Aldi has been denied permission to appeal against the January 2025 court ruling that it infringed on Thatchers Cider Company’s trademark with its Taurus Cloudy Lemon Cider product.
Aldi UK launched its cloudy lemon cider in 2022 under its Taurus cider brand, established in 2013. British family-owned cider company Thatchers, headquartered in Somerset, had launched its own cloudy lemon cider product in 2020, having held a UK registered trademark relating to the product since May that year.
Thatchers took legal action against Aldi following the retailer’s similar product launch, with evidence in trial revealing Aldi had intended to ‘benchmark’ its product against Thatchers,’ requesting a ‘hybrid of Taurus and Thatchers’ from its design agency.
While initially, the High Court dismissed Thatchers’ claims in January 2024 – concluding that the degree of similarity between the two products was too low – Thatchers appealed against this under Section 10 (3) of the Trade Marks Act 1994.
The Court of Appeal allowed this, noting that the degree of similarity was ‘greater than assessed’ by the High Court. In January 2025, after a lengthy dispute, the Court of Appeal overturned the previous High Court ruling, stating that the similarity between the rival products was intended to convey the message that the Aldi product was ‘like the Thatchers product, only cheaper’.
It ruled, therefore, that Aldi had taken advantage of the reputation of the Thatchers trademark in order to help it sell its own lookalike product.
While Aldi applied for permission to appeal to the Supreme Court, the Supreme Court made the decision to refuse and updated the case status in line with this yesterday (12 June 2025).
In May, Oreo maker Mondelēz International filed a lawsuit against Aldi in the US, alleging that it has ‘blatantly’ copied the packaging designs for a number of its well-known cookie and cracker brands including Oreo, Teddy Grahams and Belvita.
These cases demonstrate the complexity of infringement cases, with different courts often reaching different conclusions and lengthy appeal processes often involved.
Retailers such as Aldi, which offers own-brand products that can be seen as cheaper alternatives to many popular branded varieties, face increasing scrutiny over ‘imitation’ products, highlighting the need to approach product development with caution.