Tesco, Britain’s largest retailer, has lost a trademark lawsuit against Lidl, the German discount supermarket chain, over the use of a yellow circle on a square blue background. Lidl had sued Tesco in 2020 after Tesco adopted a similar yellow circle against a blue background for its “Clubcard Prices” discount scheme. The High Court in London ruled in favour of Lidl, stating that Tesco had taken unfair advantage of Lidl’s trademark and its reputation for low prices. However, the judge rejected Lidl’s argument that Tesco had deliberately intended to copy Lidl’s branding.
Tesco intends to appeal the decision and claims that the ruling has no impact on its Clubcard Prices scheme, which it will continue to run in the same way. The trial took place amid a price war between traditional supermarkets and discount rivals, with both companies trading allegations of copying each other’s brands and deceiving customers.
A Lidl spokesperson said in a statement: “We are pleased that the court has agreed with us and that it will now order Tesco to stop using the Clubcard logo.”
Tesco said it intends to appeal against the ruling, which a spokesperson described as being “just about the colour and shape of the Clubcard Prices logo”.
They said in a statement that Tesco is “surprised and disappointed” by the decision, which they added “has no impact on our Clubcard Prices scheme which we will continue to run in exactly the same way”.