Today we sit down with Associate, Inès Garlantezec who recently joined our Luxembourg office to learn what's great about MARQUES.
The 2023 MARQUES Annual Conference is being held in Berlin this September where the theme for focus will be ‘The Next Frontier’. What are you most excited to discuss about the next frontier of brand protection and trade marks whilst at the event?
The world is always evolving, and brands with it... there have been many challenges recently, Covid, Brexit, Metaverse, climatic crisis and sadly the war. Businesses have to evolve, and we constantly have to advise as to possible changes in their portfolio and adapted strategies.
I am particularly looking forward to the workshops, about sustainability and the one about brand engagement.
The event will also focus on brand authenticity, in particular how economic, social and cultural factors influence branding strategies. Which brands do you think are doing this well and why?
I believe the Danish fashion brand Ganni is a great example. I personally love the brand and believe that their approach to sustainability is the right one, they played the honest card and stated honestly that they were “not a sustainable brand.” I believe this was courageous and avoids the risk of “greenwashing”, especially at a time when most other fashion brands were claiming they were sustainable. Instead, Ganni explained to their customers their plans to improve and shared their aim of a 50% target of carbon reduction by 2027. Find out more here.
Another fashion brand is Alohas which talks about its “on-demand” or “just in time” production, which appears more sustainable.
This will be your first MARQUES, from workshops to networking to speeches – what are you looking forward to doing the most and why?
I am mostly looking forward to meeting colleagues and making new connections. I have heard that MARQUES organises amazing receptions and getting to know people from all around the world equally passionate about IP, hearing about the trends or legal changes in their respective country is very enriching.
I am also excited about the sessions and workshops as we do not always have as much time to dive into specific topics as I would like – so this event will give me the opportunity to gather a lot of knowledge and new perspectives in just a few days.
Details of our team of experts on the ground in Berlin, together with some of our latest relevant insights can be found here.