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Consumer Products

CMS supports each step of the consumer value chain, from the factory floor all the way to the shop door (or the customer’s front door). We help consumer facing companies create, deliver, and sell their goods, protecting their innovation and market position every step of the way.

We support our clients on new manufacturing and R&D projects. We protect their hard-earned IP and valued brands. We advise them on the hugely complex technology, logistics and fulfilment contracts that underpin how goods reach shops and customers. We help them manage vast store portfolios. We help get them get online, selling D2C. We help them get digitised and make the most of adtech. We help them navigate the rules that govern product safety and customer engagement. We protect them when crises hit, or prevent them altogether. And we help them grow through transformative partnerships and M&A.

Our expertise is reflected both in our Tier 1 ranking for Consumer & Retail (Legal 500) and in the clients who trust us with their most sensitive and strategic matters. We work with top FMCG companies like Nestlé and Unilever, leading retailers such as Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury’s, Dune, and Yoox Net-A-Porter, and top fashion and luxury brands including French Connection, Barbour and Stella McCartney.

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Consumer Protection Defence
CMS has unparalleled expertise of successfully advising clients in CMA consumer investigations and enforcement actions, having been appointed to defen
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Fashion & Luxury
Our specialist Fashion and Luxury practice – part of our Tier 1 ranked Consumer & Retail team (Legal 500) - helps both luxury and high stree
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Food & Drink
CMS’ Food & Drink group brings together both specialist food lawyers and sector experts to create a one-stop-shop for issues relating to the
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Health & Beauty
At CMS our specialist Health & Beauty practice brings together experts from throughout the firm and across our Tier 1 ranked Consumer & Retail
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Household Goods
CMS’ dedicated Household group - part of our Tier 1 ranked Consumer & Retail team (Legal 500) - brings together sector experts from across C
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Manufacturing
CMS’ dedicated Manufacturing Group brings together industry experts from across CMS, in the UK and internationally, who have extensive experienc
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Retail
CMS is one of the few firms to join the dots across each element of the retail value chain – from the factory all the way to the shop floor (or
25/04/2023
CMS’ interactive Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer law regulatory...
Welcome to CMS’ interactive Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer law regulatory hub. Here you will find all of the resources you need on the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill and the UK’s regulatory landscape following the Government publication of its long-awaited Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill.
08/04/2022
Taking Stock 2022
This year’s Taking Stock: Outlook for Consumer & Retail report looks at how the industry and consumers have fared emerging from the pandemic, and how the challenges of 2022 – from the war in Ukraine...
08/09/2022
Technology Transformation - Consumer Products & Retail
Digitalisation has transformed how consumer products are manufactured, distributed and sold. The push to maintain a competitive advantage, drives increased investment in new technologies. This investment may reduce operational cost and ease the retention of legacy systems, but what challenges arise and how do businesses approach the changing risk profile?This report is a deep dive into data first produced for the re­port Tech­no­logy Transformation: Managing Risks in a Changing Landscape. In the original report we surveyed over 500 corporate counsel and risk managers from multiple industries across the world. Here, we look in detail at the 75 respondents surveyed in the consumer and retail sector, and their perspectives on the risks associated with busi­ness-crit­ic­al technologies, including emerging technologies. Our survey shows that businesses across the sector, whether retailers or manufacturers, have the same concerns but the influences on the adoption of technology, the resulting risks, and the approaches taken to mitigate or resolve those risks vary depending on whether or not the business involves a direct sales relationship with the consumer. Download the consumer and retail sector report now to read about: Drivers of technology adoption in the consumer and retail sectorNew risks emerging and traditional barriers to risk man­age­ment­Cur­rent technology risks in the consumer and retail sectorFuture risks and measures to deal with themPreferred approaches to technology dispute resolution for the consumer and retail sector

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12/06/2024
IP Updates in the Food & Drink Sector
Join our expert speakers for a webinar on IP developments in the Food & Drink sector with a particular focus on recent cases, north and south of the border.  The webinar will provide an overview of the...
30/04/2024
Class Action Risk in the Food and Drink Sector
Class action claims are a reality and are only growing in number. The risks to food producers and suppliers come in many forms, whether it be employees, consumers or even shareholders. In this session...
27/03/2024
Cannabis law and legislation in the UK
Medical use It is in principle lawful to produce, supply, offer to supply, import, export, have in possession or cultivate (in the case of the plant) cannabis products, including medicinal products...
27/03/2024
Plastics and packaging laws in the United Kingdom
The laws outlined in this section are principally similar across the UK. However, as the UK comprises four nations with devolved administrations, for convenience we have primarily set out the position...
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21/03/2024
Proposed UK consumer legislation now clamps down on drip pricing and fake...
The draft Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill (the “DMCC Bill”) has recently been amended (on 13 March 2024) following the Report stage in the House of Lords to include measures that prohibit...
21/03/2024
A bit of a turkey: ASA rules against Aldi’s “Cheapest Christmas Dinner”...
The ASA has made a significant ruling against Aldi in relation to a “basket of goods” comparison in which Aldi claimed to have “Britain’s cheapest Christmas dinner”. The ASA found that the claim...
14/03/2024
“Pre-branded” spare parts: CJEU has its say in Audi trade mark case
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has given its ruling following a referral from the Regional Court of Warsaw, in a trade mark infringement claim brought by Audi (Audi AG v GQ, Case C-334/22)...
13/03/2024
Not Frying So High: EU General Court Rejects “MYBACON” Trade Mark Appeal
In­tro­duc­tion Food company Myforest Foods Co. sought to register the trade mark “MYBACON” for its plant-based food product. Both the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and the EUIPO’s...
12/03/2024
To milk or not to milk - Oatly wins appeal against invalidity of its ‘POST...
IntroductionThe High Court recently allowed an appeal by Oatly against a decision of the Intellectual Property Office ("IPO”) which had found the trade mark ‘POST MILK GENERATION’ to be invalid...
11/03/2024
Wasting more than food? Oven ready contributions to emissions reductions...
For many years at EU and UK level the contribution of waste, including food waste, to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has been well understood both in terms of emissions as part of the waste process but...
08/03/2024
IPEC dismisses trade mark and passing off claim in lemon cider dispute...
This case illustrates some of the difficulties that brand owners face when trying to protect themselves against lookalikes, especially in the fast-moving and competitive market of alcoholic beverages...
07/03/2024
Calvin Klein ad controversy: nudity, empowerment, and untargeted display
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has partially reversed its controversial ruling on a Calvin Klein ad featuring singer FKA Twigs, prompting questions about censorship, objectification, and the...