Specsavers wins appeal in battle with Fielmann

Multiple retailer Specsavers Opticians won its case against rival German discount chain Fielmann in a court in the Netherlands last week.
The Court of Appeal in Arnhem ruled on November 25 that Fielmann may no longer use the advertising slogan 'You no longer need to shop around. Fielmann is always the cheapest', as it is an absolute statement and therefore has to be proved in every case.
The appeal was brought against a ruling in May that customers would realise that 'always the cheapest' was just an advertising slogan and so it did not have to be true.
Last week the Specsavers lowest price guarantee was ruled as not misleading because it was possible to find the same frames sold at other opticians in the Netherlands. Fielmann was unable to provide the information to support its claim, and was ordered to immediately stop the advertising or to pay a fine of E10,000 to Specsavers for every transgression.
The judge also lifted the blanket ban imposed on Specsavers publishing any advertisements in which implicit or explicit comparisons were made with Fielmann.
It was ruled that comparative advertising was allowed, as long as it was not derogatory or misleading.
Specsavers chief executive Doug Perkins said: 'This is an important victory both for Specsavers and for the Dutch consumer. As opticians, we must never abuse the trust which customers place in us by making sweeping claims which we cannot live up to.
'We believe in clear, transparent and honest communication with customers; this is the hallmark of our approach in the Netherlands, just as it has been in the UK and Eire.'
Specsavers, currently the third largest group in the country, will have 39 stores in the Netherlands by Christmas, and intends to open at least 20 more in the year ahead.