Founder onboarding
Search TESS, confirm a clear path, and record what you found.
The most expensive miss in branded apparel is selling a tee under an unregistered mark that another live registration can send a cease-and-desist to. This 3-step USPTO workflow walks you through running the search against the relevant class, ruling out a live or pending conflict, and keeping a working note to hand to IP counsel or the TEAS intake — before you upload a logo or sell a shirt.
Progress is saved to this browser only. Reset clears it.
Search the USPTO database for your mark
Open the USPTO Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS) and run your candidate mark against both live registrations and pending applications in the relevant class. Screenshot any conflict you cannot rule out — those are the marks that can send a cease-and-desist the first week you sell a shirt.
Open TESS searchTrademark Electronic Search System (TESS) · USPTO
Not marked yetConfirm no live or pending conflicting registration in the relevant class
Read each hit's status carefully. Live registrations are the real risk — those are the marks you must clear against. Abandoned, withdrawn, or cancelled registrations usually are not. Flag anything phonetically or visually similar in the same class; those are the marks an examining attorney will compare yours to.
Internal note — keep the result, the registration you cleared against, and the relevant class numbers.
Not marked yetRecord the result and prepare to file
Log the search query you ran, the registration you cleared against, and the class numbers you intend to file. That note is what you hand to your IP counsel or upload into the USPTO TEAS intake — the working record that turns the search into a filing.
Internal note — keep the result, the registration you cleared against, and the relevant class numbers.
Not marked yet
After the trademark is yours
Pick a tier that matches the mark you just protected.
Starter is for the founder still proving the mark works on fabric. Creator layers in the trademark intake and a monthly content rhythm. Pro adds weekly content hooks and a dedicated onboarding once intake is locked.
Sigilthread · trademark intake is founder-led; the checklist above is yours to keep while waiting on the USPTO.