Thatchers v Aldi: Court of Appeal says lookalike lemon cider can infringed the trademark
Thatchers CidervAldi Stores
- Court
- Court of Appeal
- Judgment
- 20 January 2025
- Citation
- [2025] EWCA Civ 5
Copying a rival's distinctive packaging to evoke their brand can infringe a trademark, even if nobody is confused.
Thatchers said Aldi's lemon cider can copied its distinctive registered trademark to ride on its reputation. The Court of Appeal agreed, even though shoppers weren't confused about which product they were buying.
What happened
Thatchers makes a well-known cloudy lemon cider, sold in cans carrying a registered trademark featuring lemons, leaves and distinctive branding. Aldi launched its own Taurus-branded cloudy lemon cider, using Thatchers' can as a design "benchmark". The result included whole lemons and faint horizontal lines similar to Thatchers' mark. Thatchers' claim that shoppers would be confused, and its separate passing off claim, both failed at trial and weren't appealed. Instead Thatchers appealed only on whether Aldi had taken unfair advantage of its trademark's reputation, a different legal test under section 10(3) of the Trade Marks Act 1994 that doesn't require any confusion at all.
What did the court decide in Thatchers Cider v Aldi Stores?
The Court of Appeal found the trial judge had made several errors, including treating the registered mark as flat artwork when comparing it to Aldi's three-dimensional can, and underplaying how similar the two designs actually were. The court held that Aldi had deliberately designed its packaging to remind shoppers of Thatchers, aiming for a "like Thatchers, only cheaper" message. That was enough to count as unfair advantage, regardless of whether anyone was confused about which product they were buying. The claim that Aldi's packaging damaged Thatchers' reputation (called tarnishment) was rejected, but the unfair advantage finding was enough for Thatchers to win.
What we learned from this
- What I'd take from this is that copying the look of a competitor's packaging to deliberately remind shoppers of their brand carries real legal risk, even if nobody buying your product is actually confused about whose it is.
- Internal design documents matter. Aldi's own paperwork showing it had used Thatchers' can as a 'benchmark' was central to the court's finding of intent.
- A trademark covering packaging design can be infringed through 'transfer of image', riding on another brand's reputation, not just through customer confusion.
- Winning on confusion or passing off at trial doesn't end the case if a reputation-based claim under section 10(3) is still available on appeal.
Things to be aware of
- The finding on damage to Thatchers' reputation (tarnishment) was rejected; only the separate unfair advantage claim succeeded.
- The case relied heavily on documentary evidence of Aldi's internal design process showing deliberate benchmarking; without that kind of evidence of intent, a similar claim might not succeed as easily.
- This case concerned a registered trademark covering packaging design specifically, not every aspect of a product's look can necessarily be protected this way.
The businesses involved
Thatchers Cider Company Limited
Family-run cider producer registered in England since 13 June 1955, based in Winscombe, Somerset, still active and manufacturing cider and other fruit wines. Holds 284 trademarks on the UK trademark register. Described by commentators as the largest independent family-run cider producer in the UK.
- Companies House
- 00550634 Active
- Incorporated
- June 1955
- Registered office
- Winscombe
- Business activity
- Manufacture of cider and other fruit wines
- UK trademarks
- 284
Aldi Stores Limited
UK arm of the Aldi supermarket chain, registered in England since 25 November 1988, based in Warwickshire, still active. Operates non-specialised retail stores selling food, beverages and tobacco, and holds 961 trademarks on the UK trademark register.
- Companies House
- 02321869 Active
- Incorporated
- November 1988
- Registered office
- Warwickshire
- Business activity
- Retail sale in non-specialised stores with food, beverages or tobacco predominating; Activities of head offices
- UK trademarks
- 961
What happened next
- Aldi sought permission to appeal to the Supreme Court, but permission was refused, leaving the Court of Appeal's ruling as the final word in the case.Source: UK Supreme Court, June 2025
- Farrer & Co described the Court of Appeal's decision as a key win for brand owners seeking to protect packaging from lookalike products.Source: Farrer & Co, February 2025
What others said about it
- MoFo noted the dispute pitted Thatchers, the largest family-run independent cider producer in the UK, against one of the country's biggest supermarket chains.Source: Mofo, January 2025
- Thomson Reuters Practical Law summarised the ruling as a finding that Aldi had infringed Thatchers' registered device mark through its packaging.Source: Practical Law (Thomson Reuters), January 2025
- IPKitten called it a sweet success for Thatchers, noting the Court of Appeal partly overturned a widely discussed earlier IPEC judgment.Source: IPKat, January 2025
- 8 New Square noted Martin Howe KC and Beth Collett appeared for Thatchers as the successful appellant.Source: 8Newsquare
- Reuters placed the case within a wider trend of 'dupe culture' disputes reshaping trade dress enforcement in food and beverage branding.Source: Reuters, December 2025
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This page is for information purposes only and does not constitute trademark advice or guidance. Summary drafted with AI assistance from the published judgment and checked by The Trademark Helpline (how we write these). Judgment: [2025] EWCA Civ 5 on Find Case Law, published under the Open Justice Licence. Company details from Companies House; trademark counts from the UK trademark register. Last reviewed 26 October 2026. Report an error.
