Familles Rurales sued Michel Biero, the executive purchasing and marketing director of Lidl France, for denigration. In 2019 on “France Inter,” the boss strongly criticized a study by the association showing that the sign was no longer the one offering the lowest prices.
Rural Families is suing the executive purchasing and marketing director of Lidl France. The consumer defense association has sued Michel Biero before the Paris court for denigration, according to Capital. She claims € 45,000.
The study described as “shame”
The dispute dates back to 2019. The association accuses Michel Biero of having “discredited the 2018 Price Observatory” and to have thus damaged its brand image during its passage on the antenna of France Inter.
The Lidl France executive had harsh words at the microphone of public radio. He had thus explained that the study of Rural Families was a shame” because the association evaluated products from different ranges to establish its prize list. “It is all the same anything that a study compares cabbages and carrots. We walk on the head”, had railed Michel Biero.
A protocol validated by Bercy
The manager reacted to the conclusions of the price observatory. According to the data collected by Famille Rurales, the “first price” products offered by conventional supermarkets or hypermarkets were become cheaper than the products offered by the historic hard-discount brands such as Lidl or Aldi.
“Familles Rurales has taken great care to compare the products according to a serious protocol, to which the Bercy consumer directorate (DGCCRF) has no complaints. “The methodology of the study is not to be called into question”, specifies the lawyer of Rural Families interviewed by Capital.
Sentenced to 1000 €
Famille Rurales had appealed after a first judgment against him, ruling that the association should have filed a defamation suit and not denigration. On Wednesday, May 26, the case was not tried on the merits but was remanded to the Paris Judicial Court at a later date after the judges ruled that it was indeed a denigration.
The executive purchasing and marketing director of Lidl was ordered to pay € 1,000 for legal costs incurred on appeal by Rural Families.
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