ALDI could be forced to remove one of its most popular items from shelves after losing a legal battle.
The supermarket giant was accused by rival M&S of ‘copying‘ one of their products, resulting in a case before the High Court.
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The German retailer could now be forced to do away with its own-brand light-up gin snow globe bottles after the court ruled that they had infringed on M&S’ design for a similar product.
It could also mean Aldi having to pay damages to the other outlet or pass on a share of profits from the items.
The case was raised in Christmas 2020 over Aldi’s gold flake blackberry and clementine gin liqueurs, complete with gold flakes and light-up bottles.
Lawyers for M&S argued that it was too similar to their equivalent, which was launched in 2019 after one of their product designers was inspired by lighting shops in Kensington, West London.
A spokesperson for M&S said: “We are pleased with the judgment, which demonstrates the importance of protecting our innovation.
“Like many other UK businesses, large and small, we know the true value and cost of innovation and the enormous time, passion, creativity, energy and attention to detail, that goes into designing, developing and bringing a product to market.
“Our customers have confidence in our products because they trust our quality and sourcing standards so we will always seek to protect our reputation for quality, innovation and value.”
An Aldi spokesperson said that the chain was “disappointed” with the judgement and would be appealing.
They added: “Aldi is committed to offering customers the highest quality products at the lowest possible prices.”
It comes after another legal battle between the two stores, in which M&S accused Aldi of copying their famous Colin the Caterpillar cake.
The two parties reached a settlement over that issue last year.
M&S aren’t the only brand to take issue with Aldi though.
Thatchers cider makers accused the discount supermarket of ripping off one of their drinks last year.
They claimed that Aldi “mimicked” their Cloudy Lemon Cider with its own Taurus brand.
Similarly, the family-run businesses behind Heck sausages and The Collective yogurts threatened legal action over alleged knock-off products in 2018.
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