The Law Society Gazette quotes Mary Bagnall on Aldi’s infringement of Thatchers’ trademark

Thatchers Cider has won its trademark infringement appeal against supermarket Aldi after the supermarket introduced a cheaper version of the popular drink.

In 2020, Thatchers launched its Thatchers Cloudy Lemon Cider, branded with images of lemons and lemon leaves. Two years later, Aldi brought out a Taurus Cloudy Cider Lemon drink also branded with images of lemons and lemon leaves.

Thatchers brought legal action but their case was dismissed by the High Court. This week, however, the Somerset producer won at the Court of Appeal.

Mary Bagnall, Partner and Head of Intellectual Property, says:

"It is clear that copycat products can gain a competitive advantage by replicating the appearance of already popular and iconic brands and Aldi is no stranger to the consequences of launching lookalike products having been successfully sued by Marks & Spencer over lookalike glitter light up gin bottles.  In that case M&S relied on registered designs rather than registered trade marks.

"Trade mark law provides “extended protection” for well-known trade marks where a third party adopts a similar mark in order to take advantage of the brand’s  marketing and advertising efforts, even if the consumer is not deceived about the origin of the product. 

"Consumers are accustomed to seeing own label versions of popular products, and that is all part of healthy competition and consumer choice, but this welcome decision should act as a warning to discount supermarkets, who are looking to launch competing products to established brands, that they cannot expect to adopt lookalike packaging which rides on the coattails of other companies’ marketing and advertising efforts, without significant repercussions.  

"The Court of Appeal found that it was clear that Aldi intended the packaging of its product to remind consumers of the Thatchers trade mark in order to convey to consumers that the Aldi product was like Thatchers only cheaper.  That took advantage of the reputation of Thatchers trade mark and that advantage was unfair because it enabled Aldi to profit from Thatchers investment in developing and promoting its own product, rather than Aldi competing purely on quality and price and/or its own promotional efforts.

"This Judgment is a welcome endorsement of the use of registered trade marks to protect against unfair competition from discounters.  Brand owners should, however, take advantage of the variety of intellectual property rights available to protect the appearance of their key brands." 

Read the full piece in the Law Society Gazette here.

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