CarMax

“Our continual drive for excellence made us the best selling durag brand in the UK. Last year, we began trading on Amazon and found the marketplace to have a handful of rogue sellers who attempted to tarnish others’ brand reputation. This issue was quickly dealt with after trademark certifications were provided to Amazon.” Read the full story of Alvin Mills, the founder of ShyneDurags, who continues in his goal to create the #1 online destination for afro hair care.

Creating a business is not an easy job. From sketching out the business plan to choosing the name and logo, the whole process requires a lot of time and effort as nobody would want this amount of planning to go to waste. This is why business owners shouldn’t brush over one of the most important steps in the process of establishing their company – registering a trademark.

Acknowledging the full extent of brand infringement, FC Liverpool has attempted to register a trademark for the word Liverpool in an attempt to extend its scope of brand protection. These efforts have been unsuccessful following a heated public debate, with the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) rejecting the application due to the geographical significance of the city of Liverpool. Yet, Chelsea FC and Tottenham Hotspur represent examples of football clubs that have succeeded in their efforts to register trademarks for the words Chelsea and Tottenham. This viewpoint explores the seemingly subtle, yet significant, differences in these cases and explores the wider implications for brand protection.