If you are one of those people who thinks that both the trade name as well as company name are similar, you are wrong. It’s very important to understand the concept of company name v/s trade name in order to make the difference between both of them clear. A single company can have both companies as well as trade names. Don’t be surprised, it is because both of them are having different relevancies for the companies.
There is a very thin line between the company name v/s trade name, as a business owner you must understand the concept of both of them. Most of the time people know the business by its trade name, they are not even aware about the company name and that is one of the reasons it has been always suggested to protect your trade name through Trademark Registration. This will provide safety to your trade name. Lets understand the concept of both in detail through this blog.
Is the Trade Name Different From the Company Name?
Yes, the trade name is completely different from the company name. The purpose of both of them is also different. Trade names are used for the advertisement of the business and business is famous through trade names mostly. That is one of the reasons due to which the security of the trade name has been always taken very seriously. Company names are already secured as they are registered. But trade names need to provide security so that they cannot be infringed. Infringement of the trade name can lead a business towards heavy loss, hence you must be extra conscious about the trade name of your business. There is nothing like a company name v/s trade name, because both have their own importances for the businesses.
What is a Company Name?
Companies are formed after proper registration. While completing the Company registration process you need to give a unique name for your entity. On the same name it will be registered through the competent authorities. That name through which an entity has been registered is called company name. This name must be unique and not already in use by some other party. If you are going to use someone’s name they can take action against you. Henec do not use the name which is already taken. There are certain rules and regulations which you need to follow while giving names to your company. These rules and regulations have been given under the companies law.
What is a Trade Name?
In order to understand the concept of company name v/s trade name, it’s really important to clear both the concepts individually first. Trade names are those names through which a company becomes popular in the market among the customers as well as competitors. They are usually small and not very long. They are different from the registered name of the company. Most of the time they are protected through trademark registration.
Safety of trade names is equally important or we can say it is more important. This is because people know your business by the trade name. Trade name can be anything, it may be somewhat similar to company name or may be completely different from the same. There are no fixed rules for the trade name like the company name. Company names are governed by the company law but trade names are not.
What are the Key Differences Between Trade Name and Company Name?
Some of the key differences between the trade name and company name are given below:
- Trade Name is not registered while company name is the registered name of the entity.
- Trade names are not bound by the company law but company names are bound to follow the rules of the name of the companies. One of the basic rules is behind the name of the private limited companies, it should be mentioned that it is a private limited company. For example Sweets Shops Pvt. Ltd.
- Trade names are not always similar to company names but somewhat related to it.
- Sometimes trade names come before and sometimes company names come before.
- Company names are protected through Companies Act of 2013 while trade names are protected through registration of trademark which is governed by the Trademark Act of 1999.
- Trade names are well known but sometimes company names are not known to the public
- Trade names are used in the advertisements not the company names
- Trade Names are short and crisp while company name can be long
List of Examples of Company Name v/s Trade Name
To make the clear understanding between the company name v/s trade name some of the examples of the company name and trade names are given below in the table:
| Trade Name | Company Name |
| Dominos | Jubilant FoodWorks Limited |
| Mcdonald’s | Mcdonald’s India Private Limited |
| Starbucks | TATA Starbucks Private Limited |
| Tata Motors | Tata Motors Limited |
| Reliance | Reliance Industries Limited |
| Myntra | Myntra Designs Private Limited |
| Amazon | Amazon India Limited |
| Meesho | Meesho Payments Private Limited |
| Unacademy | Sorting Hat Technologies Private Limited |
| Startupfino | RZPX Private Limited |
| Ajio | Reliance Retail Limited |
| Chai Sutta Bar | Chai Sutta Bar Private Limited |
| MBA Chai Wala | MBA Chai Wala Private Limited |
Conclusion
In the current blog we have compared the company name v/s trade name. It is important to know about the company name v/s trade name, in order to make the difference between them. Here we have discussed the concept of both in detail with examples. This will help you to understand clearly why both of them are important for the company and what are the other aspects of the company as well as trade name. In the table given above we have put the companies with their trade name. If you go through the last table carefully you will fully understand the concept of trade anime as well as company name properly. Also it is suggested to protect both of them.
