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The Power, Perils and Pitfalls of Lookalikes

By Steven James and Hattie Chessher
September 01, 2023

In April 2021, a food fight broke out between two of the UK's largest supermarkets.

Marks and Spencer (M&S) launched legal action against Aldi over the latter's alleged copy of its signature "Colin the Caterpillar" cake. M&S claimed that Aldi's own "Cuthbert the Caterpillar" copied Colin's distinctive cylindrical chocolate shape, white chocolate face, and multi-coloured chocolate top. The case drew significant press interest, not least because of Aldi's quick-witted social media campaign mocking M&S for its lawsuit, and reignited discussion around budget brands' use of lookalike products.

This article takes a look at the issues surrounding lookalikes, what the English courts have said about them and what can be done by brand owners to protect against the risks they present.

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