You've likely invested time and money to generate an identity for your brand and to trademark it, but the reality is, no one is going to protect it for you. You are required to police the use of your trademark and that means being proactive and on the lookout for rip-offs of your logo online. This might sound like an impossible task so we’re going to provide you with a few tips to help you protect your brand in a digital world. more...

Hang on to your mobile phones, Portland retailers, because thieves may be casing your shop with an eye on your iPhone. Several shop owners have reported that either their iPhones or employees' iPhones have been stolen in the last couple of weeks. The thefts have occurred primarily along commercial drags like North Mississippi and North Williams Avenues, SE Hawthorne Boulevard, NEAlberta Street, and in business more...

Greenest city, best coffee, hottest indie music scene. In the eyes of others (read: national media outlets), Portland is constantly competing for top listicle honors. In 2012, Travel + Leisure liberally bestowed upon Portland "the best" titles for environmental friendliness, street food and food trucks, public transportation and pedestrian friendliness, pet-friendly vacation, and microbrewed beer (as well more...

These days, it’s not enough to simply publish posts on your blog; you have to share your posts and actively promote them on social media if you’d like more eyeballs on them than your own. But, this doesn’t mean that you just landed another full-time gig. It simply means that you need to add a new tool or two to make sharing blog posts efficient. more...

April was an unusual month for Portland's business scene. As always, there are plenty of new bars and restaurants, but last month's new business owners are unique because many of them had grand ideas and just went for them, regardless of previous experience. A theater director-actor opened a retail spot dedicated to refurbished and found home decor items. A former software designer with no formal apparel more...

It seems like actually receiving a trademark can be an extracted process, but is there a “normal” time period that you can expect? more...

Why would a business register a trademark internationally as well as nationally? more...

Record collectors rejoice! Your national (and fast-becoming international) holiday is upon us again: It’s Record Store Day—the day when thousands of independent music retailers across the U.S. offer an incredible selection—literally hundreds—of exclusive limited edition releases that are only available at indie record stores. The focus skews heavily towards vinyl including special more...

You’ve officially decided to follow your dream. Whether you’re ready to reveal the product you’ve been meticulously developing in your workshop or studio to the world, or you’re ambitiously opening your own restaurant, bar, bakery or boutique, you should step back a moment and consider the name of your product, business or service from a legal perspective—you’ll thank yourself more...

Today's finally the day: Tax Day. And, you're either weeping because you just saw the amount you owe, or you have refund dough burning a hole in your wallet. Whichever camp you fall into, we're sure you could use a moment to decompress and de-stress—and during that moment, why not treat yourself to a happy hour snack and a drink, or two? Need some suggestions?We've got you covered. Here's more...