The star is raking in a fortune from fans buying his playing kit, hoodies, darts sets, £17 T-shirts and £200 signed photos. The ‘Nuke Merchandise Shop’ has just opened for business and its takings are set apart from his darts winnings.
Teen darts sensation Luke Littler now has his own shop to cash in on merchandise and beat the bootleggers. The star is raking in a fortune from fans buying his playing kit, hoodies, darts sets, £17 T-shirts and £200 signed photos.
The ‘Nuke Merchandise Shop’ has just opened for business and its takings are set apart from his darts winnings. The canny world champion has also set up a property firm and recently applied to trademark his name in the US.
He applied to the United States Patent and Trademark Office to sell clothing and sportswear. Attorneys have denied the application for the right to use ‘Luke the Nuke Littler’. He was given a “Notice of Provisional Full Refusal”.
They told him: “USPTO must receive the applicant’s response within six months of the date on which the notification was sent.”
He must remedy the list of issues raised after the “total refusal” ruling. The Warrington whiz needs to clarify the trading classes of goods. He already has similar trademark protection in the UK to prevent bootleggers using his name. If his US application is successful, it will grant him exclusive rights in connection with specific goods or services.
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Crucially, it also allows him to take legal action against anyone who infringe upon those rights.
Littler, 18, is the reigning world champion after lifting the trophy in January in front of 3,000 delirious fans at London’s Alexandra Palace. He is only the fifth player in history to achieve darts’ triple crown.
He beat all comers to the World Championship, Premier League and World Matchplay and has won almost £2m prize money from major events.
His latest move is to maximise earnings away from the oche. In the PDC Order of Merit, which is calculated over two years, he banked a cool £1.5m.
That covered the UK and Belgian Opens. He picked up £500,000 from the World Championship and another £200,000 from the World Matchplay. In the Premier League,
Littler earned £60,000 for his six nightly wins. He claimed a set of 18-carat gold darts worth £30,000 for a nine-darter he hit during the regular season. He then collected £125,000 for finishing as runner-up.
He has also scored a series of money-spinning deals and tie-ins with major partners. He has worked with fashion brand Boohoo, the Sidemen, a popular YouTube group, and McDonald’s.