Aldi rip off/copies....how do they get away with it ?

[MontyVeda]

At one time in my life I had a small manufacturing business making what at that time was a unique product. Nobody was doing the same as us so far as I knew but soon a few popped up to compete for business.
We were able to outperform them on price so we did not lose much business but it was a bit annoying all the same that our ideas were being blatantly copied.
Not worth taking legal action.

whoever invented the 'safety frame' bike could be similarly annoyed that it didn't take long for other manufacturers long to cotton on to a good thing.

 

[AndyRM]

It's bona fide genius and in some cases their products are actually better than the "name brand" competitors.

It's also a bit less stigmatising than other supermarkets with their plainly packaged "I'm skint" value food, which there's no need for, although some places do seem to be making more of an effort on that front.

If the big boys had anything about them, or actually cared, they'd use what is a pretty sincere form of flattery to their advantage. I'm sure that's happened, but I can't quite be sure.

 

[icowden]

Did M and S go to court over Colin the Caterpillar cake

They launched proceedings but reached a settlement out of court with Aldi.

 

[AndyRM]

sometimes they don't.
The Jive bar switched to a beige wrapper because the previous gold was too similar to a Twix.
M&S went to court over a caterpillar cake, and lost, i think?
Punk turned the tables and created the ALD IPA which mimicked Aldi's branding.

I guess it depends on whether a brand can be bothered pulling them up about mimicking their products?

The Ald IPA was a collaboration thing they did after a Twitter joke. Tasty too!

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Often it’s the same supplier providing the own brand that imitates their own.

 

[presta]

We were able to outperform them on price so we did not lose much business but it was a bit annoying all the same that our ideas were being blatantly copied.
Not worth taking legal action.

Even if you have a patent you still need the money to defend it. I recall the case in the 1980s when Kodak got fed up with Polaroid's monopoly on the instant camera market and decided to market one in infringement of their patents, Polaroid got nearly a billion dollars in damages eventually, but only after a 14 year legal battle.

It's also a bit less stigmatising than other supermarkets with their plainly packaged "I'm skint" value food, which there's no need for, although some places do seem to be making more of an effort on that front.

This is what economists call hurdle discounting.

Anyone in business faces the challenge of how to expand their market by offering a discount to the poor without offering the same discount to the rich who can afford to pay full price, and the way it's done is by placing a hurdle in the way of obtaining the discount so that the price sensitive poor will be motivated to jump over it whilst the rich won't be bothered. Various methods exist, such as cutting coupons out of the paper and sending them off for example, but another is using people's poverty to embarrass them: you can have the discount if you're willing to be seen pushing a trolley full of gaudy blue & white striped packets round Tesco's. Economist Robert Frank cites an example he came across of a hotel that had a notice on the wall in reception saying "Ask about out special discounts". It turned out that you didn't have to do anything to get 10% off other than not be too embarrassed to ask in front of other guests.

 

[AndyRM]

Even if you have a patent you still need the money to defend it. I recall the case in the 1980s when Kodak got fed up with Polaroid's monopoly on the instant camera market and decided to market one in infringement of their patents, Polaroid got nearly a billion dollars in damages eventually, but only after a 14 year legal battle.

This is what economists call hurdle discounting.

Anyone in business faces the challenge of how to expand their market by offering a discount to the poor without offering the same discount to the rich who can afford to pay full price, and the way it's done is by placing a hurdle in the way of obtaining the discount so that the price sensitive poor will be motivated to jump over it whilst the rich won't be bothered. Various methods exist, such as cutting coupons out of the paper and sending them off for example, but another is using people's poverty to embarrass them: you can have the discount if you're willing to be seen pushing a trolley full of gaudy blue & white striped packets round Tesco's. Economist Robert Frank cites an example he came across of a hotel that had a notice on the wall in reception saying "Ask about out special discounts". It turned out that you didn't have to do anything to get 10% off other than not be too embarrassed to ask in front of other guests.

Ah, I didn't know it had a name, interesting read, thanks. I had heard about the asking thing, but not in hotel terms.

 

[presta]

Ah, I didn't know it had a name, interesting read, thanks. I had heard about the asking thing, but not in hotel terms.

You'll find that and lots more besides in here. It's an interesting read, I read it from cover to cover in one sitting on the train from Inverness to Kings Cross.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

I know they use similar packaging but you'd have to be pretty dumb to mistake one for the other.

That's not the idea, it's more that they, because similar, piggyback off that subconscious feel-good factor associated with the known brand that has often spent years and many quids promoting its brand.

 

[AndyRM]

You'll find that and lots more besides in here. It's an interesting read, I read it from cover to cover in one sitting on the train from Inverness to Kings Cross.

I'll give it a look, ta.

 

[fossyant]

not sure what changes they've made to Cuthbert... it looks like it always did, unless they've just put fewer smarties on it.


sometimes they come out of the same factory as well known branded products... so it can be the exact same product at a cheaper price.

They aren't Smarties

 

[lazybloke]

I just tend to buy the brands I want these days, although the Lidl version of spreadable butter is very nice.

Waitrose milk is just fantastic - knocks the socks off other milks.
That filtered Cravendale stuff is very good too.

 

[T4tomo]

Waitrose milk is just fantastic - knocks the socks off other milks.

I might pay the premium for it if it save me bending down to take my socks off then....

 

[Jameshow]

I just tend to buy the brands I want these days, although the Lidl version of spreadable butter is very nice.

Waitrose milk is just fantastic - knocks the socks off other milks.
That filtered Cravendale stuff is very good too.

I could never taste the difference tbh along with most of Waitrose food.

 

[cyberknight]

Often it’s the same supplier providing the own brand that imitates their own.

indeed
Mrs CK `s mum used to work at the biscuit factory and we heard all about this , same product in different packets