Patent Attorney and Founder
When a Product Is Different, Don’t Blur the Edge
Some advice sounds simple until you try to follow it.
If you have something truly different, don’t water it down.
I hear founders say it all the time.
“We want to add more features.”
“Customers asked for something else.”
“Maybe we should branch out.”
Sometimes that makes sense. Markets change. People change. Trends shift.
But other times?
It quietly kills the very thing that made the product work.
When a product stands apart, your job is not to chase everything else. Your job is to protect the edge. Ride it. Build around it. Make it sharper, not wider.
That idea hit me while watching a founder pitch her cosmetic brand.
Her product wasn’t just another blush on a crowded shelf. It had a look. A feel. A story. It felt intentional. And when you see something like that, you stop asking surface questions.
Not, “What else can you add?”
But, “How strong is the core?”
Because when something is truly different, focus beats expansion every time.
Differentiation Is a Fragile Thing
Most founders think being different is permanent.
It’s not.
Differentiation is fragile. It’s easy to blur. Easy to copy. Easy to dilute.
You launch with one strong idea. Then:
- A retailer wants a new version.
- Customers ask for extra features.
- Investors push for scale.
Before long, your product starts to look like everyone else’s.
Not bad.
Just forgettable.
And forgettable brands die quietly.
The founders who win long-term don’t chase noise. They protect signal.
They ask:
- What do people actually remember?
- What makes us recognizable in three seconds?
- What do customers describe without being prompted?
If your answer gets longer over time, you’re drifting.
Strong brands can be explained in one breath.
The Question Behind the Numbers
One of the first things people jump to is valuation.
How much money for how much ownership?
She was early. The beauty space is brutal. Competition never sleeps. Yet she pulled in about $2.1 million in sales in a year.
That’s not small.
It’s not a billion-dollar empire either. But it’s real. It shows people are buying, not just liking posts.
Still, when deals start, emotion creeps in.
Someone says, “Eight percent isn’t interesting.”
Another says, “Maybe you’re asking for too much.”
Now the dance begins.
Not because the product is bad.
But because everyone is trying to bend the deal into something that feels fair for them.
Here’s what founders often miss.
The real question isn’t the percent.
It’s risk.
Who carries it.
Who shares it.
Who controls it when things go sideways.
Why Investors Push Back
When someone says, “That’s not interesting,” they’re usually not insulting you.
They’re saying:
- The return feels slow.
- The risk feels high.
- Or the structure doesn’t fit their style.
So they reshape it.
Royalty deals show up.
Equity shifts.
Money moves.
Suddenly it’s:
- $400,000 for royalties.
- $1 per unit until payback.
- Or double your money before equity matters.
And now you’re not just talking about ownership.
You’re talking about cash flow and pressure.
Royalties sound friendly.
Until every sale feels taxed.
Equity sounds scary.
Until you realize the right partner brings reach, credibility, and problem-solving you can’t buy.
Every deal structure pushes behavior.
Royalties push volume.
Equity pushes growth.
Debt pushes survival.
So founders shouldn’t ask, “How much money?” first.
They should ask, “How will this change the way I run my company?”
Deals Are Emotional, Not Just Financial
There’s another part nobody likes to admit.
Deals aren’t math only.
They’re personal.
When someone says, “You’re getting all of us,” what they really mean is:
- You’re getting experience.
- You’re getting access.
- You’re getting reputation.
Sometimes that’s real.
Sometimes it’s ego.
Often it’s both.
But founders need to listen carefully.
Because the deal isn’t just about cash.
It’s about who sits with you when shipments fail.
When ads stop converting.
When influencers ghost.
When TikTok changes the rules again.
Partners matter most when things break, not when cameras are on.
Good money feels calm.
Bad money feels loud.
If a deal makes you tense before it closes, it usually gets worse after.
The Power of a Founder’s Story
What stood out wasn’t just packaging.
It was the founder.
A refugee.
An immigrant.
A woman building something from scratch.
Those stories aren’t marketing fluff. They’re real leverage.
Different backgrounds create different thinking.
Innovation doesn’t come from sameness.
It comes from people who didn’t grow up with the same assumptions. People who solve problems differently because they had to.
When leadership ignores that, growth slows.
You don’t get safer.
You get stale.
We don’t need fewer founders like that. We need more.
And when they show up, the system should help protect what they build, not trip them along the way.
Which brings us to the part most founders ignore until it hurts.
The legal side.
What Patents Really Protect
From a patent angle, something interesting was happening.
She didn’t have a utility patent.
Meaning nothing covered the formula or the function.
But she did have design patents.
Design patents protect how something looks.
Not how it works.
Not what it’s made of.
But the visual shape.
In her case, the cosmetic container had a star-shaped base. A distinct profile. Something you recognize across a shelf.
That’s not branding.
That’s legal protection.
If someone copies it too closely, you don’t argue vibes. You argue infringement.
Design patents are underrated.
They’re:
- Faster than utility patents.
- Cheaper to file.
- Powerful in consumer goods.
In beauty, look matters before performance. Customers buy with eyes first.
She also had a second design patent for a holder that carries multiple containers.
Again, not function.
Form.
And form sells.
Utility Patents: When Formula Matters
Design protects appearance.
Utility protects behavior.
In cosmetics, you can patent:
- Compounds.
- Ingredient blends.
- Manufacturing steps.
- Methods of use.
If your formula does something new, you can protect it.
Many founders assume cosmetics can’t be patented.
That’s wrong.
Plenty of beauty brands sit on real patent portfolios.
Not for vanity.
For leverage.
If someone copies your formula, you don’t complain. You enforce.
If your formula isn’t new, you protect your look harder.
Good strategy mixes both.
The Risk Nobody Talks About
But here’s the part founders really miss.
Not having a patent doesn’t mean you’re safe.
It means you might be exposed.
Because someone else might already own rights that overlap your product.
That’s where Freedom to Operate comes in.
Most people ask:
“Can I get a patent?”
Better question:
“Am I allowed to sell this?”
You might never get a patent.
Yet still infringe someone else’s.
In beauty, especially, ingredients and methods are often protected.
Green.
Plant-based.
Soy.
Coconut.
Sustainable blends.
They sound harmless.
But patents exist on combinations, uses, and processing steps.
So before scaling ads, before signing retailers, smart founders ask whether they’re stepping on someone else’s work.
Not because they’re scared.
Because lawsuits cost more than trademarks.
Why Freedom to Operate Saves Money
Freedom to Operate is not about perfection.
It’s about awareness.
It answers questions like:
- Who already owns something similar?
- Where are the legal borders?
- What risks are acceptable?
It lets founders adjust before money is spent, not after lawyers show up.
I’ve seen brands spend years building only to discover a hidden patent conflict late in the game.
That hurts.
Not because the idea was bad.
Because no one checked early.
Smart founders don’t avoid risk.
They price it.
Trademarks: Pick a Lane
Now let’s talk brand protection.
This company did something right.
They registered the word mark, not just logos.
That’s smart.
Logos change.
Words last.
They covered cosmetic classes and apparel classes.
Also smart.
But something jumped out.
Their logo stacked the words:
Youth
Foria
Two words.
But the registration was YouthForia as one word.
That sounds tiny.
It isn’t.
Trademark law cares about how you actually use the name.
If you use two words, protect two words.
If you use one word, protect one word.
Mixing creates cracks.
Cracks become arguments.
Arguments become problems when someone files something close to yours.
So my advice stays simple.
Pick a lane.
One word or two.
Spacing or no spacing.
Logo or plain text.
Then use it the same way everywhere.
Website.
Packaging.
Social media.
Retail.
Consistency isn’t cosmetic.
It’s legal strength.
Why Most Brands Lose Protection
Most trademark problems don’t start with lawsuits.
They start with sloppiness.
Founders:
- Change spacing.
- Change fonts.
- Change names.
- Change tone.
Without changing protection.
So the legal record drifts away from the real brand.
And enforcement gets weaker.
Your registration should mirror your reality.
Not fight it.
If you sell direct-to-consumer, you may also want protection for online retail services.
Because brands don’t live only on shelves anymore.
They live on screens.
Growth Without Protection Is Fragile
Founders love growth.
More sales.
More followers.
More press.
But growth without protection is fragile.
It looks strong.
Until someone copies you.
Until someone blocks you.
Until someone files first.
Protection isn’t about fear.
It’s about confidence.
When you know your edges are protected, you grow differently.
You move faster.
You negotiate better.
You sleep easier.
Good legal work doesn’t slow business.
It removes friction later.
The Real Lesson for Founders
This story isn’t really about makeup.
It’s about focus.
It’s about understanding that:
- Deals shape behavior.
- Patents shape risk.
- Trademarks shape identity.
And none of those live alone.
They work together.
If you blur your product, you lose leverage.
If you blur your brand, you lose control.
If you ignore patents, you lose safety.
The founders who last aren’t louder.
They’re sharper.
They protect early.
They structure smart.
They pick lanes and stay in them.
When opportunity shows up, they don’t just ask for money.
They ask for alignment.
Because money builds fast.
But protection builds long.
And in business, long beats loud every time.