Two women are arguing about who should be called Sia
Because she goes by the same name, a fitness trainer receives mail from pop singer Sia. The woman from Munich is fighting for her name – and is allowed to keep it. One of several obstacles she had to overcome.
When Schugufa Issar Amerchel tells her story, you immediately notice how unusual her career is in her industry. It is all the more curious that they now have to have something as banal as their name, as she says. And that’s only because it already existed – but from the beginning.
It has been more than 20 years since Issar Amerchel came to Germany from Afghanistan. She was ten years old at the time, and if she had stayed in her home country, her career would never have been able to succeed. “Even at school in Germany I liked doing sports,” she says. “It was paradise for me.”
Fitness trainer from Munich is called world star
In Afghanistan it is frowned upon for women to play sports. Now that the Islamist Taliban have the country back under control, it’s even forbidden – female athletes & fear for their lives. Issar Amerchel tried to build an independent life in Germany and studied diligently. When her mother was still star, she concentrated entirely on her education.
Solid should be dead, says the 33-year-old. During her commercial training it was not foreseeable that she could one day have her own app – and her business could penetrate to the Australian pop star Sia Furler.
A few years ago, Issar Amerchel continued his education and then became self-employed as a fitness trainer. With the app she launched, you can do fitness exercises while traveling by plane or train. She also works as a personal trainer. Her company is named after her initials: S, I and A.
“I would have had to build my whole business from scratch”
“In 2019 I got mail from lawyers,” says Issar Amerchel. The background: The representatives of pop star Sia wanted to forbid her to continue trading under the same name, says Issar Amerchel. “It was a shock for me,” she says. “I would have had to build my whole business from scratch.”
At first she didn’t even realize from which prominent camp the letter came. “I had to google Sia first,” says Issar Amerchel. “And that’s when I met a real global star.” In fact, the musician is with world stars like David Guetta or Pink, with the song “Cheap Thrills” the Australian landed at number 1 in the US charts. “I listen to completely different music,” says fitness trainer Sia. “But she has a great voice.”
Issar Amerchel was immediately clear: “It will be difficult.” The way out, as she describes the case, was found in Switzerland. “I had already registered my naming rights there,” says the fitness trainer. She had that advantage over musician Sia – who wanted to patent her name right there.
The double Sia – there can’t be just one
Issar Amerchel explains that she used the leverage. Both parties have reached an out-of-court agreement: In the European Union, the USA and Switzerland, both may continue to use the name, says Issar Amerchel – the singer for the music business, the fitness trainer in sports.
A happy ending for the Munich native: “I’m definitely a fighter when it comes to my rights,” she says. “They’re just my initials.” A request for what singer Sia says about the process described by Issar Amerchel left Warner Music unanswered. The musician is under contract with the record company.
Issar Amerchel can only puzzle over the musician’s motives. She is happy that the worries about her own name are now over. But she cannot tell anything about contact with the superstar. “All communication was only through lawyers,” reports the Munich native.