By Serene Luo

AN AIR-CONDITIONED chicken rice stall in Seah Street has something more than just its recipes that makes it stand out from the crowd.

Sin Swee Kee near Raffles Hotel trademarked its name and logo two years ago, making it one of the growing number of hawker stalls to do so.

A trademark is a distinctive sign used by an individual or business to uniquely identify his goods or services, ensuring that others cannot take advantage of another business' good reputation.

Usually done by larger ventures, trademarking is increasingly being taken up by smaller enterprises, said Mr Ng Kim Tean of Nanyang Law, a boutique firm specialising in intellectual property law.

The registered trademark database at the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore shows that in the past two years, about 20 smaller stalls registered trademarks each year, compared to none in 2001.

'In Singapore, everyone loves to eat food, and more people are realising they need to take steps to protect their brands,' said Mr Mark Lim, who heads the intellectual property, media and entertainment department at Tan Peng Chin law firm.

Mr Ng added that many 'second-generation hawkers' taking over their parents' businesses are better educated and more knowledgeable about the law.

Mr Mohamed Jafrullah, 48, who trademarked his stall's name and logo when he opened Lucky Prata in Lucky Plaza said he had heard of copycats trying to profit from the reputation of others.

'It's very common in the food business for one business to infuse another's popular name into its own, so that they look or sound alike,' he said.

'I wanted to protect myself, and to not let customers get confused.'

Mr Lim Eng Lam, 42, who owns Nanyang Old Coffee, which has three coffee stalls, said he trademarked his signboard and logo 'right from the start' because he intends to expand into a chain or sell franchises.

His family business, which processes and distributes coffee powder, was not trademarked as it dealt mainly with other businesses.

'But brands are much more important at a customer retail level,' he said.

Recent media reports of 'food feuds' could also have led to the increased number of small organisations trademarking their names and logos, said industry experts.

In most cases, various family members left an existing and successful business to set up on their own, taking the name and/or logo with them.

If there is no trademark, the original 'owners' of the business' reputation have no recourse to fall back on; being reduced to fighting it out via newspaper advertisements and word-of-mouth support.

Once a trademark is registered, business owners can more easily sue a 'copycat'. It is 'cheaper, quicker and easier' to prove ownership if the case goes to court, said Mr Ng.

These types of cases can incur legal fees to the tune of hundreds or thousands of dollars, making the $1,000 to $3,000 it costs to register a trademark a much better option, he said.

This article was first published in The Straits Times on January 28, 2009.