Using a trademark and not registering it is a common mistake. It is also advisable to register the trade name used as a trademark.

If you use your trade name, it is protected under the Trade Names Act, but this protection is extremely limited because the Act takes account of place and public.

However, the law does not clearly define place and public. A trading company in South Limburg may use the same trading name as, for example, a trading company in North Holland.

It is important to register your trade name as a trademark. Trademark protection is broader and easier to demonstrate. After all, the trademark has been demonstrably registered as a trademark and as such is also traceable. If your trade name also contains an image, this image is also protected under trademark law. In the case of a trade name, the protection relates to the name and not to the design. The design may be protected by copyright. See the copyright page for this.

Use does not establish any rights.
If you also use your brand name with the product and service that your company provides, it is certainly advisable to register it, because use does not establish any rights. A depositor of a similar name can even prohibit the use thereof, with all the resulting consequences.

If the trademark is registered under trademark law, the word mark, the figurative mark and its design are protected for similar or resembling products or services.