For example, tools like Amazon Brand Registry are helpful for maintenance, but they don’t identify counterfeiters, they don’t go after counterfeiters that you report, and they certainly don’t recover any damages. They encompass solely protective measures.

"All these enforcement efforts are reactive to the discovery of counterfeit sellers, who always find a way to sidestep them, which is why it’s often called as “the whack-a-mole” approach."

The SRipLaw Blueprint:  

Instead of the reactive “whack-a-mole” approach, we designed another option: 

• Strategic Evidence Gathering: We worked with Evan to gather all the relevant evidence of infringement by 184 sellers, and the evidence necessary to demonstrate Evan’s rights in his SCORCH MARKER™ brand.
  

• A Massive Coordinated Strike in Federal Court: We filed a lawsuit in federal court against the entire group simultaneously under a contingency model ($0 upfront for Evan), allowing Evan to defend his business and livelihood without the financial stress that sometimes forces small businesses to surrender.
• The Power of the TRO: We kept the sellers’ names out of the public record at first so that they would not be forewarned. This allowed us to obtain a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) that they were unaware of, that required the marketplaces and payment processors to take down infringing listings and freeze the counterfeiters’ assets before they knew what hit them.
  
• Getting Compensated Early: With their assets now frozen and the infringing listings down for good, many defendants chose to agree to a settlement that would release the restraints on their online store provided they never again sell the counterfeit goods or otherwise infringe Evan’s IP. We negotiated a reasonable compensation for Evan with each of those defendants, and handled obtaining executed agreements, receiving the appropriate funds, and communicating with the marketplaces and payment processors concerning the defendants
  
• Getting Compensated Later: Many online stores are actually fake stores created solely to sell counterfeit goods. These hold little value to the counterfeiters, so they just abandon the store, frozen funds and all. In Evan’s case there were many who did just that. If there were any funds still restrained that belonged to them, we were able to collect that money for Evan after obtaining a default judgment against the remaining defendants. 

The lawsuit wasn't just about winning a case; it was about stopping the theft immediately and protecting the value of Evan’s brand. By leveraging a strategy focused on his registered intellectual property, we successfully convinced a federal judge to issue the Temporary Restraining Order which compelled platforms like Amazon and Walmart to take down the infringing listings once and for all and freeze the infringers' payment accounts. Funds that were headed to the pockets of counterfeiters were instead made available to help repair the damage to SCORCH MARKER™, allowing Evan to continue growing his business and his brand.

Your Passion Deserves Respect: Avoid IP Thefts 

Your work is more than just a product or a registration number; it is the culmination of your time, your talent, and your soul. It deserves to be respected, and above all, it deserves to be protected.

IP theft is a harsh reality in today’s global marketplace, but it doesn’t have to be the end of your business story. As the SCORCH MARKER™ case proves, what looks like a business-ending roadblock can become a catalyst for your greatest victory.

With SRipLaw by your side, legal challenges shift from being obstacles to becoming strategic opportunities. By taking a proactive stance, you aren’t just stopping a thief; you are reclaiming your market share and reinforcing the foundation of your brand for years to come.

Don’t wait for an infringement to start building your defense. Whether you are looking to secure your first trademark or need to deploy a nuclear option against a raid of imitators, we are ready to guide you through the fog.