Trade marking a clothing brand in South Africa
Which classes a label needs, whether to file the name or the logo, how to check the name is free, what it costs – and why the registration is what stops counterfeits.
A clothing brand is its name and its label, and class 25 is one of the most crowded classes on the South African register. The good news is that the classification is simple, the process is the same as for any other mark, and the mistakes that cost fashion labels money are the same few every time.
The short answer
- Class 25 covers the clothing, footwear, headwear and belts – and selling your own clothing under the name, in a shop or online. Class 18 if you make bags. Class 35 only if the store itself is a brand that sells other labels.
- Word mark or logo depends on the search. If the name is free and distinctive, the word mark is the wider right. If there are conflicts, or the script or emblem is what people recognise, a logo – narrower, sometimes with a colour claim – is often the better first filing.
- The registration protects the name as a badge of origin – on labels, tags and neck prints. A phrase printed across the chest as the design is a different question (see below).
- Search before you print labels. Class 25 is one of the most crowded on the register.
- R2,990 per class, all in. Two classes is R5,980. About 24 months to registration; protected from the day you file.
- A registration is what stops counterfeits at the border. A company name or a domain does not.
Which classes a clothing brand needs
| You sell | Classes | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Clothing under your label | 25 | Clothing, footwear, headwear, belts. The core class for any label – and it covers selling your own clothing under the name, in a shop, at a market or online, because that is use of the mark on clothing. |
| A store or online store that sells other labels too | + 35 | Retail services: the shop as a brand in its own right. Only worth filing where the store name is a business separate from the garments – a multi-brand boutique, a marketplace, a store concept you may franchise. |
| Bags, wallets, luggage | + 18 | Leather goods and bags are class 18, not 25 – the commonest gap on a fashion filing. |
| Sunglasses, eyewear | + 9 | Eyewear is class 9. Filed by most labels only once they have already been copied. |
| Jewellery, watches | + 14 | Precious metals, jewellery and watches. |
| Perfume, cosmetics | + 3 | The class a fashion house grows into. Cheaper to hold early than to fight for later. |
A class is not a blanket. Your protection is the wording you file – t-shirts, hoodies and caps does not cover the sneakers you launch next season. The classes guide explains how to draft a specification that covers the range you actually plan to sell.
Name, logo or both
A word mark protects the name however it is written, which is the widest right you can hold – if the search shows the name is available and it is distinctive enough to register on its own. A logo protects the design – the script, the emblem, the lock-up – and because the examiner compares marks as a whole, it can register where the bare word would be blocked by an earlier mark or refused as descriptive. The more crowded the field, the more a narrower, tailored filing – the stylised mark, sometimes with a colour claim – earns its place as the first application.
Two cautions. If a descriptive word inside your logo is disclaimed on registration, the logo registration gives no rights in that word on its own. And a logo registration does not stop someone using the name in a different font. That is why a label that trades on both usually ends up holding both. The what is a trade mark guide has the detail.
The name on the label, and the name as the design
A trade mark registration protects the name as a badge of origin: the sign that tells a buyer which label the garment comes from. On clothing that is the neck label, the hang tag, the small print on the chest or sleeve. Whether a word or design printed large across the front of a T-shirt is being used as a trade mark, or just as decoration, is decided by how buyers would see it – the Supreme Court of Appeal has treated it as a question of fact in each case. So: put your name on the labels and tags from the first run, so that there is no argument that it is your brand. And do not expect a registration of a slogan or phrase to stop others printing that phrase on a T-shirt as a design, unless buyers would read it as your brand – a phrase that is only decoration can also be refused registration as not distinctive.
Check the name before you print anything
Clothing is the most crowded class on the South African register, and a search is the difference between a filing that registers and a rebrand after the first production run. Three things to search, in order:
- The register, with our free search – by name, and by goods (“clothing”, “footwear”) to see who sits in class 25.
- The related classes, not only 25. Clothing, bags (18), cosmetics (3) and the retailing of clothing (35) are generally treated as related, because the same customer buys them through the same channels – the examiner and the courts ask whether the goods and services are similar, not whether the class number matches. A name that is clear in 25 but registered for clothing retail in 35 is not clear.
- The marketplace – Google with site:co.za, Instagram, the marketplaces you sell on. South Africa protects genuine first use, so a label trading without a registration can still be an obstacle.
For a name you are about to invest in, an attorney search gives you an opinion rather than a list: Focused at R2,750, Comprehensive at R5,500. Both cover your main classes and the related ones; the comprehensive search casts the wider net and gives the full report. It is what we would do before spending on a label run.
What it costs, and how long it takes
| Fee | |
|---|---|
| One name, class 25 | R2,990 |
| One name, classes 25 and 18 | R5,980 |
| Name and logo, classes 25 and 18 (four applications) | R11,960 |
| Examiner’s report | 8-12 months after filing |
| Registration, straightforward case | about 24 months; protected from the filing date |
| Renewal | every 10 years; R2,700 first class, R1,900 each additional |
Nothing further is payable to registration unless the examiner attaches a condition or a third party opposes, and we quote before doing any of that work. The cost guide lists every fee that can arise.
The three mistakes fashion labels make
- Filing only for today’s range. The specification covers the goods you list. The bags, caps or eyewear you add next season may sit in another class, or outside the wording you filed. File for the range you actually plan to sell.
- Putting the name only across the chest, never on a label. Use as decoration is not necessarily use as a trade mark. Labels, tags and neck prints are what make it your brand.
- Filing a name that describes the clothing. URBAN BASICS for basics, or KIDS WEAR for children’s clothing, is refused or disclaimed. Invented and arbitrary names register; descriptive ones fight.
- Registering the company name and stopping there. A CIPC company registration gives no trade mark rights at all, and a domain is a rental. The label on the garment is protected by the trade mark, or not at all.
Counterfeits, and why the registration matters more here than anywhere
Clothing and footwear are among the most counterfeited goods in the country. The Counterfeit Goods Act lets you have fakes detained at the port of entry and seized through the inspectorate – but it needs a registered trade mark (or a copyright, or a well-known foreign mark) behind it. A label without a registration is arguing passing off, one trader at a time, while the containers keep landing. How that works is in the letter of demand guide.
Frequently asked questions
How do I trademark a clothing brand in South Africa?
Search the register for the name, choose the classes (class 25 for the garments; class 18 if you also make bags; class 35 only if the shop itself is a brand), decide whether to file the name, the logo or both, and file one application per class at CIPC. Through us it is R2,990 per class, all in, and registration takes about 24 months. Your protection runs from the day you file.
Which trade mark class is clothing?
Class 25: clothing, footwear and headwear – belts included. Selling your own clothing, in a shop or online, is use of the mark on clothing and is covered by class 25. Class 35 (retail services) is for the shop as a brand in its own right: a store or online store that sells other people’s labels under your name. Bags and wallets are class 18.
Do I need to register both the name and the logo?
They are separate applications because they are separate rights. A word mark protects the name in any font or styling, so where the search shows the name is available and it is distinctive, it is the wider right and the one to file first. Where the search turns up conflicts, or the stylised script or emblem is what people recognise, a logo – which is compared as a whole, and can be narrowed with a colour claim – is often the better first filing. The examiner may disclaim a descriptive word inside a logo, in which case the registration gives no rights in that word on its own. Most labels end up filing both.
How much does it cost to trademark a clothing brand?
R2,990 per class, including CIPC’s R590 official fee. A name in class 25 and class 18 is R5,980. A name and a logo in both classes is R11,960. Nothing further is payable to registration unless the examiner raises a condition, and we quote before any of that. Every fee is on the cost guide.
Someone is already using my clothing brand name. What now?
It depends on whether they registered it, what they registered it for, and who used it first – South Africa protects genuine first use with a reputation. A search shows what is on the register; if the name is taken for clothing, changing it now is far cheaper than a rebrand later. If you are the earlier user, read the letter of demand guide.
Can I stop counterfeits of my clothing?
A registration is what opens the Counterfeit Goods Act: seizure at the port of entry and through the inspectorate, which no interdict against a single trader can achieve. Without a registration you are largely outside that remedy.
Related guides
- What trade mark registration really costs
- What is a trade mark?
- How CIPC registration works (and the DIY route)
- Letter of demand for trade mark infringement
- When you may use ™ and ®
Written and reviewed by
Stephan Viollier – Trade Mark & IP Attorney, SAIIPL-certified, admitted in South Africa and the United States (New York)
This page explains South African trade mark practice in general terms. It is information, not legal advice on your particular mark – for that, talk to us.
