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First and foremost, this article is not legal advice but rather my assistance to help you register a trademark with the little money you have.

I recall MacG revealing on Podcast and Chill that he registered a trademark for his Grandeur gin for about R15 000, including lawyer fees. It does not have to cost you that much. Stay with me here.

How much does it cost to register a trademark in South Africa?

It costs R590 to register a trademark class in South Africa. It is registered with the government agency, the CIPC (Companies and Intellectual Property Commission).

In South Africa, trademark classes are divided into 45 classes, known as the NICE Classification.

Let me give you an example. If you wanted to start a clothing brand called “Sipho Boss,” the appropriate class is 25, which includes “clothing, footwear, headgear.” It costs R590.

Now, if you also wanted to make beer under the same name, “beer” falls under class 32.

So, you would need to pay R590 for the clothing class and another R590 for the beer class, totaling R1180.

You can only register one mark (either a logo or a name) per R590 for one class. For example, if you have both a logo (icon) and a brand name (in text), it’s R590 for each. That is, R590 for the logo and another R590 for the brand name in text, totaling R1180.

If you want to register the two trademarks (logo and name) for another class, the same fees will apply: R590 for the icon and R590 for the brand name text. Your total will be R1180 + R1180, which is R2360.

In MacG’s case, he may have applied for gin, which is in one class, and in other classes he foresaw he could produce related products. The other funds could have gone to the copyright lawyers. Perhaps this is why it cost him R15 000.

Most entrepreneurs do not have R15 000. My advice to you is to register the number of classes you can afford. You can register for one. You can do it yourself because you cannot afford lawyers.

We’ve done this for a few of our products we’ve registered a trademark for over the years.

Sometimes it does not make sense to register a lot of classes simply because you don’t have the money, and the money can be used for other matters in developing and marketing your brand.

What is a trademark?

You can only trademark a sign, icon, logo, and words — not an idea or mechanical equipment invention. For an invention, it falls under a patent, and you need to register a patent. You can still register a trademark for the invention’s logo or name.

How to search and register a trademark

First, check which number your intended trademark class falls under on the NICE Classification list.

Searching and registration happen on CIPC.co.za. Register an account, log in, and go to (click) IP Services.

Under the Trademark tab, you will find ‘free search.’ Go there to search if your trademark conflicts with existing trademarks.

Or you can perform a commercial search. You will see the tabs. You must have at least R200 in the account for this commercial search (I cannot recall how much exactly it cost us the last time).

If there are no conflicting trademarks, you can go ahead and register.

Prior to this stage, you ought to have spent time on Google to see if no one else uses the same name as your trademark name.

Even if the conflicting name is outside of South Africa, you are too creative to not come up with another name that is not similar to any.

Don’t be attached to names that can be problematic in the future.

N.B.

This whole article is for those who are constrained by a budget, i.e., R590 is the most they can spend on a trademark.

Again, this is not legal advice. I am innocent, for future uses. This is my disclaimer. All the best!

Otherwise, consult a trademark attorney.