What do I need to start a printing company?

Want to start a clothing company, need trademark help!?

• I would like to start a clothing company but to be honest I don't know where to begin with the legal stuff. I would like to get some idea of what I need to protect and what I need to protect it. If i protect a website does it protect all on the website? Would I use a patent, trademark, or copyright? What about the name of the company am I legally aloud to use that specific name if its taken? So lets say I want to name my company ABC. There is another company named ABC. So Can I just use ABC Clothing Comp? Would I need to get a trademark for this? Any help would be appreciated. I have already searched the trademark and copyright.gov sites

• Answer:

  First off, the website: You would want to put a Terms of Use and Copyright statement on your website that all content on the website is property of ABC Clothing company and that it may not be copied, reproduced, etc. etc....without the express written consent of ABC Clothing company (if that is your desire). Regarding the use of ABC Clothing Company, you generally do not trademark a complete company name. I suppose you could trademark ABC as it relates to your Clothing Company, but this would depend largely on whether or not someone has already trademarked it in affiliation with a clothing company. So, for example let's say your company was called Steeplechase, Ltd. and you made running shoes. You could apply to the USPTO for a trademark for "Steeplechase" and you would indicate that it is applicable to clothing (shoes). If approved, it is strictly for clothing (or whatever code they attach to it). You can't then go and put it on your new bicycle line without first (again) applying for it for the new product line through the USPTO. Well you could as long as no other entity is already using Steeplechase in connection with a bicycle line. Your next question is likely, "Why don't I just apply for "Steeplechase" as my trademark and list every possible use?" It's because each separate category you apply it to in filing your trademark application incurs a separate fee. In other words, it is going to cost you a lot of money. To recap, search your preferred trademark name through the USPTO and pay attention to what category previous applicants have attributed it to. If there are 100 listings for ABC (or whatever name you are applying for) and none of them apply to your industry/product, then you should be fine. Of course, this doesn't mean that the USPTO can't still reject it as being too similar to something else already in use. That's why it's important to research it as thorough as possible before applying.