By Michael Batenburg of Bed Bugs and Beyond Consulting, special to EO

Choosing the name of a business is one of the hardest things for entrepreneurs. In 2007, I received a hard and potentially devastating lesson about the importance of a name, protecting a brand and the far reaching consequences of trademark law.

The Meeting

Early one morning after an article in a prestigious national newspaper, I received a call from Bed, Bath and Beyond’s general counsel. They wanted us to cease and desist using our company name immediately.