Copycat commerce

Introduction

Copycats beware, the courts are on to you. Here’s a recent case to explain.

In February 2020, Thatchers – a 4th generation cidermaking family business based in Somerset launched a new product called ‘Cloudy Lemon Cider’.

In May 2022, Aldi launched a very similar looking (colours & packaging) product called ‘Taurus Cloudy Lemon Cider’.

Thatchers sued Aldi, arguing that Aldi had deliberately created a product that mimicked its own, benefiting from Thatchers’ established reputation and investment in branding and marketing.

Aldi maintained that its cider product was sufficiently different and that consumers would not be misled into thinking it was connected to Thatchers.

The case was first heard in the High Court which ruled in Aldi’s favour, finding that while there were similarities, they were not enough to mislead consumers.

However, in January 2025, the Court of Appeal took a different view: it found that the similarities were not coincidental and dismissed Aldi’s assertion that its use was in accordance with honest commercial practices, concluding that Aldi’s product did take unfair advantage of Thatchers’ brand reputation.

Siding with Thatchers, the Court of Appeal held that Aldi had used a sign for its own lookalike lemon cider which reminded consumers of the Thatchers’ product and this infringed Thatchers’ trademark rights.

This was a welcome decision to brands which have been battling with the epidemic of product lookalikes and dupes.

Key take aways: