Wegmans’ fish broker pushes back against copycat claims
The Wegmans fish broker named in a lawsuit accusing the retailer of unfairly copying an existing Manhattan fish market has now filed a counterclaim calling those accusations “baseless.”
The New York-based law firm Gross Shuman P.C. filed counterclaims Thursday on behalf of Culinary Collaborations, Wegmans’ fish broker, as well as two other fish distributors, Culimer USA and Red Shell Sushi.
The initial lawsuit, filed Feb. 9 in New York County Supreme Court by Yuji Haraguchi, accused the three distributors and Wegmans Food Markets of unfair competition and of poaching Haraguchi’s business secrets connected to his fish market, Osakana. Haraguchi also claims the supermarket chain is in breach of a non-disclosure agreement and a non-compete agreement — both of which were signed through Culinary Collaborations, along with a signed letter of intent. Haraguchi is seeking at least $1 million in damages.
Last year, Haraguchi decided to sell Osakana, which first opened in 2016. In the lawsuit, Haraguchi alleges that three companies — Culimer USA, Red Shell Sushi, and Culinary Collaborations — gained knowledge of secrets related to his business via that potential sale and then brought those secrets to Wegmans, according to the lawsuit. In October, Wegmans opened its Manhattan store with its own fish market, Sakana, which Haraguchi claims is a direct copy of his business, located just blocks away.
According to the new counterclaim, the decision to back out of the sale was Haraguchi’s choice. The counterclaim also accuses Haraguchi of leveraging false accusations against both Wegmans and the suppliers of fraud, trademark infringement, and unfair competition.
In a statement, Kevin Burke, one of the lawyers representing the three suppliers, called Haraguchi’s lawsuit “baseless and retaliatory.”
The counterclaim seeks, among other remedies, a permanent injunction “to bar Osakana and its agents, including Haraguchi, from further misleading the public.”
When asked to comment on the counterclaim, Haraguchi said he had not yet reviewed it and so could not comment.
Wegmans is not represented in the counterclaim. The retailer did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication of this story.
Burke told Supermarket News that one of his clients, Red Shell Sushi, was close to finalizing a deal last year to buy Osakana when Haraguchi unexpectedly canceled any further negotiations without explanation. He also added that the timeline for Wegmans to create its own fish market was well underway before the negotiations with Red Shell Sushi.
“The plaintiffs believe that by including Wegmans in this meritless action, they will force a settlement in their favor,” Burke added. “Nothing could be further from the truth.”
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The Wegmans fish broker named in the lawsuit accusing the retailer of unfairly copying an existing Manhattan fish market has now filed a counterclaim calling those accusations “baseless.” The initial lawsuit, filed Feb. 9 in New York County Supreme Court by Yuji Haraguchi, accused the three distributors and Wegmans Food Markets of unfair competition and of poaching Haraguchi’s business secrets connected to his fish market, Osakana. Furthermore, there are more than 4,000 signatures on a petition calling for the Wegmans store to be closed. Do you think the Manhattan location will shut down as a result of the lawsuit and petition?
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