Lidl faces ban on Birkenstock lookalikes in Netherlands after court injunction

Lidl faces a €5,000 daily penalty after a Dutch court ordered it to stop selling Birkenstock lookalikes in the Netherlands. The injunction covers Birkenstock’s Arizona, Madrid, Gizeh, Boston and Florida sandal designs.

Lidl must pay €5,000 (about £4,200) for each day it continues to sell the prohibited models. The retailer must also give Birkenstock full details of sales and orders for the affected sandals. Lidl will have to compensate Birkenstock for damages and cover its legal costs, with amounts to be set later. The court said the infringement relates mainly to the distinctive footbed design used across Birkenstock’s footwear.

In November 2025 a Dutch court ordered Scapino to stop selling several Birkenstock lookalikes, a decision that is still under appeal. The Court of Justice of the European Union ruled in December that industrially designed products can qualify for copyright protection when they reflect the creator’s own intellectual creation. Earlier in 2025 Germany’s highest civil court found Birkenstock’s sandals to be functional rather than copyright‑protected works of art.

What we know

• The District Court of Gelderland has issued an injunction preventing Lidl from selling versions of Birkenstock’s Arizona, Madrid, Gizeh, Boston and Florida designs in the country.

• Lidl faces a €5,000 (£4,200) penalty for every day it fails to comply with the ruling and has also been ordered to provide Birkenstock with details of sales and orders for the affected products.

• The supermarket must additionally compensate Birkenstock for damages and cover its legal costs, with both amounts to be determined separately.

• The court found Lidl’s sandals infringed copyright relating in particular to the distinctive footbed design used across Birkenstock’s footwear.

• The first-instance judgment can still be appealed.