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The Joan's On Third In Santa Monica Is A Poser, Says Joan's On Third
The "Joan's On Third" in Santa Monica (via Facebook)
The Joan's On Third that opened in Santa Monica earlier this year apparently doesn't have the blessing from the original West Third location owner, who is now calling the new gourmet market a copycat.While the new Westside marketplace may look a lot like the West Third location and the licensed Studio City outpost of the same name—and even features the same logo and similar menu—it's apparently "not a licensed Joan's on Third," according to the Facebook page of the original location, which was founded by Joan McNamara:
Joan's on Third in Santa Monica is no longer a licensed Joan's on Third. The only two places to get Joan's real recipes,...
Posted by Joan's on Third on Friday, November 6, 2015
While many Santa Monica residents may have been excited to order up artisanal cheeses and delicious side dishes when the market opened, they might be surprised to learn that it's not an official outpost, despite capitalizing on the recognizable brand, image and reputation. As Eater LA points out, one noticeable difference in the branding between the stores is that the Santa Monica location has a capitalized "On" in the name.
To add to the confusion and strange situation, the website of the Santa Monica location has the following at the bottom of their website: "Joan's On Third TM is a licensed trademark of Joan's On Third Licensing, LLC. This establishment is independently owned and operated." According to Eater, the Santa Monica location was originally intended to be a licensed "franchise" of the gourmet marketplace and sandwich shop. But the plan went south at some point, though now the Santa Monica spot seems to be still giving the impression that it's a related location.
LAist reached out to both the original Joan's on Third and the Joan's On Third in Santa Monica for comment, but have not received a reply yet.
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