Sweaty Betty offers £4k for slogan use and silence

A personal trainer has revealed women's activewear brand Sweaty Betty offered her a settlement of £4,000 over a disputed slogan if she agreed not to further challenge the firm's use of it, and agreed to keep the deal confidential.

Georgina Cox, from Middlesbrough, said the company used the "Wear The Damn Shorts" phrase from her Instagram posts without crediting her in its latest campaign.

She had used the slogan, and others like it, in a number of posts encouraging women to wear what they wanted, regardless of body shape, before being contacted by the firm, she said.

Sweaty Betty said it "respectfully disagreed" with her claims and said the slogan had been part of its campaign for three years.

A company spokesperson said: "We have offered and continue to offer to meet with Ms Cox as we remain committed to resolving this matter constructively and reaching a fair and amicable resolution."

The fitness trainer said she came up with the slogan for her younger sister in 2020 and the words quickly went viral.

In 2023, she was approached by a Sweaty Betty marketing executive, who said the firm was planning a campaign "with similar messaging as your Wear the Damn Shorts post a few years ago" and asking if she was happy for it to do so.

Ms Cox was subsequently paid £3,500 to promote the campaign in social media posts.

The company contacted her again the following year before its new campaign, but did not do so before the third year, she said.

"The third year they just omitted me completely, I didn't know it was happening," she said.

"I was so hurt in that moment because nobody had reached out to me.

"They're meant to care about women, they're meant to support them and empower them, and I've never felt less empowered than I have this year."

Ms Cox's lawyer sent the company a legal "cease and desist" letter, asking that it stop using the phrase, but she said the response described her as "bitter".

She had also been threatened with legal action for defamation after posting about the situation online, she said.

Ms Cox said she had been "terrified" and the stress had affected her physically and mentally.

"They are such a big company and I am just one woman and to be threatened by them is incredibly scary," she said.

The fitness influencer said she had not been sleeping, her hair was falling out and she was having panic attacks.

She wanted an apology from the company and a pledge from them to pay the influencers they work with, such as her, fairly, she said.

In correspondence with Ms Cox, Sweaty Betty said it was willing to offer £4,000 as a final settlement, provided she agreed the firm would continue to use the slogan, she would not challenge this use, she would not make any public statements about the firm, and the terms of this settlement would be confidential.

The company said: "We have great respect for the community Ms Cox has built around body confidence and empowerment, and were surprised and saddened to find ourselves in this situation.

"'Wear the Damn Shorts' has been part of our campaign for three years, and we chose it because it perfectly captures what Sweaty Betty stands for.

"While none of us has exclusive legal rights to this phrase, we have always aimed to respect Ms Cox's association with it.

"Since she first raised her concerns earlier this year, we've been in regular contact."