Consumer products group Procter & Gamble has launched a legal battle against UK discount store Poundstretcher on the grounds of copyright infringement.
Procter & Gamble have accused the budget supermarket chain of selling ‘fake’ bottles of their Head & Shoulders shampoo in 2013-14.
The US firm has filed for damages at the UK High Court this week, after similarly branded bottles purchased by Poundstrecher customers were found to closely resemble their Head & Shoulders product.
The case could open the floodgates for further copyright infringement claims against budget labels which, on the shelf, look very similar to big brands.
Many analysts claim that these type of products already stretch copyright laws to the limit.
Retail analyst, Richard Hyman, said: “It goes hand in hand with the discounting sector being very significantly busier than it was, whether it is in food or fashion.
“However, it is not a sustainable approach and retailers have to create and develop their own brands and identities – standing or falling on the strength of that.”
A recent survey by Which? Magazine found that nearly one in four shoppers had mistakenly purchased an own-label product instead of a brand because of similar packaging.
Supermarket giant Asda was recently forced to change the packaging of its Puffin chocolate biscuits after they were found to be too similar to McVitie’s Penguin bars.