Protecting What You've Built: Why Now Is the Time to Trademark Your Brand

By Amy Bales, Esq. // FemCity Founder’s Member

Last month, the United States Patent & Trademark Office quietly canceled over 50,000 trademark registrations. Most were dormant—filed but never used, renewed without merit, or purchased for speculation.

This shift matters.
It matters because for the first time in years, there is room again—legal room—for active, intentional business owners to claim what they’ve created.

As an intellectual property attorney, I work with women who’ve spent years building something meaningful—a brand, a product, a name that carries real weight. And too often, that name isn’t protected. Or worse, someone else files it first.

Here’s what every founder should know:

• A trademark is a public mark that identifies your goods or services to the world.

• It’s what consumers recognize—it’s what builds equity.

• Simply operating under a business name or signing client contracts isn’t enough. If you’re not using your name publicly in connection with your offerings—on packaging, your website, or in advertising—you are not establishing trademark protection for your brand.

If you are using your brand publicly, you may already have some legal rights—but they are narrow, fragile, and often geographically limited.

A federal trademark registration doesn’t just protect your name. It gives you the exclusive nationwide right to use it in connection with your business. It makes you searchable, scalable, and defendable.

This isn’t about fear.
It’s about formality—and self-respect.
Because when you’ve worked this hard to build something real, the next step is simple:

Make it yours.
Permanently.

ABOUT AMY:

Amy Bales is a trademark and intellectual property attorney helping women entrepreneurs secure the brands they’ve worked so hard to build.

With over 20 years of legal experience, Amy brings both heart and precision to every client interaction. She’s the founder of Trademark Academy and Ask Amy B, two platforms designed to make brand protection accessible, elegant, and empowering. Based in Florida, Amy also handles select real estate closings and entertainment law matters. But her passion? Helping women protect their vision—before someone else profits from it.