A Slayer Espresso machine. Images courtesy of Cimbali Group.
A Chinese court has ordered four companies to cease production and marketing of espresso machines with designs and packaging that resemble the Slayer Espresso brand.
According to Cimbali Group, the Italian espresso machine conglomerate that acquired Seattle-based Slayer Espresso in 2017, the case in Shanghai represents the first successful case in the commercial coffee equipment industry in which a foreign company has received a favorable ruling under Article 6 of China’s Unfair Competition Law.
DCN has not been able to confirm a public record of the court ruling.
“Cases in which a foreign company succeeds in obtaining a favorable ruling in China against unfair competition from Chinese companies are extremely rare,” Cimbali Group said in an announcement shared with DCN. “Although this is a first-instance ruling, subject to appeal, the decision of the Shanghai Court is particularly significant given the complexity of the Chinese legal context.”
According Cimbali Group’s explanation of the ruling, the four Chinese companies producing equipment that looks like Slayer-brand espresso machines have also been ordered to pay legal fees and damages.
The Italian company said there have been “several instances of counterfeiting in recent years” within the broader equipment sector. A cursory look at Amazon, Alibaba or other international online sellers of coffee equipment reveals an abundance of apparent knockoffs of specific coffee equipment, both for homes and for the commercial sector.
When it launched its first espresso machine at the 2009 SCAA Expo (now the Specialty Coffee Expo) in Atlanta, Seattle-based espresso equipment startup Slayer Espresso captivated coffee pros with a visually striking design, featuring a low profile, exposed group heads, large wooden actuator paddles and linear X-shaped legs. The company’s Steam line of machines similarly captured the coffee industry’s attention through its sleek, angular and similarly low-profile design.
According to Cimbali Group — which also owns the LaCimbali, Faema and Casadio brands — Slayer machines have been available in the Chinese market since 2014.
“Along with the recognition of the design’s distinctive value, this ruling further strengthens Slayer’s competitive position in the Chinese market and confirms Cimbali Group’s commitment to defending the high-quality standards that have always defined the identity of its brands and products,” the company stated.
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Nick Brown
Nick Brown is the editor of Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine.
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