Jellycat, the British soft toy company that took Gen-Z by storm, has filed several legal actions in the London High Court over trademark allegations.

Lawyers at Stephenson Harwood filed three separate lawsuits last week against retail giants over passing off and trademark allegations.

The firm, founded by Thomas Gatacre in 1999, has an exclusive trademark in the UK and EU covering plush toys, games, playthings, dolls, articles of clothing, and in the US covering plush toys, dolls, puppets, and stuffed toy animals.

Jellycat has named Next Retail, Hamleys of London, and the online store Bessie London in three separate Intellectual Property claims, according to the High Court claim system, as seen by City AM.

The toy brand, loved by Gen Z globally, has surged in popularity due to social media.

The company, owned by Jelly Holdings, saw revenue rise 66 per cent to £333m for the year ending December 31 2024, up from £200m in 2023. Its profit before tax more than doubled to £139m, up from £67m the prior year, and as a result, it paid out dividends of £110m to its owners.

A Jellycat spokesperson told City AM: “We put skill and love into creating every Jellycat character, so we’re obviously very protective of our designs and our fans. We are not commenting further at this time.”

Next Group said “is aware of the claim but, as it is the subject of ongoing litigation, it cannot comment further”.

Hamleys of London and Bessie London were all contacted for comment.

Not the first IP battle for Jellycat

Jellycat has already been to court over trademark allegations after suing Aldi in 2024.

The plush toy maker accused Aldi of infringing its registered design rights, claiming Aldi copied Jellycat’s popular ‘Dexter Dragon‘. Jellycat’s original Dexter Dragon retails at approximately £27, while Aldi’s comparable dragon toy was sold for just £4.

In a High Court defence, Aldi argued that its dragon toy had noticeably different proportions, a different colour scheme, and a distinct texture.

However, while denying liability, Aldi agreed to stop selling the stuffed dragon when first contacted by Jellycat, and the case was concluded as a result.