Building and Protecting Your Brand in China: The Significance of a Business Entity
In this Woodburn Academy webinar, Kristina Koehler-Coluccia looks at what establishing a business entity in China does for building a brand there and for protecting what you have already built. It runs for about 37 minutes.
About the speaker
Kristina Koehler-Coluccia is Head of Business Advisory at Woodburn Accountants & Advisors. She has spent more than two decades helping foreign companies set up and run their operations in China and Hong Kong, and she leads the firm's Woodburn Academy sessions.
What this session covers
Why local engagement and relationship building carry so much weight in China
Tailoring your marketing to Chinese consumers rather than translating it
The legal protections available for your intellectual property
Managing reputation in a fast-moving and very vocal market
How working with an adviser changes what you can do on the ground
Why this matters if you are building a brand in China
Brand protection in China is largely a timing problem. The trademark system works on a first-to-file basis, so the party that registers your mark owns it, regardless of how long you have used it elsewhere. Companies that arrive with distribution already running quite often find the mark has gone, or that a local partner is holding it. An entity does not solve that on its own, but it gives you standing: somewhere to hold the mark, contract locally, advertise, and act when someone copies you.
The practical sequence is usually trademark registration first, then China company registration, with an employer of record if you need people on the ground before the entity is ready.
Watch the full session
Thinking about setting up in China?
Woodburn Accountants & Advisors helps foreign companies register and run entities in China and Hong Kong, from company registration and trademark protection through to accounting, payroll, tax and audit. If this session has raised questions about your own plans, get in touch with our team.