Honestly – The Honest Company or The Honest Toddler

For those of you with small children and those who are expecting, you may still be in awe of the vast amount of baby products out there. Not only are there more things available for your child then they could ever need, there are more and more parent blogs popping up, each with its own unique hook and take on the parenting experience. Sometimes, these baby product companies and parenting blogs collide and the two become adversaries. This appears to be the case with The Honest Company and The Honest Toddler.

Started by actress Jessica Alba after her first child was born, The Honest Company is committed to providing parents with safe and eco-friendly products for their children. With product choices ranging from baby bottles to sunscreen and home cleaning agents, The Honest Company is a one stop shop for families looking to keep potentially hazardous chemicals out of their homes. On the other hand, the Honest Toddler began as a snarky Twitter feed in May 2012, written from the point of view of a toddler. From there it grew into a very popular blog.

The trouble began in September 2012, when the mom behind The Honest Toddler, Bunmi Laditan, was offered a book deal. She applied for a trademark for Honest Toddler at the U.S. Patent Trademark Office and was granted a preliminary approval in April 2013. It was at this point that The Honest Company took issue. It has been a bit of a he said, she said but it appears that The Honest Company has offered Bunmi Laditan a licensing agreement and would like her to withdraw her trademark application. Laditan has refused the offer as she claims the agreement would only give her rights to The Honest Toddler for one year. Laditan is also in talks for a television spin-off with Darren Star (best known as the producer from Sex and the City) and she believes The Honest Company wants in on the potential financial windfall the show would bring.

Due to the celebrity status of Jessica Alba, this disagreement has been making the rounds on various news outlets. With the U.S. Patent Trademark Office preliminarily approving The Honest Toddler’s trademark application, it should be interesting to see what the outcome will be, meanwhile the public back and forth between the two is only working to bring a negative light on both The Honest Company and The Honest Toddler.