Supermarkets among the most prolific trade mark filers
Supermarkets made up three of the top 15 most prolific organisations registering trade marks with the UK Intellectual Property Office in 2014 according to official new figures.
Data published by the Intellectual Property Office reveals that Aldi, Asda and Tesco were among organisations registering the most trade marks as they looked to protect their brands.
Aldi was the most prolific supermarket, registering a total of 66 marks including the Sainte Etienne brand of beer and Wood Farm. Asda registered 59, including the slogan ‘You’re better off at Asda’ and Eden Falls water. Meanwhile, Tesco counted Wake Up and Raspberry Tipple among its 39 newly registered trade marks.
Other retailers in the list of 15 included Topps Tiles.
President of the Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys, Chris McLeod said: “It is important for all organisations to consider the registration of their trade marks to ensure protection and avoid potential challenges at later stages.
“For larger organisations like supermarkets, who may have many hundreds of recognisable brands, it is important to protect these sub-brands because this reduces the prospect of erosion of its market position by competitors.”
