Enforcement of Customer-Competitor Infringements and Price Monitoring Tools Intensifies

Two recent developments in the European competition enforcement sphere provide a warning for brands when engaging with their retailers with whom they compete and when using price monitoring tools to monitor the third party resale of their products online.

First, the Danish Competition Council (DCC) found in late June that HUGO BOSS had colluded with two of its retailers by exchanging data on pricing, discounts and future sales quantities. Since, in addition to operating as a supplier at the manufacturer level, HUGO BOSS also sells directly to consumers (D2C), its communications with the retailers were found to be unlawful coordination by way of information exchange between competitors. Europe has seen a growing trend of D2C e-commerce by brands in recent years, which has only been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This decision therefore serves as a stark reminder for brands in all sectors to be particularly mindful in their dealings with their customers when they also wear the “competitor” hat.

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