How a Trademark Dispute Started a Baked Potato Rivalry (Spudman vs Spudbros)

Added: 2026-05-27

[00:00:00]In Britain, the humble jacket potato is a staple  of the native palette. It's cheap, filling, and becomes the vessel for an infinite number of  topping combinations. And over the last few years, two vendors on Tik Tok have built wildly  successful empires based on the art form of the baked potato. However, through their mutual  success, they've developed a bitter rivalry. So, how did a bloke from Tamworth and two brothers  from Preston turn jacket potatoes into an internet phenomenon and ended a trademark dispute that  fostered a civil war for the hottest potato on the internet. But first, if you didn't know, we make  weekly documentary videos here on this channel.

[00:00:34]And it would be awesome if you could drop a like  and a sub to the channel so we can keep on pumping out these videos. And if you can't get enough  of me, make sure to follow me over on Spotify so you can watch and listen to my videos on the go.  Anyway, let's get back into the video. In 2003, at 18 years old, Ben Newman, aka Spudman,  started his potato business in Tamworth.

[00:00:54]His dad had originally been the supplier for  the previous Spud seller on the same spot. So, when he learned that the pitch come up for sale,  he paid 16 grand for it via a loan and went on to spend 20 years selling jacket potatoes. To the  people of Tamworth, he was a local institution.

[00:01:08]But beyond the town, nobody really knew he  existed. However, that all changed in 2021.

[00:01:13]Like a lot of people at the time, Ben had watched  his kids disappear into Tik Tok during lockdown and decided to take a look at what all the  fuss was about. Out of curiosity, he posted a couple of videos of him doing his thing, selling  potatoes on the wagon. On just his third video, he got over half a million views. The kids put Tik  Tok in front of me. I posted a couple of videos and the third one got half a million views. I like  live streaming on there. I put a camera on and I get on with my day. It's very honest. There's  nowhere to hide. You've got to be yourself.

[00:01:41]And that's exactly what people fell in love  with. It was just Ben chatting to his customers, loading up potatoes, and just being a relentlessly  nice bloke. One Tik Tok video showed Ben giving away a free potato with butter and cheese and  a bottle of Dr. Pepper and it racked over 120 million views. And the content itself is pretty  mundane. I mean, the bloke is just scooping beans into a potato and asking where the customer came  from that day. Although, saying that, it does also kind of help that Ben has a massive pink mohawk  to make himself stand out. But Ben actually grew this hairstyle out in support of Kidney Research  UK, having himself needed three kidney transplants and regular dialysis. I'd grown the business into  something reasonable size and we were doing all the big festivals up and down the country like  download and high park and Nebworth and all these and traveling lots every like I didn't go home  for most of the summer. We just so the pitch in the Tamford would run itself and then we'd have  one for the festivals doing really well. All of a sudden come back from a download festival,  kidneys had failed, too many energy drinks and dumb myself in. all of a sudden had to change the  business very rapidly from being able to travel to having to stay. Went to a few of the organizers  that we worked with and they were like, "Well, we can't use [ __ ] anymore." I was like, "Oh [ __ ]  I've like literally grown up with you lot now. You just cut me off. Crap. That's a massive chunk  of my business." It literally cut my business in half. And then we had to like unregister for  VAT and it was a massive step backwards. Took me a little while with the health to get myself  straight. I was stubborn and I managed to keep the business going. I was very focused on like I've  got to get a transplant and then I can get back into it. pre-failed transplants and we realized  pre-failed transplants, pre-failed transplants and realized the transplant was never going to  work and then it's not rejection but my body attacks them. One of the biggest weights lifting  off my mind was going I'm not doing that anymore.

[00:03:19]I'm on diialysis. I've accomplished so much more  not waiting for a transplant and just being on diialysis and being okay with that, you know, like  and just making everything fit around that. In the last 6 years since the last one failed, we've  accomplished all of this. like we we'd grown even with the transplants waiting for the transplants.  So we still grown the business to like eight outlets but we kept it all local and it wasn't  potatoes it was like I had a hog roast unit and a burger unit coming out of co I sold everything  and I was like right I'm selling everything and I'm just going to sell a new potato unit and we're  just going to do potatoes in town and I'm going to get a better work life balance and it's going to  be nice and easy. And then because I'd had got rid of all of that, I had time to properly put  into the social media. And that's when we took it from like a video a day to like six videos a  day live. That's when it went parabolic. Being able to juggle a successful business, raising  his nine kids, and having kidney problems is incredibly impressive for both him and his spud.  But by 2023, the cues at Tamworth were getting out of hand. People were traveling from all over  the UK and even different corners of the planet.

[00:04:20]One customer apparently flew from the Philippines,  hired a car, drove up to Tamworth, ate a potato, stayed overnight, and then flew back. By this  point, Ben was apparently starting to sell up to 2 and a half thousand potatoes a day to give back to  the community. And in name of Kidney Research UK, Spudman held a free potato day leading to  1500 potatoes being given away to hundreds of customers. The free day, we literally had  a queue around the town. There must have been 500 people in this queue around the town just  queuing up for baked potatoes. They were waiting 4 hours. But that's when the mainstream media  picked up on it. And at the time I got really annoyed cuz I not really annoyed but I didn't  get chance to make any content for myself. And then I got home after it all sat down and I  flicked through Tik Tok. Every other video on Tik Tok was us. They made con every person in  that queue took a picture or made a video or or did something and it was completely organic.  While Ben was going viral in Tamworth, another potato vendor was stirring up an insane amount  of viewership in Preston. The hot potato tram had been at the center of the Preston flag market  since 1955. The home for the potatoes was an old converted tram carriage that had been passed down  through families for decades. The originator was apparently a guy called Ernie Rhodess and changed  hands a number of times over the years. In 2020, Keith Roberts Jr. passed away and entrusted the  tram to his friend Tony Nelson. As a result, Tony's sons, Jacob and Harley Nelson, stepped into  hell. And almost immediately, they looked at what they had inherited and ask themselves how they  could reinvent something boring like the concept of baked spuds. People would walk past and they  go to Subway or McDonald's. And we asked them, "Why don't you buy our jacket potatoes?" And  they were just like, "It's not sexy." So, that was the business plan. How do we make Jacket  Potatoes a bit more sexy? The first thing they did was rebrand like crazy. The hot potato tram  became Spud Bros. And then they strapped a GoPro to the head and started filming their interactions  with customers. We rebranded to Spub Bros in 2023, 13 months ago. And I think two or three days  of posting a video, I think our second video went viral. It just snowballed from there. You  have to understand the way social media works.

[00:06:24]Most brands are too polished. And what viewers  really want now is onstage social interaction.

[00:06:29]It's the culture of what's happening. People  want to be part of a community where there's so little for them outside of work. It wouldn't  work if the product wasn't good. But why are people queuing so long? They love the magic.  In just a few years, the lads managed to grow their accounts to a whopping 8 million followers  across platforms. So, it was only logical to take this enormous wave of business and expand it  beyond the tram. In November 2024, they opened their first physical pop-up restaurant called  Spub Bros Express in London Soho. This pop-up was a short-term lease to test the success of the  restaurant. But before the doors were even open, people were queuing from 6:00 in the morning just  to get a potato. But with all of this success that both Spudman and Spud Bros were finding and  both being two massively popular accounts, both centered on the same food, comparisons became  inevitable. In fact, on the 10th of December 2023, Spudman posted a video in which he claimed that  people were trolling other people using his name.

[00:07:22]Specifically, the Spub Bros. Right, Spud Army, I  need a word with you. We need to shut something down that's getting out of hand. You're trolling  people in my name. I'm not cool with this. Okay.

[00:07:32]Specifically, the hot potato trap. the the Spud  Bros. I've read the comments on their last video and you're all tagging me in it. I do not condone  any of this. We all do stuff differently. Yes, the Hot Potato Tra had a couple of little jabs  at me when they were first getting going. They were finding their feet. Whatever. Water under the  bridge. I'm a big boy. I can take the odd little uh the odd little swing. Everything's cool  between us. There is no beef. It makes me look like a bit of a dick when you know their comment  section is just talking about me. Stop it. Okay, we shut this [ __ ] down. I've had a word with  you. Don't do it again. Despite Spudman claiming that there wasn't serious beef at this relatively  early part of their respective trajectories, as the months and years rolled on, the debate around  which one was better became a little bit tribal.

[00:08:18]With people choosing sides like football teams.  But with so much uncertainty in the air, it came down to two men to decipher this debate. Danny Men  and Gary Ease. On the 23rd of January 2024, Danny, formerly of the Rate My Takeaway channel, reviewed  Spudman. Come on then. The man with the pink hair.

[00:08:35]What is going on? It's gone crazy for you. Well,  well, well done to you. That's all I can say. I started off with this one with the chili and  cheese. It's a nice flavored chili on there.

[00:08:44]It's not too It's a nice mild one. The cheese is  absolutely amazing. You get a right nice cheese pull on that. The t is cooked to perfection. It's  nice and soft and you've got a nice crispy skin.

[00:08:53]That is amazing. I liked every single topping on  there. that coleslaw while banging. I dipped a bit of that curry and that onion with a colelaw.  That's getting a bit naughty and dirty, but it's nice. You know, this is all great and everything,  but got to have return customers. Yeah. And you got to have a good product that they want to  come back for day in day out. You know what?

[00:09:09]The TikTok has helped me through partnerships with  other firms like with the trays and stuff keep my prices down because they are, you know, giving me  trays, giving me products and stuff like that. So, you know, I'm keeping my prices down to my  customers because I'm getting all this, you know, awesome stuff coming in from Tik Tok. A few months  later on the 14th of April, Danny then reviewed Spot Bros. Here we are. Look at this. Come with  CL it out. Come with fish. They glass them.

[00:09:36]Look at that bad boy, guys. If you've not been,  you you've not been watching social media because the cues are my long. They put together some  absolute beautiful potatoes, beautiful fillings, beautiful toppings. For me, guys, I can't give  it nothing less than a solid 10. So, with both receiving positive reviews from Danny, the battle  of the potatoes waged on. In July 2024, Spudman's clout got recognized both by Hollywood actors and  the local council. He served Spuds to Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds, and his impact on Tamworth had  become so significant that the council gave him the freedom of Tamworth, which was essentially  awarded to recognize his exceptional service to the town. to give the people further analysis  of the potato wars. On the 26th of June 2024, Gary from the Gary Eats YouTube channel reviewed  Spudman for the first time. I'm not getting one.

[00:10:22]I'm not getting two. I'm going to get three. I'm  going to get three different types. Open this one up first. Oh, take a look at that. Now, before  we even start, what they turn around and say is, "Would you like some butter in there?" I said,  "Yes." They put salted butter in. Would you like salt and pepper? Bang. Yep. You have the  salt and pepper. Then, obviously, you get your toppings. So, the chili conani and the cheese  underneath. My first budman bite. Here we go.

[00:10:43]Is it the best chili I've ever had? It's  probably not. Is it a good chili? It is. Again, I think it's a little bit difficult for them  because if they made it a real spicy chili, then that'd be an issue, wouldn't it? Because a  lot of people were saying, "Oh, it's too spicy."

[00:10:53]So, it's middle ground, really. All in all, what  do I think? I think that's a nice chili. I love the way the cheese is completely melted. It's  gooey. Potato. That's perfect. On the 29th of August 2024, Jacob from the Spud Bros uploaded a  video addressing the competition and the rivalry between them and Spub Man. So, the way I see  it, people comparing us. Spudman, Spud Bros., it's good. It's a good healthy competition as  long as people don't get personal, don't be nasty, and don't put others down. It's literally like  the Pepsi and the Coke. Or you could say it's like the Ronaldo and Messi. Both don't speak to each  other, both respects each other. There's always things that they're doing to try and compete with  each other. Do you know what I mean? In business, it is so healthy to have competition. Nine months  ago, we rebranded to the Spud Bros. Nine months ago, me and Harley come. Budman had his Tik Tok  all all to himself. We've come along. He's upped his game. We've upped our game. And it has created  something that we would never have thought that we had. And it is so good for everybody, not just us,  for all Spub businesses. In December 2024, shortly after the Spub Bros opened their express store in  Soho, Gary then reviewed Spud Bros for the first time in a historic video to see who has the best  potato. Now, what I want to do is compare both.

[00:12:10]Which is better, Spudman or Spud Bros? Look at  that. That is actually a very big portion. Let's dive in here right underneath. Oh, look at this.  So, lots of butter. That bit hasn't melted yet.

[00:12:21]It's all about the potato. Tiny little kick there.  It's nice chicken curry. Is it blown me away? It hasn't. Would I eat that? Would I be satisfied?  Of course I would. You got the cheese and again you got the onion on top as well. What do I think  of uh Spud Bros? I tell you what, I think it's really good. Really really trying to expand and  and broaden it and get it out there cuz you got to bear in mind they're up in the north of the  country. They're up there in Preston. It takes a lot of bottle to actually open somewhere down here  in London. Okay, it might be only for 3 months, four months or whatever it is, but they're testing  the water. I like that. I think that's that's very very clever. However, it then creates this issue.  Got this north south divide because up in Preston, what I had would be half the price it is here in  London. The rents here, the rates are absolutely massive and and it's a it's a bit of a cough. This  is a hard comparison for me because do I base it on the prices I've just paid or do I think about  the prices it is in Preston? And I'm going to base it more so on the Preston prices. Is it better  than Spudman? No, I don't think it's better. Is it worse than Spudman? Is it Jacket Potato? In  February 2025, Spudman got into a debacle with the local council and it didn't involve potatoes  at all. It was actually because of a flower bed.

[00:13:26]Tamworth Burough Council announced plans for a  regenerative work and the plans threatened to permanently relocate Ben from his pitch that he'd  been at for over two decades. The council offered him an alternative site. However, Ben argued that  would be bad for business and it would block views of the church. So, let's give you a little update.  Council put a statement out last night basically saying, "I'm overreacting. I'm overreacting. They  only want to move me a couple of couple of meters, a minuscule amount of distance." I call [ __ ] You  want to move me in front of the church. My pitch is there. And they want to move me over there.  That was one of the suggested positions. That, by the way, is a big bench that they want me to  block off. That is the church. The church can't be blocked cuz it's beautiful there. No one. People  taking pictures of the church. Not a problem. Me there. Big fat squad man's face is going to be  in everyone's pictures, aren't they? Yes. And who's going to be upset about that? Everybody.  So, yeah. I call [ __ ] You'll move me there, then you'll be able uproar and then I'll get  moved somewhere else. I want my pitch. Do we need a flower bed there? No, we do not. Within  days, over 65,000 people had signed a petition demanding the council to reinstate his pitch. To  the council's credit, they responded publicly and reversed the decision after it reached national  headlines. Around this same time in February, viral American food reviewer Keith Lee arrived  in the UK to see what the jacket potato craze was all about. Naturally, while in London, he  went to Spud Bros, but he wasn't really a fan.

[00:14:56]Jacket Potato. And this one is curry chicken  with shrimp sauce, crispy onions, and garlic butter. There's so much garlic butter. If I move,  it's going to tip everywhere. Beans, too. Again, this is tuna with mayo, crispy onions, cream  sauce, which is like a spicy mayo, butter, garlic or garlic butter, cheese, and a potato. I'm going  try to get everything going on. Again, I'm going to it extremely open-minded. You never know. Mm-  I'm fully aware that the behind the scenes that this entire review was already posted by somebody  in my team by mistake, which is completely okay.

[00:15:24]But the way it was reacted to made me not want  to post a review at all. Only reason I'm posting is cuz I was asked for my opinion on multiple  occasions. And I don't like the narrative that was spun that I was being disrespectful when in  reality the owner was sitting right there while I was trying and he saw my reaction and gave me a  thumbs up about it. The owner sitting right there, he just gave me a thumbs up. Now, after this  video was posted, Keef received backlash for his reaction to the food, but also had people  agreeing with him. In response to this, the Spud Bros released a video responding to the situation.  So, the Keith Lee full review is out. not the little short clip where he spat the cheese, beans,  tuna, and all that we all saw on the internet. And uh yeah, we just tried to make a bad situation  that good, I suppose. And we just did a bit of like light-hearted banter and a bit of sarcasm  there as well. Anyway, cheese, beans, and tuna is not to everybody's taste. We absolutely get that.  I mean, his wife likes it and his cousin. If my wife likes something, that means I like it, right?  But there's absolutely no hard feelings there.

[00:16:21]Respect that Keith Lee come. He's one of the  biggest food reviewers. Although Kee didn't get a potato from Spudman and gave a negative review  his arch enemies, Ben didn't appreciate a Yank coming over and trampling all over our incredible  cuisine of tuna and beans. Shame on the company that sold it to him. But begrudgingly, I am going  to defend them and say that was not that bad. I've built this, you know, hype around Jackie Potatoes  over the last four years or so, and that man has just come over here and took a pop at it. And I  don't think he done it in any sort of fair way.

[00:16:53]food review is meant to be a blank canvas. Go in  and judge it on its merits. He's not. I would go as far as saying if you are a UK business serving  traditional British food, you ain't going to get a good review from him at all. By the looks of  all the stuff he's done so far, he's going to go after fish and chip shops. He's going to go  after the the pie and liquor shops. He's going to go he's gone after the jacket potatoes. We  ain't going to get anything good come out of it.

[00:17:19]On the 20th of April 2025, Spubman replied to  a comment underneath one of his videos which insinuated that he was jealous of Spub Bros. I  understand why people tried to compare me to them, but I was here long before them. I'll be here long  after them and they're just in it for the fame, not the potatoes. Although Ben believes  Spud Bros are just in it for the fame, he expressed his love for the potato game even  more when he revealed that he spent over 200 grand on a brand new trailer. The customers do not  give a [ __ ] That potato unit is the best potato unit in the world. Absolutely. Hands down. No. The  company that build it for sure are the best in the country. And you've got another one on the way.  Yeah. Not as big as that. That one's 22 foot. This one's 18t. And what did that one cost you? 110. So  you spent over 300,000 over a quarter of a million pound on trailers in 6 months. But Ben wasn't the  only one making big moves. In June 2025, Spub Bros became the official front shirt sponsor of their  local football club, Preston Northn. In September of 2025 is where this rivalry between Spub Bros  and Spubman becomes a bit spicier. You see, as Spub Bros grew, expanding into physical shops,  launching merch, developing franchises, they took the decision to formalize their intellectual  property. In June 2025, Jacob and Holly filled their trademark names of the Spudfather and Spud  Army with the UK Intellectual Property Office.

[00:18:41]Now, Spud Army is a name that Spudman frequently  uses throughout his videos. And at this same time, a small jacket potato vendor based in Portsmouth  opened a new business called the Spudfather, which leaned into the idea basing their branding around  the movie The Godfather. Rumman claimed that they built this concept independently and wasn't  copying Spud Bros. However, when the Spudfather filed for their own trademark application, the  UK IP office automatically notified Spud Bros, giving them the opportunity to oppose the  application. This subsequently led to the brothers lawyers sending a letter through the IPO.  What followed was a firestorm of abuse from people who didn't really understand the situation or just  straight up believed that the brothers were wrong for trying to shut down a small business. a candy  reseller who commented on one of their Tik Toks claimed that he'd now been blocked by the Spub  Bros. Underneath this video, Spubman commented, "Yeah, I really regret the amount of help I  gave them at their start. I even helped them get their first brand deals." After the trademark was  announced, some people were left confused, while others believe that Spud Bros were well within  their rights to protect their brand. Didn't Spud Bros copy Spudman? Isn't Spudman the OG and Spud  Bros just copied him and became bigger? If it's trademarked, then the Spud Bros are in their right  here. In October 2025, Rumman of the Spudfather released a statement on Facebook revealing that he  was coming under legal pressure. I never thought I'd have to write something like this. After  months of graft, long days, late nights, and putting everything we have into the Spudfather,  we've now been threatened with legal actions from Spud Bros over the use of our name. They've  trademarked several potato related words and are now trying to stop us from using the Spudfather.  It's gutting. We've poured our heart and soul into this. From the name to the menu to every bit of  branding and hard work behind the scenes. This isn't just a business to us. It's something we've  built with pride, passion, and community spirit.

[00:20:32]To suddenly face the threat of losing it because a  bigger company wants to throw their weight around.

[00:20:37]It's hard to put into words how disheartening  that feels. The stress and worry have taken a real toll mentally and emotionally. Thank you to every  single person who stood by us, sent messages, and kept us going through this. Your support means the  world. A few days later, on the 27th of October 2025, Jacob from the Spub Bros released their  first statement addressing the trademark situation after some of the abuse became unbearable.  This isn't a statement we ever wanted to make, but when my 3-year-old daughter starts receiving  threats, enough is enough. There are rumors flying about that we've sued a small business called the  Spudfather, or that we're trying to ruin someone's livelihood. We're not suing anyone. Not now, not  ever. When we opened Spud Bros Express last year, we launched a dish called the Spudfather, named  after our dad. He's been peeling potatoes, running the tram, and supporting us since day  one. He's the reason we're on this incredible journey. As we grew, we developed merch,  franchises, expanded, and had discussions with major retailers. We therefore trademarked the  Spudfather to protect it. In June, we paid for it, filed for it, and it was approved and registered  in September before any other business applied for the same name. Trademarks exist to prevent  confusion and protect brands. And honestly, every business should do a simple trademark search  before launching. If that had been done here, none of this would have happened. To be absolutely  clear, there is no lawsuit, no court case, just a standard legal reply to protect something that  belongs to our business and our dad's legacy. We haven't tried to shut anyone down. We love seeing  small food businesses thrive. We were one, and in many ways, we still are. We wish this hadn't gone  online before we'd even had the chance to speak to one another, resolve this, or get a response from  the IPO. There's been a huge misunderstanding, and suddenly we're dealing with threats towards  my 3-year-old daughter and people saying they would vandalize the tram. I've now reached out  privately to the Spudfather, which in hindsight, I wish I'd done before. After this statement was  made, the Spudfather posted a video explaining how this fight against Spud Bros was mentally  and emotionally draining him. Unfortunately, I think we might have to change our name. You know,  we're a really small business. Taken a long time.

[00:22:41]It's long journey, hard work, so many different  emotions, you know, trying to get this up and ready and running. And we're a small business,  you know, really small business. We opened this, I opened this, you know, we were born in bed  in Pompy. We opened this for our local someone else just to come be like, "Yeah, that's it."  You know, it's quite disheartening. You know, the past few days, it's been quite hard. All my  hard work, hours, time into it. And you know, the past few days, it's been tough. I think I might  have to take a couple days off just, you know, recharge and get back to 100% figure, you know,  all this out because it is hard. Do you know what I mean? It is hard. As the battle waged on, on  the 7th of December 2025, Danny and Gary, who now formed into one channel, released a video in  which they reviewed both Spudman and Spud Bros in the same video to categorically find out who has  the best potato. So, can we have one of them then, please? Cheese, beans, cheese. Thank you, guys.  They ain't heavy. Nice bit of a cheese pull there.

[00:23:36]Oh yeah. Look at that. And you got the crispy  onions on top. Crispy onions. B. So this is your classic. Everybody loves a cheese and bean potato.  It's not reinventing the wheel. It's your is your staple. So I got to say something man. You're  going to have to go some here. Definitely to come up level or beat these guys. That is pretty  hot. It's going to be tough. Round two is here in Tenworth. So we're here. Look at that new van.  That that if that's not a statement, I don't know what is. How we doing? This is mate. This van is  amazing. It's amazing having you two together is mate. So fluffy potato, nice bit of burnt on the  skin. You've got the beans, the cheese, the crispy onions. It's delicious. That is the classic. That  is the OG spuns. Yep. Spub bros for that pile of food were 1950. Spub man 21 quid. To me, both  very, very similar in regards to the cheese and the beans. No difference to me. Then when it comes  to the chili, Spud Bros have got that. I thought Spud Bros had got it were a bit more meatier.  There were a lot more flavor in there. Well, a bit spicier. Yeah. the weather the specials.  No, forget it. This This is where it it's a game changer for me. Bud man wins all day long. That's  one of the best jacket potatoes I've ever had.

[00:24:40]You've got two jacket potato places that have just  actually taken the country by storm. Put the UK on the map for spuds, which is amazing. Applause  to both of them. Both in their own way have done different things. They've both gone down different  paths, but both have done the same thing and got the humble jacket potato a national dish. On the  12th of December 2025, Spud Bros released a video in which they addressed the trademark situation  and revealed that they would be releasing the name Spud Army after one of Spudman's representatives  showed interest in the name. Two years ago, me and Harley took over our dads and we had  the vision to build a global brand and trying to inspire the younger generation. What did we  do? We trademark Spud Bros. If you are serious about building a business, that is the first  thing you do. As we have grown as a business, we have got more opportunities on the table. And  as a business, if you see that that vision and you see those opportunities, you've got to protect  yourself. By the way, guys, we haven't trademarked the words, but just things that are related to  our business. One of the biggest opportunities that we've had is the Preston North End. We  are the frontier sponsor. As the relationship progressed with Preston Northend, we saw a lot of  opportunities and one of those opportunities were Spud Army. The reason why we actually did this  is because fans were chanting Spud Army and we also saw fans were making merch with Spud Army,  Spud Bros, and Pressing North. So what we did, we looked on online and that trademark was  available for anyone to get. Sat looking back now.

[00:26:03]Was that the right thing to do? No, it wasn't. And  we will take full responsibility for that. We just reacted on an opportunity. Recently, we received  a letter from Spudman's representative um that was showing interest in the trademark. We as a team  have got together and we've decided to release the trademark. We no longer own this trademark. Let's  be clear, Spudman. We have got a lot of respect of what you are doing. Great to see that the jacket  potatoes are getting the recognition that they deserve. We have actually learned so much about  business and social media. The last 2 years has been absolutely crazy. And you know, we're not  going to get everything right all the time. We've always wanted to build a global brand and the  vision, it hasn't changed. After this video and as a result of the trademark dispute, Rman and the  Spudfather changed their name to Spud Fusion to avoid any further disputes from Spud Bros. Despite  the setback, they appear to be flying and are even opening a second new location in a few weeks.  In February 2026, Spudman appeared on a podcast where he discussed his beef with Spud Bros, why he  doesn't like some of their practices, and why he isn't a big fan of franchising. There's other Spud  companies out there now that are opening up shops.

[00:27:10]Yep. What's your opinion on opening up shops?  I, as I say, I don't like bricks and mortar, I don't think it works as well as a trailer. In a  trailer, if you pitched up in a town and it wasn't any good, you try somewhere else. If you've built  yourself out a shop and you've signed a lease and and all of this, you're tied in for however long.  You can take the signs off, but you're not going to take the paint off and take it to the next job,  are you? It's very static. I've been around this for a very long time to know that there's very  few shops over the years that have actually worked really well. I prefer the mobile. I think we just  have very much gone in different directions. I'm very much I love the little guys. I love keeping  it local. I love going and supporting the little local guys that have been there for, you know,  their pitches for donkey's years. You know, partly because my dad used to supply them. One of the  reasons why I could never have done the franchise, right, is cuz I couldn't go up against them. My  old man would be turning his grave if I pitched up next to some old boy that had been his customer  for 20 years. I know how I would feel if that wagon came to my doorstep. I'd be gutted. I'd be  like, he's come here to take it all. when I'm not.

[00:28:09]I come somewhere to help promote the local guy  and so they do better. Would you say there's beef on your end? Not really. I try and avoid them. I  don't agree with the way they do some stuff. So, I just stay away from them. It's easy as that.  Like, I do my own thing and how I want to do it.

[00:28:23]And that kind of clashes when they're opening up  shops on people that I would say are good friends of mine's doorsteps. I just don't think it's  there's a better way of doing business which doesn't impact other people. You know what I  mean? you can be a lot more in your placement of chops. Although Spubman has no interest in  franchising, Ben is now selling seed potatoes up and down garden centers across the UK. Spub  Bros, on the other hand, announced in May 2026 that they were expanding into 30 more locations  across the country. Anyway, announcement. So, as you guys know, we opened up two shops with EG in  Blackburn and Wakefield. And guys, they have done absolutely fantastic. So, we are actually opening  up another 30, yes, 30 Bud Bros Expresses across the UK. We're doing a three-year deal with Taster,  with EG, and we are bringing the potatoes to you.

[00:29:16]Ben Newman, who's been doing this potato thing for  over 20 years, is still standing on the same patch of Tamworth Tarmac. Meanwhile, Jacob and Harley  have taken a 70-year-old tram and turned it into a brand that's about to be in 30 locations across  the country. They're now completely different operations with completely different visions.  And to be honest, that's completely fine. Well, if you've made it this far, I really do  appreciate you watching. If you're new here, make sure to drop a like and a sub to the channel.  Make sure to follow me over on Instagram @ fatme and comment below what you want to see next.  And as always, I'll see you in the next