Marc Philipp Gemballa, the son of Uwe Gemballa, is being sued by Gemballa. That sounds complicated, but actually it is quite understandable. The son of the Gemballa founder is seen as an unlawful user of the Gemballa name by the company that was taken over in 2010 and once started with father Uwe.
This week Marc Philipp Gemballa unveils his first creation. Based on a teaser, it seems to be a Porsche 959 tribute. He follows in the footsteps of his father, Uwe Gemballa. The German tuner, who was killed in 2010, was known for his special creations based on Porsches. After the murder of Gemballa senior, the company was taken over from the Gemballa family and it still exists today. Not only does Porsches enjoy it, but it is also working on its own hypercar. The ‘Gemballa’ by Marc Philipp has nothing to do with the brand founded in 1981.
That is precisely the problem. Gemballa GmbH is not charmed by the fact that Marc Philipp with his MP Gemballa GmbH pretends that his creation belongs to the ‘real’ Gemballa. According to AutoMobilSport.com, the indictment is: “Marc Philipp Gemballa has founded a competitive company and is currently attracting customers for his own supercar. In doing so, he exploits our good reputation and uses the Gemballa trademark illegally. In several social media reports, YouTube videos and press releases, he presents himself illegally as the “continuator of his father’s legend.”
Gemballa says it has filed a lawsuit against Marc Philipp Gemballa. It seems that this has direct consequences for the unveiling of his first car. It should have been revealed on Wednesday, but it is still silent on both the website and social media.