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Clothing BrandClothing Brand LLC: What Protects Your Name?
An LLC protects a brand name at the state level; a trademark protects it at the federal level. What each filing does, the three things every clothing label has to say, where an LLC fits, and the key Bizee screens, start to finish.
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Why an LLC for this business
The name
An LLC protects it in your state. Search the trademark database first
The trademark
$350 per class of goods, filed with the USPTO (as of Nov)
The label
Fiber content, country of origin, your company name or an RN number
How to start it, in order
- Search your brand name in the USPTO's trademark database before you commit to it.
- Form the LLC: the SBA says an entity name protects the business name at the state level.
- Get a seller's permit, and use a resale certificate for blanks you will resell.
- Label every piece: fiber content, country of origin, and your company name or an RN number.
- An RN number comes from the FTC and may be issued to any firm in the U.S. It isn't required: your company name works.
- If you import, you are legally responsible for the labels on what you bring in.
- File a federal trademark application: $350 per class of goods (as of Nov). It protects the name at the federal level.
Every fact in this guide was checked against a primary source before the video was made.
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