An award-winning intellectual property consultancy is celebrating its fifth year in business.
Christopher Robertson, an intellectual property expert with more than a decade of experience, set up Robertson IP in 2019 aiming to make the intellectual property system more accessible to SMEs and entrepreneurs.
Since then, the consultancy has grown from a home-based, patent drafting agency into an internationally-recognised IP firm managing portfolios for hundreds of clients worldwide from its Cardiff office.
Christopher, who has a Masters Degree in Physics and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Intellectual Property Law, began his career at the Intellectual Property Office in Newport in 2012, before qualifying as a Patent Examiner, specialising in electronic inventions such as electric vehicle charging and driving technologies.
Whilst on secondment with the Unrepresented Applicant Unit he became aware that “individuals and businesses were without access to professional representation and at risk of undervaluing their inventions due to a lack of expertise in protecting them effectively”.
Driven by a desire to bridge the gap, he left the organisation and founded Robertson IP offering transparent costs, expert support and services ranging from patent applications to trade mark registrations and designs.
“I decided to take the plunge and set up on my own,” explained the Newport-based father-of-one.
“I established the business with the idea of keeping it simple, writing patent applications and then prosecuting them before the Patent Office, on behalf of the inventors to get them through to grant.”
The usual route to obtaining professional help in patent and trade mark matters is via a patent or trade mark attorney, specially-qualified lawyers, neither of which Christopher is, though he is working towards qualifying as a Patent Attorney.
“I do things a little bit differently to most attorneys,” he added.
“I originally put a fixed price list on the website so clients knew what they were getting before contacting me.
“It can cost between £5,000 and £10,000 for a patent application, which a lot of people who have really good inventions can’t afford. This is where I’m able to provide that middle ground.”
Within six months Christopher hired extra staff and co-working space in Newport to accommodate his growing business.
“When the pandemic hit we transitioned to working from home but the work began to dry up as small businesses, that were among my target market, were unfortunately closing,”
By the end of the pandemic he took the difficult decision to scale down the business.
Since re-locating to Blue Koala Office Solutions in Cardiff in 2022, the business has grown and now looks after 200 clients.
“I’ve extended my service offering to international patent, trade marks and registered designs and provide training courses to anyone who wants to understand intellectual property a little bit better,” he said.
“Navigating the whole patent application process can be expensive and challenging, but with the right steps and professional guidance, applicants can secure their innovation’s future.
“We’re dedicated to levelling the playing field in intellectual property, empowering innovators to protect and maximise the value of their creations.
“It’s an interesting and intriguing job. I’m always learning about new technology and law.
“I see all kinds of inventions from sheds to a humane fly trap. One client successfully won investment after appearing on the BBC 1 series ‘Dragons’ Den’ with a nose clip air filter.
“I look after start-ups who just want to register their trade mark to businesses with multi-million pound turnovers.The part of my job that I love the most is making Intellectual Property accessible, transparent and easy to understand, as well as offering a personalised, high-quality service.”