You must submit a trademark application to the United States Patent and Trademark Office in order to protect your company name and logo. You can do this online or by working with a trademark lawyer. Once authorized, your trademark will be good for 10 years and can be renewed indefinitely. The procedure can take several months. What Comes First, a Trademark or an LLC?
It is typically advised to create your LLC before submitting a trademark application. This is because the name of your LLC should be distinctive and not infringe on any already-registered trademarks. If you submit a trademark application before creating your LLC, you might have to change the name of your LLC if it conflicts with an already registered trademark.
The Nike logo is, in fact, a trademark. Nike actually owns a number of trademarks for their emblem, including the “swoosh” and the name “Nike.” This grants them the sole right to utilize those trademarks in connection with their goods and services and deters others from adopting confusingly similar names or logos.
Finally, registering your small business name and logo as a trademark is a crucial step in establishing your brand and preventing copycat names or logos from being used. It’s advised to create your LLC before submitting a trademark application, which you can do online or through a trademark lawyer. And the Nike logo, like many other well-known company logos, is a trademark.