In recent days, budget retailer B&M has been forced to change the name of a number of its homeware products, after iconic pop star Kylie Minogue accused the company of trade mark infringement.
According to a report in the Retail Gazette, Ms Minogue and her furnishings designer Ms Ashley Wylde, who manufactures the popular ‘Kylie Minogue at Home’ product range, challenged B&M after it emerged that the retailer was selling numerous homeware items bearing the name ‘Kylie’.
In a High Court claim, the Australian singer and her designer alleged that B&M’s products had deliberately imitated their brand and could therefore cause “damage to the reputation and goodwill” of their enterprise.
The claim related to ben linen and cushions sold by B&M, which had been named ‘Kylie Sparkle’ and Kylie Boudoir’.
A report in City AM reveals that B&M promptly changed the name of the products to ‘Camilla’ as opposed to ‘Kylie’.
However, a spokesperson on behalf of B&M denied allegations that the company had directly imitated Ms Minogue’s brand – and referred to the pop star’s legal claim as “greedy.”
“We wish to stress that everyone at B&M thinks Kylie Minogue is amazing and super talented. We love her music but we think it’s greedy of her business partners to think you can own a popular first name,” they said.
“There are millions of people called Kylie on the planet, and today the most famous is probably Kylie Jenner who has 100 million Instagram followers,” they added.
Despite changing the name of its products, reports suggest that B&M is still being asked to pay £10,000 in damages.