A ‘brand that speaks for itself’ is the gold standard of brand development. Such a ‘suggestive’ mark communicates its message from the outset, simply, without the need for elaborate content. Very often, however, such brand words consist only of slightly modified descriptions of the products encompassed by the brand – and this can indicate trouble further down the line.
Certification marks, a concept introduced in the European Union on 1 October 2017, are intended in and of themselves, as a way to indicate the quality guarantee of a product. Attempting to do this – communicate the quality guarantee for a product – by using an individual trade mark instead, is a risky undertaking.
A caterer had the idea of registering ‘grill meister’ [‘grill master’] as a brand for his barbecue and beer products, as well as for his catering. He gave his brand a simple design and as a special feature the registered trademark symbol ®. However, the caterer was very surprised when the Federal Court of Justice certified his trade mark as not only being unable to be protected, but also deceptive.