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Copying claims against Woolworths over health bars

Another small business has complained of Woolworths copying its product - this time it's a nutrition bar.

But the retailer has denied the claims outright, saying it started developing its product years before ever meeting the entrepreneur.

Last week Woolworths was in the spotlight after founder and designer of Ubuntu Baba baby carriers Shannon McLaughlin blogged about how the retailer copied her product.

Following an investigation, and a meeting with McLaughlin, Woolworths issued a statement indicating that there were "striking similarities" between the products and has since removed the baby carriers from stores.

The matter has drummed up responses from the public, calling for Woolworths to pay back Ubuntu Baba for the sales it made on baby carriers. Similarly, other small businesses reached out to McLaughlin, complaining of going through similar issues with Woolworths.

Now Lara Maré the co-founder of RUSH Nutrition claims that Woolworths copied her product following her interactions with the retailer, which she says dates back to 2013.

Maré co-founded her business with a school friend seven years ago – when they spotted a gap in the market to provide natural, preservative free, raw snacks. Maré said the product was pitched at higher LSM consumers, and so in 2013 they approached Woolworths with the hopes to be a supplier.

"We met with a product developer and a food technologist. It was the most promising and encouraging meeting," Maré recalled.

However, Woolworths did not pursue the business relationship further.

"For me that raised a red flag because I was warned about their reputation in this space," she said and referred to examples of Woolworths copying a softdrink range Frankies in 2012 as well as allegations that it copied a hummingbird design for its scatter cushions in 2013.

"I did feel that it was maybe a matter of time before we saw something similar on the shelves," she told Fin24, referring to the health bars.

In 2015 Maré says she was alerted via customers on social media about the similarities between her product and Woolworths's new offering – RAW.

Having met with one of Woolworths's representatives on the matter, Maré said she was told the product was not copied.

A comparison between RUSH bars and Woolworths' Raw
A comparison between RUSH bars and Woolworths' Raw bars. (Supplied).

Woolworths responded to Fin24 on the matter and said that it investigated the claim when she first raised it with them in 2015 and had engaged with RUSH Nutrition at the time. "We did not copy this product," Woolworths said via email.

The retailer said it started developing its RAW snack bar back in October 2010, before RUSH engaged with it.

"Based on the traceability of our snack bar journey and the visual features of our product in the context of our greater snack bar offering, we asserted that we did not copy the RUSH product," the email read.

Small businesses

Maré had not come forward with her claim initially, as small businesses are very vulnerable and need relationships with big retailers to grow, she explained. She did not want to jeopardise any future business relationship with Woolworths.

"For small entrepreneurs to thrive in this country, they need to have the buy-in of retailers to back their ideas to take it to scale, otherwise we are just not going to make it."

She neither had the financial means nor the inclination to "spend time in a negative space fighting" about it either.

"There is such a fear of big retailers. They hold so much power and you need them for your business to thrive that you are actually scared to stand up for yourself," she explained.

Maré said that she learnt many lessons - such as that it is not illegal to copy, and that small businesses should take steps to protect themselves with trademarks or patents. RUSH has now trademarked the design of its new products, like the RUSH Nutriballs launched last year.

She also encouraged small businesses to sign a non-disclosure agreement with potential partners before pitching ideas. Maré added that small businesses will always have the challenge of copying, because its part of the competitive ecosystem.

Business values

Meanwhile Woolworths has asserted that it is "deeply committed" to developing small businesses. The retailer has had a supplier development programme in place since 1994. 

"Over the last 10 years we have disbursed R73m in loans and have helped entrepreneurs access funding grants and/or loans in excess of R300m due to the viability of the business cases we co-develop with them," Woolworths said.

Apart from financial assistance, Woolworths provides support in the form of facility sharing, mentorship and linkages with other suppliers or clients. For its RAW snack products, Woolworths makes use of three local suppliers.

Maré's message to big retailers is not to make a product so similar to that of the opposition or small business, effectively passing off as their product, and then take away the reputation that small businesses have "painstakingly" built over the years.

Maré said that retailers should not make small businesses fearful of taking their ideas to the market. "That is not how you take this country forward with innovative thinking."

"I would encourage small businesses to keep building, keep creating, keep dreaming, keep the passion and keep innovating," she said.

"Stick to your values, speak your truth and don't be shaken - your community will find you and love you for it," Maré added.

RUSH has been part of Pick 'n Pay's incubation programme for businesses, and now supplies the retailer, Clicks and Sportman's Warehouse, among others.

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