Copy Writing / Trade Mark Logos

To do it correctly you'd need to contact the company's marketing or brand dept and get written permission to use their logos. You'll have to provide samples of finished products, pricing, etc. Most likely you'll be ignored from the start or told to not pursue it at all. Most of these companies already have manufactures that are licensed and produce this stuff in very high quantities. Or some companies may even pay for a license to use the logos. This even applies to things like Yeti and Real Tree camo patterns.

A lot of companies can get by simply because there's so many, you literally can't catch them all. Some companies like Disney have stopped pursuing a lot of the Etsy type stores, but I don't expect a business like Red Bull to stop any time soon.

 

Good info above. Just to add, a lot of companies will charge an upfront fee and then also take a hefty percentage as a royalty on everything you sell. I think Disney at some point was $30,000 just to talk to them and then they would take something like 45% of sales. Hardly worth it as a small shop or even mid sized shop. Plenty of people do it regardless of laws etc. The thing you need to figure out is if it's worth risking your business because if they do choose you to make an example they will put you out of business. I know sign shop owners who have had the Disney lawyers show up personally at their home. That being said, I also have customers who make almost their entire yearly salary on unlicensed Broncos and Rockies gear. The general rule of thumb is, if you didn't design it, it's not legal to make money off of it.

 

yep what they said....it's one thing to do a one off for a customer, that usually can be gotten away with, but to be out there marketing on the web you will probably get caught. and depending on who catches you it could put you out of business and worse.

 

3 Reasons NOT to get "into" doing that stuff.

A) It's illegal without permission.
B) There are TONS of people doing it with tiny cheap machines from their home or Mall Kiosk.
C) ebay is Saturated by folks offering them.

 

Don't mess with Red Bull or Harley-Davidson. They are relentless and have deep pockets.

 

Yep... I've heard that Harley-Davidson makes more from licensing their brand for merchandise than they do from manufacturing bikes, so they tend to keep a tight reign on that stuff... I've wondered just what FoMoCo had to pay to license the HD logo for their pickups. Same with International Trucks. No small change, I'm sure...