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Reputation is very much a treasured asset - Angela Bennett Law Consultant of Advice Resolutions successfully assists start up brand to Trade Mark their business by registering at the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) getting it right first time.

We have successfully assisted a start up brand with a business venture to register with the Intellectual Property Office which is where Trade Marks are registered. We helped them to identify the type of class and type of service they are set up to provide.

It was really quite straight forward and the costs are kept to a minimum. There has to be logical rational about what Trade Mark you as a business owner is attempting to protect. Every day names, unless there is a built up following that is so intrinsic to the style and image, such as the name ‘Apple’, cannot simply register a Trade Mark name. It is because of its unique brand identity, particularly with the bitten into apple illustration it is allowed to have this Trade Mark.

A Trade Mark is a form of intellectual property that consists of a word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination that identifies a product or service from a particular source and distinguishes it from others. Trade Marks can also extend to non-traditional marks like drawings, symbols, 3D shapes like product designs or packaging, sounds, scents, or specific colours used to create a unique identity.

In a World where branding is everything, it’s a following, it’s a credible name, it’s a style, its recognisable, it’s a trusted resource, it’s a reputable association, and its, of course, financial value.

If your Trade Mark is infringed you can go to court, receive restitution in the form of damages, and revel in the victory of cutting off the supply of income made by the infringer they built up, in some cases, over the years. If that happens you can be in for a massive payday. You might even get an injunction.

In not so triumphant circumstances registering a brand can land you in serious dispute. In the case of the Salon owner Rebecca Dowdeswell she spent at least £30,000 fighting her corner with L’Oréal in a David and Goliath battle over the L’Oreal product called Naked yet her product is NKD. But the question is can a person be confused by both brands? It was not until the point she had to close one of her salons and paid in excess of £30,000 trying to take on the £175bn French company she realised her business crisis. Rebecca started her brand 13 years before L’ Oreal, yet L’Oreal bowed out of legal action and agreed to work with Rebecca.

Getting it wrong first time or even simply falling prey to a giant company with teeth who do not want the competition is a costly exercise best avoided. Get the right legal advice at the right time, and enjoy your brand. You certainly do not want other companies tagging onto your trouser, dress or skirt tails do you?