Meet the IP Professional: Daniel March – Building Brands Through Trusted Advice

Daniel March is a Chartered Trade Mark Attorney and consultant at Two IP. Having worked across private practice, major law firms and global brand portfolios, he brings a practical and client-focused approach to trade mark protection, helping businesses understand the value of their brands and navigate an increasingly complex intellectual property landscape.

Quick Profile

Name: Daniel March
Role: Consultant and Chartered Trade Mark Attorney
Firm / Organisation: Two IP
Location: London, UK
Areas of expertise: Trade marks, brand protection, trade mark strategy, portfolio management, client advisory work

A profession few people plan for

Daniel is the first to admit that few people grow up wanting to become a trade mark attorney.

“Most people haven’t even heard of a trade mark attorney,” he says. Like many in the profession, his route into IP was not planned from the outset. While studying law at university, he took an intellectual property module that introduced him to trade marks, patents, copyright and design rights.

The subject sparked an interest that eventually led him away from a traditional legal career path and into the world of trade marks.

What appealed most was the connection to innovation, technology and the products people encounter every day. Rather than focusing solely on legal process, Daniel was drawn to a profession that sits close to product development, branding and commercial decision-making.

Seeing brands come to life

Throughout his career, Daniel has worked with a wide variety of clients, from multinational technology companies to household consumer brands.

Among the organisations he has supported are Nokia, Huawei and Unilever. These experiences gave him a front-row seat to the evolution of technology and the importance of brand protection in highly competitive markets.

Working with mobile phone manufacturers allowed him to witness rapid innovation first-hand. Devices that were once primarily used for making calls have evolved into powerful all-in-one communication and computing platforms, creating increasingly complex trade mark considerations.

His work with Unilever provided a different perspective. Supporting brands such as Hellmann’s, Dove, Lynx, Persil, Domestos and Vaseline offered insight into the extensive work involved in bringing products to market.

One of the aspects Daniel enjoys most is seeing a project progress from an early concept to a product on supermarket shelves or featured in national advertising campaigns.

“There’s a lot of background work that goes into it,” he explains. “When you see the finished product, you know you were involved in helping it get there.”

The importance of understanding clients

A recurring theme throughout Daniel’s career has been the importance of tailoring advice to the client.

One of the most valuable lessons he learned early on was that clients are not simply looking for a list of options. They want guidance.

Rather than presenting every possible route equally, he believes the role of an attorney is to understand the client’s objectives and recommend the most appropriate course of action.

That means adapting communication styles depending on the audience. An in-house counsel may require detailed legal analysis, while a business owner may simply need a clear answer about whether a proposed brand can move forward.

Daniel believes effective advice should be straightforward and accessible.

“You don’t have to use legal language to show expertise,” he says. “The best advice is often the simplest and easiest to understand.”

A new chapter at Two IP

After many years in traditional private practice and large law firms, Daniel recently joined Two IP as a consultant.

The move represented a significant career change. Shifting from an established role to a consultancy environment brought both excitement and uncertainty.

“It’s very daunting,” he says. “The buck stops with you.”

What attracted him to Two IP was the opportunity to build stronger client relationships while enjoying greater flexibility and autonomy.

He values the supportive culture he has found within the firm and appreciates the ability to focus on client service without some of the distractions that can come with larger organisations.

For Daniel, one of the biggest attractions is the ability to focus on client service. The consultancy model allows him to build relationships in his own way, work more flexibly and spend more time on the aspects of the profession he finds most rewarding.

Brands are much more than registrations

One of Daniel’s strongest messages for businesses is that trade marks should not be viewed simply as registrations.

Instead, they should be treated as valuable commercial assets.

A trade mark helps consumers identify the products and services they trust. Over time, that recognition creates loyalty, reputation and commercial value.

“The registration itself may cost a few hundred pounds,” he explains, “but the value of the brand can be enormous.”

For that reason, he encourages businesses to think strategically about brand protection from the outset. That includes conducting proper clearance searches, understanding future growth plans and developing an enforcement strategy to protect rights once they are established.

As online commerce continues to expand globally, these considerations have become increasingly important.

Daniel has also observed how technological developments are changing the profession. While artificial intelligence and automation can speed up tasks such as searching and reporting, he believes human expertise remains essential.

“AI is a tool,” he says. “It can help you work more efficiently, but clients still need advice, judgement and experience.”

Learning from others and paying it forward

Throughout his career, Daniel has benefited from the guidance of mentors and colleagues who helped shape his approach.

One experience that left a lasting impression involved a senior barrister who helped him prepare for professional examinations. When Daniel enquired about payment for the support, the barrister declined.

Instead, he asked for one thing: help the next generation.

That lesson has stayed with Daniel throughout his career and continues to influence the way he works with trainees and junior colleagues today.

He believes professional development extends far beyond formal qualifications.

“Every day is a school day,” he says. “There is always something new to learn.”

Outside the office

Away from work, Daniel enjoys travelling, classic cars and keeping active.

Since moving into consultancy, he has found more flexibility to focus on health and wellbeing and has recently returned to running.

Travel is another passion. Having visited destinations across Europe, the United States, China and the Middle East, he enjoys exploring different cultures, architecture and histories. His next adventure is a trip to Panama.

Daniel is also a keen enthusiast of classic cars, particularly traditional British sports cars. He appreciates the character and styling of older vehicles and enjoys attending car shows whenever time allows.

More recently, he added surfing to the list of activities he has tried, taking to the waves during a trip to Morocco.

Closer to home, he recommends the countryside around Hampstead Heath and Kenwood House, as well as the South Downs near Eastbourne, where he spent time walking with family while growing up.

For those looking for a more challenging walk, Scafell Pike remains one of his favourite hiking experiences.

Looking ahead

Reflecting on a career that has spanned major brands, global clients and significant changes within the profession, Daniel remains enthusiastic about the future of trade marks.

While technology will continue to reshape how attorneys work, he believes the fundamentals remain unchanged.

Successful trade mark practice is built on understanding people, communicating clearly and helping businesses protect the brands that matter most to them.

For Daniel, the key is simple: understand the client, provide practical advice and build relationships based on trust.

Contact

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-march-59483b84/
Website: Two IP
Email: [email protected]

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