Eight years ago, Jonathan and Samuel Gadient founded a furniture manufacturing company. The carpenter and wood construction engineer make a great team. “It works very well. We have our own space,” grins Samuel Gadient in conversation with the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI). From the beginning, the duo were sure that they were going to fully concentrate on designing everyday objects. The wooden objects they make generally do not contain any metal, and local wood is used wherever possible in the processing.
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“Design protection gives us a sense of security”
The Gadient brothers produce everyday objects from wood. They have protected some of their sophisticated designs and were surprised by how simple the filing process was. The next products are already in the pipeline.
The Gadient brothers have protected a standing light design. To the right is the original object and the drawing for the design protection register. Copyright: Gadient/Swissreg
“The expert from the IPI explained our options”
It wasn’t long before the young company thought about protecting the furniture from counterfeiters. “To be honest, for a long time we didn’t know anything about it. But, thanks to an expert from the IPI who visited our stand at the Designgut fair in Winterthur, a lot became clearer to us. He explained our options, which prompted us to become proactive about protecting our designs,” recalls Samuel Gadient.
Bald stehen die ersten Verlängerungen des Schutzes an
Der Unternehmer nahm die Vorbereitung und Anmeldung selber in die Hand. Mit den Dokumenten reichte er die CAD-Zeichnungen an. «Das hat alles einfach funktioniert», so Samuel Gadient. Nach der ersten Anmeldung gilt der Schutz fünf Jahre und kann noch mehrmals verlängert werden (maximale Schutzdauer beträgt 25 Jahre). Mit der Anmeldung in der Schweiz sind die Designs hierzulande geschützt. Eine Ausdehnung auf andere Länder ist nicht vorgesehen. «Unser Markt ist die Schweiz, das reicht uns auch für den Moment», erklärt er.
“We can defend ourselves if we need to”
The entry in the register for design protection gives the company a certain level of security. “It’s just reassuring,” says the wood construction engineer. When the brothers design a product that has potential, they file for protection. “That way we don’t need to worry about the design being stolen, and we can defend ourselves if we need to.” On the other hand, they also look closely at whether they should renew the protection after the initial filing. “Our basket, for example, sells very well so we will definitely extend the period of protection for that.” Mr Gadient says that they will think about doing this for their other products.
Protected designs in Swissreg (electronic IP rights database):
Furniture frame, chair: 143541
Standing light: 143557
Basket: 143598
Design protection – what you need to know
- In Switzerland, an innovation can be protected through the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI). Here are some tips on registering a design:
- Illustrations – these should be of a high quality and should clearly depict the design. Tip: submit black and white images so that the design is protected in all colour variations.
- Carry out a search – as registrations are not examined for novelty, it is recommended that you carry out a search. Read specialist literature, visit trade fairs or specialty shops. Think about where the inspiration for your design came from.
- Term of protection – a design is protected for five years after it is registered. After this, it is possible to renew protection several times. You can protect your creation for a maximum of 25 years (5x5).
- Multiple applications – it’s possible to register multiple designs as long as they all belong to the same class of goods.
- Application fee – the basic fee for a design is 200 Swiss francs. Renewal of design protection costs 200 Swiss francs.
- Answers to your questions – on our website, we answer a range of frequently asked questions (FAQs).
- Do you have any other questions? Visit www.ipi.ch or call us on 031 377 77 77.
