Baby products company Bababing! has continued to drive the discussion about IP protection forward as it has speaks with local MPs following its recent Aldi copycat product dispute.
Yorkshire-based BabaBing! welcomed John Grogan, the local MP for Keighley and Ilkley, to its new headquarters on Friday 14 June.
Following the ongoing dispute with Aldi regarding the duplication of its Mani backpack, md Nick Robinson got in touch with his local MP, who was keen to show support for the company’s campaign.
At the meeting, Nick and John discussed the impact that copycat products have on small businesses across the UK.
Nick’s mission to tackle this unfair practice continued when he visited the House of Commons on Wednesday 26 June to attend the British IP Day meeting with Pete Wishart (SNP MP for Perth and North Perthshire and Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Intellectual Property), Baroness Neville-Rolfe (Conservative Peer and Former IP Minister), Bill Esterton (Labour MP for Sefton Central and Shadow Business Minister), John Whittingdale (Conservative MP for Maldon and Former Culture Secretary) along with other MPs keen to support UK innovation.
“We were delighted to welcome MP John Grogan to our new head office and grateful that he gave us the opportunity to discuss the events of the past few months concerning our ongoing dispute over the blatant duplication of one of our products,” said Nick.
He continued: “People will say this is a David and Goliath story and we suppose it is but this is also a matter of principle and a statement to Aldi and other retailers that small businesses like BabaBing! will not just accept these rip-off products being produced.”
MP John Grogan added: “Great creative design and flair deserves to be rewarded in business and local jobs depend on it. We must make sure that our laws are strong enough so that the big companies with deep pockets cannot copy the ideas of innovative entrepreneurs and hope to get away with it.”
The Mani backpack is one of BabaBing!’s most popular lines and having appeared on both the Victoria Derbyshire Show and BBC’s The One Show, BabaBing! will continue to raise awareness and campaign for more rights for small businesses.
