Discussion:
What is the name of your state? New Jersey
I want to purchase jeans from companies at retail price, add different embellishments to them and then resell them on ebay. I also have the ambition of starting my own clothing line. I already have a name picked out but I am not yet able to aquire the denim to make my own jeans on which to embellish. So, I have four questions:
First, Is it legal to buy these jeans at retail, add embellishments and then resell them on ebay?
Second, Can I sell them under my name?
Third, Can I remove the tags from these jeans?
And fourth, am I obligated to mention the name of the company I purchased the jeans from in my advertisements?
Answer:
First, Is it legal to buy these jeans at retail, add embellishments and then resell them on ebay? Generally yes.
Second, Can I sell them under my name? This is a more difficult question, and brings up the question of "reverse passing off" of goods, selling another's goods as your own. There's not a lot of case law (that I'm aware of, at least) in this particular area -- the main "reverse passing off" case dealt with copyright issues. However, in that case, the Supreme Court did note that the Lanham Act (trademark law) prohibits "reverse passing off," so it is likely -- although not set in stone -- that if this ever were to end up in court, selling someone else's jeans as your own would be found to be illegal. You can read the case, Dastar Corp. v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp., 539 U.S. 23 (2003), if you want -- justlook it up on Google.
Third, Can I remove the tags from these jeans? Yes, they are your jeans. But simply removing the tags won't protect you if the original trademark holder decides to come after you for "reverse passing off."
And fourth, am I obligated to mention the name of the company I purchased the jeans from in my advertisements? No, but see above.
Your best bet is probably to sit down with a local attorney who has experience in trademarks and can review all of the facts of your situation and advise you accordingly. This appears to be kind of a murky area in the law, and some time spent with an attorney upfront might be money well spent.
Of course, if you can figure out how to get your own jeans manufactured, that would solve all of these problems...