British bra designer turns super-sleuth in ‘David v Goliath’ patent row with sportswear giant

MAAREE, an independent company founded by 36-year-old sports bra tester Mari Thomas-Welland, has risen to become one the country’s best-loved independent sportswear brands, with the likes of the seven-time Wimbledon champion and Lioness and Chelsea Captain Millie Bright among its biggest supporters.

One design in particular saw the brand rise to prominence following its launch in 2018, with the Solidarity Sports Bra winning multiple awards, including ‘sports bra of the year’, while garnering a cult following thanks to its patented ‘Overband’ technology.

However, recent months have seen the Hertfordshire designer moonlight as a detective following a friendly tip-off relating to a markedly similar design being prepped for market by multi-national competitor Champion.

Provided with images of a product that looked remarkably similar to that of her own Solidarity bestseller, Mari was told the design, adorned with the 'Shock Absorber' logo - an underwear range by the international sports giant, was currently being prepped for release.

It was only when the designer looked back through her client database that the puzzle pieces would eventually fall into place.

“In mid-2025 I was made aware that Champion’s brand Shock Absorber was preparing to release a new sports bra design globally. The images I was shown appeared to show strong similarities to our Solidarity Sports Bra,” the founder tells LBC.

The new Shock Absorber design appeared so similar in fact, that after Mari confronted Champion about the similarities, the firm provided a draft agreement outlining that the item would not be sold in the UK - a pledge that appears to have fallen through.

She recalls that it was her brand’s patented technology that caught her attention when casting her eye over Shock Absorber’s designs.

Describing her “shock” at parallels between the designs, the tip-off dragged Mari into a patent row she never expected.

And so Mari reached out to Hanes - whom she believed to be the Champion's parent company, describing how she raised her concerns in an attempt to “resolve the situation constructively.”

Several contact attempts later, Mari began trawling through past order forms submitted through her website and cross-checked all delivery addresses, only to discover a number of unusual orders.

A number of purchases spanning a two-year period were brought using Champion-linked email addresses. Not only that, but the order forms, as seen by LBC, show that all items were delivered to a single address listed publicly as Champion’s European offices in Italy.

It was a bold revelation - her best-selling designs were being ordered and delivered to the rival organisation, with plans afoot to sell the design in the UK.

With the stakes raised, Mari was eventually told that Hanes no longer owned the company and was redirected to legal representatives connected to the new owners, Authentic Brands – despite the contact still appearing to use a Hanes email address.

“I sent a cease-and-desist letter outlining our registered designs and the concerns we had. In response, they stated that, without admitting to any of our claims, that they did not intend to release the product in the UK market.

“However, information later shared with us by a retailer appeared to show the bra listed on a UK pre-order form.”

The discovery led to a situation akin to online Whack-a-mole, with Champion vowing to cease the UK distribution and sale of the product in a written letter sent to Mari and signed by founder and General Manager David O Flaherty.

Despite the proposal, the brand failed to admit any wrongdoing or acknowledge any patent infringement.

Mari says Champion's draft agreement outlined that the design would not be sold in the UK. However, “it also included wording that attempted to settle the matter on a worldwide basis, which we were not prepared to agree to.”

“They have not provided a detailed explanation addressing the similarities we raised,” Mari tells LBC.

The proposal was ultimately rejected, with Mari claiming the brand never attempted to amend the wording or send her a revised copy of the agreement based on her concerns.

Describing her relief after a period of silence and no sign of the design hitting UK shelves, Mari says the failure to release the design in the UK “gave us hope that they did the right thing”.

It wasn’t until late 2025 that she discovered the bra design in question was being sold on third-party websites – many of which, she says, “offer delivery to the UK”.

“Not only that, but in 2026 we then discovered it in a new colourway and on the Champion UK website,” she says.

“I've spent years developing and refining that design, it immediately raised serious concerns. It was hard not to feel disbelief that something so similar appeared from such a large and established brand,” Mari tells LBC.

“Before starting this brand, I used to test the performance of sports bras under laboratory conditions for some of the world’s biggest names."

She goes on to explain how the patented Overband Technology she developed is the unique feature of her brand’s sports bra range and has “become a core part of our product identity and is something I have spoken about publicly since launching MAAREE in 2018.”

After posting publicly about her plight to her loyal social media audience that includes professional athletes and celebrities alike, the bra appeared to be removed from Champion’s UK website.

Despite this, the design remains on Champion’s European website - and crucially, third party retailers, who all still deliver to the UK.

The designer tells LBC that the process of fighting to retain her corner of the market against a multi-national competitor, despite having patented designs, has been a “difficult and stressful” one.

“Seeing a situation like this unfold has been upsetting because so much personal effort and belief has gone into building this business from the ground up,” Mari tells LBC.

“Small and independent businesses often rely on innovation to stand out and grow. Developing new products takes significant time, risk and investment.

“As a female founder, you’re already operating in an environment where there are far fewer women building businesses in the first place, and where access to funding and resources is often more limited. That makes the stakes even higher.”

“For a small independent brand like MAAREE, innovation is everything. When something that appears so similar emerges from a much larger company, it raises serious concerns about how small businesses can protect the work they invest years developing,” she tells LBC.

Mari now says she is perusing legal action in relation to the case after rejecting the sole initial offer tabled by Authentic brands.

LBC has contacted Authentic Brands and Champion for comment. No response has been received from Champion. Authentic indicated that they were considering responding but had not done so in time for publication.