Aldi is famous for its ‘dupes’. Where’s the line between clever lookalike and copyright breach?

SOPA Images/Getty It’s a familiar experience for many Australians.

Shopping at discount supermarket chain Aldi, you see an off-brand product that looks similar to a major brand’s product you know and love.

You decide to buy it, because not only does it look familiar, it also costs much less than you would pay elsewhere.

Aldi has successfully used this dupe or “lookalike” strategy for decades.

However, the approach is not without risk, particularly in the eyes of Australian copyright law.

Last week, Aldi lost a bid to overturn a 2024 Federal Court ruling that the packaging on three products in its Mamia baby snack range infringed the copyright of the rival Bellies brand, owned by a company called Hampden Holdings IP.

Here’s what this case can tell us about the line between being inspired by a competitor’s design, versus infringing on copyright.

The allure of lookalikes By deliberately taking inspiration from competing brands, Aldi can tap into shoppers’ familiarity with products they know, while offering an attractive, lower price.

The supermarket has hardly tried to be coy about this marketing strategy.

A now-famous advertising campaign for Aldi from the 2010s had the slogan “ Like Brands, Only Cheaper ”.

ALDI launched its ‘Like Brands, Only Cheaper’ advertising campaign in the early 2010s.

Protecting an expression, not an idea itself When thinking about how copyright applies to any kind of packaging, it must be noted that copyright protects the expression of an idea , rather than an idea, concept or style.

For example, the idea to make baby snack packaging appeal to parents by using an orange cartoon animal on the front is a concept.

Using a white background for a package is a design choice.