Aston Martin Sues Geely Over Logo Dispute Despite Owning 17% Share

The Gaydon luxury estate is moving ahead with a trademark action against the Chinese conglomerate that owns most of its share register, in a dispute that underscores the sensitive politics of cross-border car investment.

Aston Martin Lagonda has launched legal action against Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, the Hangzhou-headquartered car group that owns 17% of the British carmaker, over a winged sign the luxury marque says is too close for comfort to its storied badge.

The case, which pits Britain’s most famous sports car maker against one of its biggest shareholders, centers on a logo Geely intends to remove from vehicles produced by its London EV Company (LEVC) subsidiary, a Coventry-based maker of the capital’s black cabs. The design features a horse’s head nestled between two extended wings, and Aston Martin argues that the overall impression is very close to the slender winged motif that has adorned its bonnets since 1927.

The row is not new, Aston Martin first objected in 2022, when Geely wanted to register marks with the UK Intellectual Property Office. Gaydon’s company formally contested the application the following year, arguing infringement, only for the hearing officer to side with the Chinese group on the basis that consumers would not mistake an electric taxi for a £150,000-plus grand tourer.

That decision did little to calm Aston Martin, and a recent legal report suggests the board is determined to press the point despite shareholder volatility. Geely acquired a 17 per cent stake worth an estimated $310m (£245m) by 2023, making it one of the marque’s key backers along with executive chairman Lawrence Stroll’s Yew Tree consortium and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

For Geely, the London taxi business is a very important British asset. The group has been quietly consolidating its portfolio of UK marques over the past decade, with Lotus now firmly in its stable alongside LEVC. Its involvement in Aston Martin was first hailed as a source of both capital and potential manufacturing know-how when the British company was using cash to finance its electrification plan.

The controversy also comes at a painful time for Aston Martin’s brand management. The company has just seen a 007 mishap on the silver screen behind the wheel of BYD, a coup at a rival Chinese electric car maker and a stable collision with a culture long associated with the James Bond franchise.

In public, both groups played down the importance of the line. Aston Martin declined to comment further on the ongoing proceedings, while Geely described the matter as a trademark dispute and insisted it remains committed to a professional relationship with the Gaydon marque as a business partner and investor.

Trademark lawyers watching the case note that the outcome will depend on whether the courts accept that the average consumer, whether for the Aston Martin DB12 or the LEVC electric cab, may be confused or whether Aston’s goodwill in the wings motif is being unfairly exploited. It is already clear that having a Chinese partner in the share register is no guarantee of a peaceful life in intellectual property courts.

Paul Jones

Harvard alumni and former New York Times reporter. Editor of Business News for over 15 years, the UK’s largest business magazine. I am also head of Capital Business Media’s motoring division working for clients such as Red Bull Racing, Honda, Aston Martin and Infiniti.