Aldi copied M&S light-up gin bottles, High Court judge rules

ALDI has lost a year-long court battle with Marks & Spencer over “copycat” gin bottles that featured LED lights.

The High Court ruled that Aldi infringed M&S’S copyright with its “Infusionist” gin bottles, meaning the German discounter could be forced to pay damages to its rival.

The case centred on Aldi’s line of “Infusionist” gin drinks, which contain gold flakes and could be lit up with an LED light. M&S launched festive gin liqueurs with LED lights that illuminated the liquid in the bottles in 2020.

The supermarket registered the design of these drinks in April 2021, court documents show. Aldi began selling its own version of light-up gins the following November.

M&S argued that Aldi’s gold-flaked, blackberry and clementine gin liqueurs were “strikingly similar” to its own products. Aldi argued the design features in question were “commonplace” and used widely across the alcohol sector. The Intellectual Property Enterprise court – a wing of the High Court – has now ruled Aldi did in fact infringe M&S’S copyright.

Judge Richard Hacon said differences pointed out by Aldi in its defence were “of relatively minor detail” and not enough to set it apart from M&S’S designs. An Aldi spokesman said the discounter was “disappointed” with the decision and planned to appeal.

It’s not the first time the two retailers have locked horns over “copycat” products. M&S sued Aldi over its Cuthbert the Caterpillar chocolate roll, which M&S argued was a knock-off of its Colin the Caterpillar cake. The retailers reached a settlement in February 2022.

An M&S spokesman said: “We are pleased with the judgment, which demonstrates the importance of protecting our innovation.

“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.”