A strong brand is often the most valuable asset a company owns — and the least visible one on its balance sheet. An independent valuation turns brand recognition into a defensible number that banks, investors, auditors and courts will accept.
Kanzas values trademarks and brands for corporate clients worldwide — from marks operating in a single national market to brands generating sales across the globe. Trademark and brand valuation is not a licensed activity in most jurisdictions, so we accept engagements from clients in any country; our team has 20+ years of experience with intangible assets and works to the International Valuation Standards (IVS), with methodology familiar to clients accustomed to RICS- and TEGoVA-trained valuers.
When You Need a Trademark or Brand Valuation
- contribution in kind — trademark rights contributed to the charter (share) capital of a company;
- sale of a brand, or of a business together with its brand;
- collateral — trademark rights pledged to secure bank financing;
- licensing — royalty-based license agreements between related or third parties;
- IFRS financial reporting — fair value of intangibles for audit purposes;
- disputes — trademark infringement, damages and lost profits claims.
Standards and Methodology
We value the bundle of intellectual property rights attached to a registered trademark: the registration certificate, the classes of the Nice Classification it covers, international registrations, and existing license agreements. Engagements are performed on an IVS-consistent basis; where a valuation is required for statutory purposes in Ukraine, reports also comply with Ukrainian National Valuation Standard No. 4 on intellectual property rights.
For a brand with an established sales history, the income approach is the primary basis: the relief-from-royalty method estimates the royalties the owner would otherwise pay to license its own mark, and discounts that stream to present value. The reliability of the sales forecast is the heart of the report — several years of trading history under the brand provide the evidence base.
For a mark that has not yet been used commercially, the cost approach applies by default. An income-based valuation is possible only where the sales forecast is supportable: on a highly competitive market, a new entrant's projected market share is rarely defensible, whereas a niche product with a clearly defined premium customer segment can support a cautious, segment-based forecast. The market approach plays a limited role — standalone trademark transactions are rare, as brands are usually sold together with the underlying business.
Royalty Rates from International Databases
Verified royalty statistics are effectively unavailable in the Ukrainian public domain, so we source rates from international databases of licensing transactions, mostly subscription-based. Rates are selected strictly by product group — either averaged across several markets or taken from the market most comparable to the client's. The spread between industries is dramatic: in the gaming industry royalty rates reach 45%, while business software typically licenses at around 15% — formally the same type of product, but with very different sector profitability. In our reports the royalty rate is a calculation input of the method, not a recommendation: we present the sources, countries and ranges, and the commercial decision on the contractual rate remains with the client.
Our Experience
Our practice is not limited to any single market. Anonymized mandates include the valuation of intellectual property of a game developer whose flagship title — and the brand attached to it — sells worldwide, performed to support an international investment raise; the valuation of a Ukrainian watch manufacturer's trademark as collateral for bank lending; the IFRS revaluation of intangible assets of a mining and processing plant for its auditors; and trademark valuations of hospitality and retail brands for contributions to charter capital and sale transactions. We also regularly value brands as part of wider corporate-rights engagements — among them a football club and an IT company. Royalty and market evidence is sourced from international databases, so the same methodology applies whether the brand trades in one country or in fifty. Reports are prepared in English.
Questions and answers
How much does a trademark valuation cost? We quote a fixed fee and timeline after reviewing the registration documents, the scope of rights and the purpose of the valuation — both are agreed before the engagement letter is signed.
Can you value a trademark with no sales history? Yes — by the cost approach as a default. An income-based valuation is used only where a supportable, evidence-based sales forecast exists, such as a niche product with a defined premium segment.
Do you recommend a specific royalty rate for a license agreement? No. We present sourced market ranges by product group and country. Within the relief-from-royalty method the rate is a calculation input; the contractual rate is a commercial decision of the parties, and on request we prepare an extended analytical section on comparable rates.
Do you value trademarks for clients outside Ukraine? Yes. We perform trademark and brand valuations for clients from any country: engagements are run on an IVS-consistent basis, communication is in writing in English, royalty evidence comes from international databases, and the deliverable is an English-language report. Where a brand generates sales in multiple markets, the forecast and royalty analysis cover each relevant market.
Can a trademark be sold separately from the business? Legally yes, but such transactions are rare: a brand generates its premium in combination with the production cycle and the team behind it, so it is usually transferred together with the business.
We work with international clients in writing: email us at [email protected] or message us on Telegram, Viber or WhatsApp. Send your trademark documents for review and we will come back with a fixed quote and timeline.
Related services: Intellectual Property and Intangible Asset Valuation · Patent and Invention Valuation · Know-How and Trade Secret Valuation · Website and Software Valuation · Copyright and Related Rights Valuation
Related services: Transfer Pricing · Lost Profits Valuation · Corporate Rights Valuation · Business Planning
