Marks & Spencer (M&S) has agreed to bring a long-running intellectual property infringement case to an end after settling with retail rival Aldi.
It comes after the British supermarket accused the German discounter of copying the design of its ‘Colin the Caterpillar’ cake in April last year.
M&S had ordered Aldi to end all sales of the replica product, known as ‘Cuthbert the Caterpillar’, and to agree to not sell anything resembling it in the future.
But by May, Aldi had already started selling a new caterpillar cake, albeit with changes to the caterpillar’s chocolate face design.
However, both retailers have now agreed to an out-of-court settlement, the details of which have been kept confidential.
Commenting on the agreement, an M&S spokesman said: “The objective of the claim was to protect the IP (intellectual property) in our Colin the Caterpillar cake and we are very pleased with the outcome.”
They added: “Like many other UK businesses, large and small, we know the true value and cost of innovation and the enormous time, passion, creativity, energy and attention to detail, that goes into designing, developing and bringing a product to market and building its brand over many years.
“So it is understandable that we want to defend our intellectual property and protect our suppliers – many of them small businesses that have worked with us for decades.”
But Aldi suggests that the deal allows it to continue selling its Cuthbert cake in stores.
“Cuthbert is free and looking forward to seeing all his fans again very soon”, said an Aldi spokesperson.
The caterpillar clash is not the first intellectual property battle to involve the two supermarkets. In December last year, M&S filed legal documents accusing the retailer of copying its “light Up” Christmas gin. Aldi responded to the accusation with a series of cynical tweets.
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