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The Zest

Fitness equipment and accessories brands: Class 28 and the rest

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Most fitness equipment belongs in Class 28, the class for "gymnastic and sporting articles." Weights, dumbbells and exercise machines are there. But a typical fitness product line spills into other classes fast: yoga and gym mats are in Class 27, workout apparel in Class 25, water bottles in Class 21, gym bags in Class 18, and wearable trackers in Class 9. Each class is a separate fee and a separate line on the application.

What Class 28 covers

The full Class 28 heading is "games, toys and playthings; video game apparatus; gymnastic and sporting articles; decorations for Christmas trees." The international list that sorts goods into classes, called the Nice Classification, names a lot of fitness gear in Class 28:

  • exercise weights
  • dumb-bells
  • machines for physical exercises
  • stationary exercise bicycles
  • chest expanders [exercisers]
  • weight lifting belts [sports articles]
  • weight vests for physical training purposes
  • yoga blocks, yoga straps and yoga wheels
  • punching bags and boxing gloves

Resistance bands aren't named in the international list. The closest entry is chest expanders, which are Class 28. For a US filing, the USPTO's own ID Manual is where the accepted wording lives, so check the exact entry for your product before you file.

Here is the part that surprises people: mats aren't Class 28

The Class 28 note lists what the class does not include, and "gymnasium mats" are on that list, sent to Class 27. Class 27 is "carpets, rugs, mats and matting," and its list includes:

  • yoga mats
  • gymnastic mats / gymnasium mats
  • meditation mats
  • bags adapted for yoga mats

So a brand that sells yoga blocks and yoga mats under one name is in two classes, 28 for the blocks and 27 for the mats. Even the carrying bag made for the mat is Class 27.

The rest of the catalog

Fitness brands rarely stop at equipment. Here's where the usual add-ons go.

Apparel: Class 25. The Class 28 note excludes "clothing for gymnastics and sports" and points to Class 25. The Class 25 list includes "clothing for gymnastics," "leggings [trousers]," "sports jerseys," "sports shoes," "sweat-absorbent socks" and even "sportswear incorporating digital sensors." Smart clothing is still clothing. If you're putting your name on tees and leggings, the way the name appears on the garment matters, which I covered in the article on ornamental refusals.

Water bottles: Class 21. Class 21 is "household or kitchen utensils and containers," and the list includes "drinking bottles for sports" and "bottles."

Gym bags: Class 18. Class 18 covers "luggage and carrying bags," and the list includes "bags for sports" and "rucksacks / backpacks."

Wearables: Class 9, sometimes Class 10. The Class 9 note includes "smartwatches, wearable activity trackers." But it excludes "pulse meters, heart rate monitoring apparatus, body composition monitors," which go to Class 10.

Protective gear: Class 9. The Class 28 note sends "protective helmets, goggles and mouthguards for sports" to Class 9.

Why the class lines matter

The first reason is cost. The USPTO base fee is $350 per class. A brand with blocks, mats, leggings and a bottle is looking at four classes.

The second reason is that you can't add goods later. The federal rule lets you amend a description "to clarify or limit, but not to broaden" it. File for Class 28 alone and launch mats next spring, and the mats need a new application.

The third reason runs the other way. The class doesn't limit your rights or anyone else's. The statute says the class system exists for USPTO administration and is "not to limit or extend the applicant's or registrant's rights." When the USPTO decides whether two marks conflict, the TMEP says goods "do not have to be identical or even competitive" and "need only be related in some manner." One kind of evidence of relatedness is prior registrations of the same mark covering both kinds of goods. So a registered leggings brand in Class 25 can block your name for resistance gear in Class 28 if the names are close enough. I wrote more about that in the article on the same name in a different industry.

What this means for your brand

Make a list of every product that will carry the name in the next year or so. Sort it by class:

  1. Equipment and training gear: Class 28.
  2. Mats: Class 27.
  3. Apparel and footwear: Class 25.
  4. Bottles: Class 21.
  5. Bags: Class 18.
  6. Wearable tech: Class 9, or Class 10 for heart rate and body composition devices.

Here's how that looks for a real launch. Say you open with dumbbells and a yoga mat, add a logo tank top in the fall, and plan a branded water bottle for the new year. That's Class 28, Class 27, Class 25 and Class 21. Four classes, four base fees, and four descriptions that each have to match what you sell.

File for what you're selling now. For products that are coming but not on shelves yet, an intent-to-use filing can cover them before launch, which I explained in the article on intent-to-use applications. And when you clear the name, search across all of those classes, not just 28, because that's how the USPTO will look at it. I explained how the class system works in the article on trademark classes.

If you want to talk through how your product line maps to classes before you file, you can see how the search and filing packages work on the services page, and the FAQs page answers most of what comes up before a first call.

Book a free 15-minute discovery call with the attorney (opens in a new tab)

(No legal advice is given on the discovery call. It's a chance to tell me what you're building and hear how the process works.)

Sources

This article is general information, not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.

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