Thatchers has won a Court of Appeal trademark dispute with Aldi over its cloudy lemon cider. The Somerset cider maker had accused the supermarket giant of imitating its product with Aldi’s Taurus brand.
Initially, Thatchers’ claim was rejected by the High Court in London last January, when Judge Melissa Clarke found only a slight resemblance between the products and saw no risk of consumer confusion. However, Thatchers didn’t back down and took their case to the Court of Appeal in December.
On Monday, the appeal was upheld by three judges. In a detailed 40-page judgment, Lord Justice Arnold stated that Aldi had indeed infringed on the trademark concerning the imagery on the cans and the cardboard four-pack, but not the Aldi product itself.
Alongside Lord Justice Phillips and Lady Justice Falk, Lord Justice Arnold observed: “In my judgment, it is plain from a comparison between the sign and the trademark that the former closely resembles the latter.”
He further noted: “The inescapable conclusion is that Aldi intended the sign to remind consumers of the trademark. This can only have been in order to convey the message that the Aldi product was like the Thatchers product, only cheaper.”
He pointed out that Aldi’s goal was to leverage the trademark’s reputation to boost sales of its own product. He clarified that “Aldi did not intend consumers to be deceived, or even confused, as to the trade origin of the Aldi product does not detract from this”.
The judge pointed out that Aldi managed to rack up “substantial sales” of the cider swiftly “without spending a penny on promoting it”. Lord Justice Arnold remarked, in the absence of proof that Aldi would have matched the sales of its product without using the sign, “it is a legitimate inference that Aldi thereby obtained the advantage from the use of the sign that it intended to obtain”.
He labelled it an “unfair advantage”, as it allowed Aldi to benefit from the drinks company’s investment in the development and promotion of the Thatchers brand.
An Aldi spokesperson expressed their disappointment: “We are disappointed that the Court of Appeal disagreed with the High Court in this case. We think the Court of Appeal’s decision is wrong and we intend to appeal.”
The spokesperson also defended Aldi’s approach: “Aldi offers exclusive brands as low-price alternatives to more expensive branded products. The High Court was clear that Aldi customers know what they are buying when they shop with us.”
Martin Thatcher, a fourth-generation cider maker at Thatchers Cider, hailed the ruling as a triumph: “This is a victory not just for our family business, but for all businesses whose innovation is stifled by copycats.”
He also expressed his delight that the court had “got to the core of the issue and cleared up any cloudy judgment”.