24Seven takes Godfrey Phillips to court over trademark dispute

Retail chain 24Seven has taken its former stakeholder Godfrey Phillips India Limited to court for unauthorizedly using its trademark. However, the Godfrey Phillips has rebuffed the claim, saying it stopped using the trademark since October 2024 after exiting from the retailer in July this year.

According to a report by Bar & Bench, 24Seven's advocate Sandeep Sethi alleged that Godfrey Phillips was using its client's trademark despite exiting from the company. Senior advocate Rajiv Nayar, who represented the tobacco company, disputed the claim.

The case will now be heard in the Delhi High Court in March 2025.

Godfrey ventured into the retail sector in 2005 with its 24Seven retail chain across several locations. However, the company announced the exit from the convenience store this year due to financial reasons.

This year a CNBC TV-18 report stated that retail startup The New Shop was in discussion to acquire the retail business of 24Seven.

Earlier, Godfrey's exit plan too faced several legal challenges due to an inheritance dispute between tobacco major's MD Bina Modi and her son Samir Modi, who was an Executive Director in the company. Samir Modi had opposed the sale of the retail business. However, a Delhi court rejected Modi's appeal and cleared the decks for the company to decide on the future sale of the company.

Godfrey later removed Samir from the company's board as his fellow directors opposed his reappointments. According to a Business Standard report, the company's retail division recorded Rs 403 crore revenue in fiscal year 2023-24, making up 7.6 percent of its total revenue but had a negative net worth.

24Seven stores operated 24 hours, seven days a week, selling diverse product range including groceries, snacks, beverages, personal care products, cosmetics, and ready-to-eat food. It had 90 full-format outlets and 40 kiosks, mostly in Delhi-NCR and Chandigarh, with some presence in Hyderabad.