# Asked how to get permission from Toyota...



## poker (May 27, 2009)

I emailed Toyota USA in the hopes to make Toyota themed apparel. This is the response:



> Thank you for contacting Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
> 
> We appreciate your interest in possible business opportunities with Toyota.
> 
> ...


I'm either not asking the right person or I'm asking the wrong way because clearly they grant licenses:










This was found in a major drug store.


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## red514 (Jul 21, 2009)

they certainly license so i'm guessing you either asked the wrong way or the wrong company. Toyota may have another company handling all their merchandise licensing and the person you contacted has no knowledge of what you're requesting.

what were you asking them?


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## poker (May 27, 2009)

red514 said:


> what were you asking them?


I asked:



> How do I apply for permission to create and produce Toyota licensed products?


Pretty sure I sounded like an amatuer....cuz I am


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## GordonM (May 21, 2012)

Toyota USA may in fact not have the ability to license to third-parties. How's your Japanese? You probably need to go to Toyota in Japan. It's doubtful those toy cars were made in USA, and so they wouldn't have received a license from Toyota USA. In the case of someone like Mattel, which is US-based, they'd go to Toyota Motors in Japan, with a suitcase of cash.


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## Corel Whisperer (Sep 1, 2010)

I did a little digging and found this TOYOTA MOTOR EAST JAPAN, INC. | Office You need to be talking to their legal department... and like GordonM said have a lot of money...


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## charles95405 (Feb 1, 2007)

Not only a lot of cash but the ability to product thousands of products that meet their approval. For most of us on this forum...this is out of reach and probably will not be successful for us


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## poker (May 27, 2009)

Amazing.

So I replied to their rejection and sent them the picture of the merchandise. I get a REAL response this time and a lead to continue my inquiry through proper channels.

So what was the lesson we learned to today:

- Never take NO for an answer the first time 

- Never accept an answer from somebody unless they have the absolute authority to answer your question

- Be persistent in things you believe in 




I understand that ultimately I may reach a dead end since I'm a little guy without the capital to produce or afford a license from the major company. But hey, what's the cost of a trying?


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## missswissinc (Feb 21, 2012)

well it depends on what your looking to do. I do shirts for a couple of major auto dealerships in our area and they are given the permission to use the logo of their dealership (toyota, ford, dodge, chevy) as they see fit. This was told to me from a chevy dealership we did shirts for. Now if you want to do something like shirts and stuff your going to need to go to the individual dealerships and talk to their GM. I know toyota has a marketing team who goes out and purchases the novelty stuff like flash lights, air freshners etc and that is what your seeing there. Some novelty company said hey we want to make these toys and what would it cost as a license fee to make these. I know awhile back I was talking to a guy who did full color can coozie's and as a sample thing had Denny Hamlins stock car on it. well being a nascar fan got talking to him abit about it. He said it cost him around $15,000 to get the whole license fee to produce the can coozie's of all 3 joe gibbs racing teams car. Now mind you that was a couple of yrs ago so I have a feeling it might cost more like 20-25 for something like that.


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## poker (May 27, 2009)

missswissinc said:


> well it depends on what your looking to do. I do shirts for a couple of major auto dealerships in our area and they are given the permission to use the logo of their dealership (toyota, ford, dodge, chevy) as they see fit. This was told to me from a chevy dealership we did shirts for.


Wow! What a great tip. Thanks, I'll look into this approach.


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## missswissinc (Feb 21, 2012)

Now mind you poker that some dealerships may either not be interested in doing shirts or they may just do shirts for the service guys come the summer since that is when they don't want to use long sleeve shirts since we do have some days of 90's-100's here in the NY area. Just wanted to throw that out there so people know that not everything is done through the corp office.


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## poker (May 27, 2009)

Yes I understand. Rejection is part of the game......in any business.


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## kimura-mma (Jul 26, 2008)

missswissinc said:


> Now mind you poker that some dealerships may either not be interested in doing shirts or they may just do shirts for the service guys come the summer since that is when they don't want to use long sleeve shirts since we do have some days of 90's-100's here in the NY area. Just wanted to throw that out there so people know that not everything is done through the corp office.


Just to clarify...
Doing shirts for company employee use is a lot different than doing licensed merchandise for retail sale.

For employee shirts, it's possible to go through the corporate office or directly with individual dealerships. But for licensing, I would only trust a legitimate source from the appropriate department (licensing, legal, marketing, merchandising, product development, identity assurance, ect) at the corporate office.


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## TableSyrup (Feb 8, 2012)

Yeah, be prepared to have some big bucks up front, and also pay out royalties on every product (Most likely with performance requirements)

I haven't attempted to license anything for print, but I have dealt with licensing of audio/video, and it is not easy or cheap.

I've had some great success (With MTV, Major Labels, Major Label Artists, Etc), and some utter failure.... and in some cases, even one very recently with Paramount Pictures, I was asking the right person (Licensing Department) and got a near identical response.

Sometimes, they won't even bother talking to the 'little guy' (Unless the little guy comes right out up front offering lots of cash, and lot's of royalties with performance guarantees)

^ just my input, with my limited experience


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## missswissinc (Feb 21, 2012)

The thing is Tim if you read my previous post prior to qouting my last post I said Dealerships are given permission to use the logo as they (Dealership) feel fit. That means that if the toyota guy I'm going to deliver his winter shirts to for the whole dealership shortly wants me to do New service Shirts since they are moving the dealership to a newer location Toyota allows him to go out and say to people like me Hey can you make new shirts for the service guys and we are allowing you to use the toyota/scion logo. I'm covered under a trade use cause since the dealership asked me to produce the shirts. Now if I decided to lets say go out and sell shirts with the toyota logo or scion logo then I'm in violation of trade use since I have not gotten permission to produce the shirts for sale by either toyota or a dealership. That is why I said not everything you want to do has to involve toyota. I know of a banner company who I can sell to car dealerships the big flags you see outside of dealerships. Small catch I can only sell them to Lic dealerships which means no used car lots could use the same flags since they are not authorized to use said trade marks. Believe me tim I have been in the business for now 7 yrs and this is not my first rodeo using trade mark company names to do work for.


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## royster13 (Aug 14, 2007)

missswissinc said:


> The thing is Tim if you read my previous post prior to qouting my last post I said Dealerships are given permission to use the logo as they (Dealership) feel fit. That means that if the toyota guy I'm going to deliver his winter shirts to for the whole dealership shortly wants me to do New service Shirts since they are moving the dealership to a newer location Toyota allows him to go out and say to people like me Hey can you make new shirts for the service guys and we are allowing you to use the toyota/scion logo. I'm covered under a trade use cause since the dealership asked me to produce the shirts. Now if I decided to lets say go out and sell shirts with the toyota logo or scion logo then I'm in violation of trade use since I have not gotten permission to produce the shirts for sale by either toyota or a dealership. That is why I said not everything you want to do has to involve toyota. I know of a banner company who I can sell to car dealerships the big flags you see outside of dealerships. Small catch I can only sell them to Lic dealerships which means no used car lots could use the same flags since they are not authorized to use said trade marks. Believe me tim I have been in the business for now 7 yrs and this is not my first rodeo using trade mark company names to do work for.


And of course you have a good commercial general liability policy that includes trademark infringement just in case your client does not have the right to authorize you to reproduce a protected logo?????....


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## kimura-mma (Jul 26, 2008)

missswissinc said:


> Believe me tim I have been in the business for now 7 yrs and this is not my first rodeo using trade mark company names to do work for.


Sorry, Mike, I didn't mean to suggest that you needed clarification on the issue.

My post was for the benefit of others who are following along.

For those who are not as experienced in printing trademarks, they may not have noticed the differences between getting a license for retail distribution and getting permission to print shirts for company/employee use.


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## missswissinc (Feb 21, 2012)

Royce I deal with clients who have the rights to reproduce the logo as they (NON CORPRATE AUTHORIZATION) see fit. I don't reproduce anything without doing a little fact checking on my clients. I even asked a chevy dealership give me a copy of the letter they have showing that chevy has given them the rights to use the chevy logo as they see fit and put it on file here in the shop incase someone comes along and says oh your doing shirts without permission. Believe me I do shirts for a company locally who owns the rights to a major company name does that mean I need that "commercial general liability policy " NO. If you look in the paper look in the auto section these car dealerships have marketing companies who do their ads. And guess what's plastered all over the place the dealerships logos be it ford, honda, chevy ford etc. Now how do you think they get to use those logo's I highly doubt they go out and ask every manufactor for the rights?. Better yet look in the phone book I found 2 dealerships who put into the phone book their dealerships logo's of the cars they sell. Also as a good indication if the whole dealership lot is full of Toyota's, fords, Chevy etc I highly doubt they don't have permission to use the logo' to produce for TV ads, Newspaper, internet etc.


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## royster13 (Aug 14, 2007)

If you are in business you need liability coverage....

And as far as authorization....I sure would like to see one of those letters because I have been in business 35+ years and never seen one from GM....


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## kimura-mma (Jul 26, 2008)

missswissinc said:


> permission to use the logo' to produce for TV ads, Newspaper, internet etc.


Apples and oranges.

Use of a logo in an advertisement is governed under different laws than use on a t-shirt (which is a salable good). Similar to my attempt to clarify the difference between using a logo for employee use and using a logo for retail distribution, this also requires clarification (for those who may not realize the difference).


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## JohnnysGraphics (Jan 8, 2015)

I requested the same thing from GM and was given a link to a company called EMI. the website is Home Page | Equity Management Incorporated.
Per their site they handle several brands maybe they can help you find out who to contact?


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## Viper Graphics (Mar 28, 2009)

JohnnysGraphics said:


> I requested the same thing from GM and was given a link to a company called EMI. the website is Home Page | Equity Management Incorporated.
> Per their site they handle several brands maybe they can help you find out who to contact?


Johnny, did you know this thread is 5 years old?


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