Clear the name before the first drop.
A sample can be remade. A name is harder to swap once it's sewn into the labels, printed on the hangtags and tagged on every post. Fashion, beauty and wellness brands are my favorite work.
The clock The USPTO takes about 4 months just to first look at a new application. Your filing date holds your place in line.
Seed is a clearance search and a written opinion from the attorney, in under two weeks. Not sure which package fits? Email us and we’ll point you to the right one. Want advice on your specific situation? Book a paid consultation. (opens in a new tab)
Your name gets checked whether you check it or not.
The trademark office, the marketplaces and the social platforms each have their own process for deciding who a name belongs to. Most of them start by asking for a registration number.
A logo across the chest may not count.
The USPTO can refuse a mark that only appears as a large design on the front of a shirt, because shoppers read it as decoration, not a brand. A small logo on the chest, a woven label or a hangtag tells a different story.The USPTO rule (opens in a new tab)
Amazon wants a trademark first.
To join Brand Registry, Amazon asks for an active registration or a pending application, plus your brand name on a logo fixed to the product or its packaging. Brand Registry is how you report copycats and protect your listings.Amazon Brand Registry (opens in a new tab)
TikTok Shop asks for the certificate.
To take down copycat listings, videos or LIVEs, TikTok Shop's IP Protection Center has you register your IP first. For a U.S. trademark, the document it asks for is the USPTO registration certificate.TikTok Shop (opens in a new tab)
Instagram asks for a registration number.
Instagram's trademark report form asks where the mark is registered and for the registration number. Meta's Brand Rights Protection tool is open to businesses with a registered trademark.Instagram's form (opens in a new tab) · Brand Rights Protection (opens in a new tab)
Made in China? File there too.
China gives trademark rights to whoever files first, and that lets bad-faith filers register a foreign brand before its owner does. The U.S. Commercial Service advises filing there early.U.S. Commercial Service (opens in a new tab)
Naming fights reach brands of every size.
Two recent ones. One is a fight between two brands over one word. The other is the trademark office saying no to a name chosen for love.
What happened
- rhode. A New York clothing label that had used RHODE since 2014 sued Hailey Bieber's rhode skincare line in June 2022, days after it launched. The court refused to stop the launch early, finding the name weak because it's a personal name. The case was dismissed in July 2024 on undisclosed terms.The Fashion Law (opens in a new tab)
- JASPE. A founder named her clothing line after her son. The USPTO refused it anyway, because jaspe is a type of fabric and shoppers could think her shirts and pants were made from it. The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board agreed.My write-up · TTABlog (opens in a new tab)
What it means for your name
- Check the name before you order labels. A search costs less than reprinting every tag.
- A rename means new labels, hangtags and packaging, the domain and handles, your line sheets and every listing.
- File early. Once a mark registers, your nationwide rights date back to the day you filed, for what you listed in the application. That doesn't beat anyone who used or filed for the name before you.
- A name that means something to you still has to work as a brand.
One attorney, start to finish.
Never a paralegal, never a chatbot. I am Gabrielle Maria Crawford, Esq., founder of Citrus Legal. I run your search myself, write the opinion myself, and take every call myself.
Admitted to The Florida Bar. Juris Doctor, University of Miami School of Law. Trademarks nationwide under federal law; business contracts in Florida. Based in St. Pete.
Why choose Citrus?
Because the attorney you talk to is the attorney doing the work, on every email, every call and every filing. Yes, I use AI. It’s a tool that helps me work faster, and it never makes the call on your name. I do.
Some low-cost services don’t name the attorney who files for you, and you may never speak to one. Big firms come with big names and hourly bills. With Citrus, you get the personal touch: one attorney who knows your file, a flat fee agreed in writing before any work starts, and real, honest feedback on your name, even when it isn’t what you hoped to hear.
Wear it: Class 25. Carry it: Class 18.
A trademark covers a name for specific goods or services, sorted into numbered classes. Most fashion brands start in Class 25 and add classes as the line grows. Running your own online store can add Class 35. One application can cover several classes, but the USPTO charges a fee for each class.
Clothing, shoes and hats.
Tees, dresses, swim, footwear and headwear. This is the core class for almost every apparel brand.
Bags and leather goods.
Handbags, totes, wallets and luggage. Worth adding once accessories are part of the line.
Jewelry and watches.
Rings, necklaces, earrings and watches. A brand that sells clothing and jewelry usually needs both 25 and 14.
- Filing fee
- $350 per class is the USPTO’s base application fee. Surcharges, per class: $100 if required information is missing, $200 for writing your own description instead of using the USPTO’s list, and $200 for every 1,000 characters past the first 1,000.USPTO fee schedule, checked October 2026.
- First response
- About 4.3 months, on average, before an examiner first acts on an application.USPTO, data as of October 1, 2026.
- Start to finish
- About 10.4 months, on average, from filing to a registration or an abandoned application.USPTO, data as of October 1, 2026.
Six things that catch fashion brands off guard.
The name is only the start. These come up once the line is real: your own name on the label, what your filing actually covers, and what to do about knockoffs.
Your name on the label.
If your own name is the brand, selling the company can mean selling the name. Joseph Abboud sold his name to a buyer in 2000. When he launched a new line, a court held he could describe himself as its designer in small print, but putting his name next to the new brand infringed. Years after selling her brand, Kate Spade launched her next label as Frances Valentine.The Abboud decision (opens in a new tab) · The Fashion Law (opens in a new tab)
Your filing covers what you list.
A registration protects the goods named in it, not everything in Class 25. You can narrow the list later but never add to it, so a filing for shirts can't become a filing for pants. List what you sell now and what you'll sell soon.USPTO common problems (opens in a new tab)
Labels, hangtags and product pages.
To prove you're using the name, the USPTO accepts a sewn-in neck label, a hangtag, or a product page that shows the name and a way to order. Mockups and edited photos get refused, and an ad alone doesn't count for clothing.USPTO specimen rules (opens in a new tab)
A color can be a brand.
In 2012 the Second Circuit held that Louboutin's red sole is protected when it contrasts with the rest of the shoe, so an all-red shoe from YSL didn't infringe. A color works as a brand once shoppers connect it to you. Most new brands start with the name.The Louboutin opinion (opens in a new tab)
Stop knockoffs at the border.
Once your mark is on the Principal Register, you can record it with U.S. Customs and Border Protection for $190 per class. Customs can then detain and seize counterfeit imports bearing your mark.CBP (opens in a new tab) · The rules (opens in a new tab)
Collabs and licensing.
Before a collab or a license, put in writing who owns the collab name, and keep approval over the quality of anything sold under your brand. Letting others use your name with no quality control can weaken your rights in it.
One attorney, one clear process.
You don’t need to know trademark law to protect your brand. You need someone who does it every day and tells you the truth about your name before you spend money on it. Here is what that looks like at Citrus Legal.
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Step 01
Search
A clearance search for your name, so you know who else is out there before you commit to it.
Want only this step? Take me to Seed.
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Step 02
Clearance opinion
A plain-English read on how strong your name is and how risky it is to use and register, before you commit.
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Step 03
Filing
Your application prepared and filed with the USPTO, with the owner, class, description and filing basis chosen deliberately. Grove and Harvest add specimen review.
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Step 04
Prosecution
Tracking your application and answering the examiner. Grove covers every procedural Office Action. Harvest also covers refusals, like likelihood of confusion or descriptiveness.
"The registration process was overwhelming to do on my own. Gabrielle answered my questions and made the whole thing effortless. I made a good call hiring an attorney."
Six decisions to make before a fashion brand files.
Filing is the last step, not the first. These are the choices that decide what the registration actually protects, and most of them are hard or impossible to change once the application is in.
- 01
Name first or logo first?
A word mark protects the name in any lettering, on any product, in any color. A logo filing protects one design. Most new brands file the name first and add the logo once it stops changing, because a refreshed logo can mean a new filing.
Read: Word mark or logo: which to file - 02
Every product line you plan to sell.
Clothing is Class 25, bags are Class 18, jewelry is Class 14 and fragrance is Class 3. Each class is a separate USPTO fee, and you can only cover goods you sell or genuinely intend to sell. Plan for the next two or three years, not the next drop.
Read: Fashion classes: apparel, bags and jewelry - 03
Where the name sits on the product.
A name printed big across the front of a shirt is often refused as decoration. The same name on a neck label, a hang tag or the packaging reads as a brand. Decide where the name lives before the first production run, because that photo becomes your proof of use.
Read: Why a logo across the chest gets refused - 04
Who owns the brand.
You, your LLC or you and a cofounder. The owner on the application has to be whoever controls the products, and an application filed in the wrong owner’s name can’t be fixed by amendment. It is void.
Read: Should you or your LLC own the trademark? - 05
Collaborations and designers.
A capsule with another brand, a designer who drew your logo, a manufacturer who suggested the name: each one is a question about who owns what. Put it in writing before launch, not after the collab sells out.
Read: Who owns the name in a fashion collab - 06
Where you make it and where you sell it.
Trademark rights stop at the border. A US registration does nothing in China, where many factories are, or in the EU and UK if you ship there. If the brand will be made or sold abroad, the search and the filing plan should say so.
The ones fashion founders ask most.
Class 25 covers clothing, footwear and headwear. Bags and leather goods go in Class 18, jewelry in Class 14, and running your own online store can fall in Class 35. Which ones you need depends on what you sell now and what you plan to sell soon.
You can, but how it appears matters. The USPTO may treat a large design across the front of a shirt as decoration rather than a brand. Woven labels, hangtags and product pages that show the mark as your brand name are the usual proof.
Usually the name. Filing the name in plain text protects the words in any font or style, so it survives a logo refresh. A logo filing protects that one design.
Each platform has its own reporting tool. Instagram's asks for a registration number. Amazon's Brand Registry also accepts a pending application. If you aren't registered yet, a clearance search and a filing come first.
It's worth considering. China gives rights to whoever files first, and a U.S. registration doesn't protect you there. Someone else registering your name in China can cause real trouble for goods you make there.
Yes. An intent-to-use application lets you file before you sell anything. You prove use later, once the line is out, and your filing date still holds your place in line.
Sometimes. A name that reads mainly as a last name usually can't be registered until it's known as your brand, and a living person's name needs that person's written consent. A full name, or a name paired with another word, can be a different story.
No. It covers the goods listed in your application, like shirts, dresses or hats. You can narrow that list later but you can't add to it, so it's worth getting the list right when you file.
You can sell without one. But if a copycat store pops up, Shopify's trademark complaint asks for a registration number, and filing early puts your date on record. An intent-to-use application works before you launch.
Yes, once shoppers connect the color to your brand. Louboutin's contrasting red sole is the famous example. A new brand usually starts by protecting its name.
The USPTO wants to see the name on the goods as a brand: on a sewn-in label, a hang tag, the packaging, or a product page that shows the item, the price and a way to buy it. A photo of the name printed large on the front of a shirt is often refused as ornamental. Read more: What to use as your specimen
If you only sell your own brand on your own site, Class 25 for the clothing is usually what matters. Class 35 covers retail store services, and it becomes worth adding if you sell other brands, run a boutique, or the store has its own name. Read more: Class 25 or Class 35 for a clothing brand
Not automatically. Copyright in a logo belongs to the person who drew it unless they sign it over in writing, and a freelance logo usually isn’t a work made for hire. Get a signed assignment before you file so the artwork and the trademark belong to the same owner. Read more: Who owns a logo a contractor made
Whoever controls the nature and quality of the clothing should own it. If the LLC makes and sells the products, that is usually the LLC. Filing in the wrong owner’s name is a mistake the USPTO will not let you fix by amendment. Read more: You or your LLC
At current USPTO timing, an examining attorney usually first reviews an application about four months after filing, and a clean application often registers in about a year. If you file before you start selling, add the time it takes to launch and file proof of use.
Know where your name stands before the first drop.
Start here, or email us first. Either one gets you a straight answer about what to do next.
Seed is a clearance search and a written opinion letter from the attorney who ran it, in under two weeks. Not sure which package fits? Email us and we’ll point you to the right one.