Maybe, but you have to make sure you avoid causing any market confusion as to the source of your shirt. So in this case, if you buy plain Nike or Champion brand shirts and place a logo or design on them, that use of the design would be merely ornamental. This is because you are not the source of the shirt and on the label will appear the actual maker of that shirt. So if your aim is to promote a fashion brand, you will want to white-label your own products that show your brand as the source. These scenarios are a bit tricky because we have to see the difference between using a logo as a trademark to identify you as the source of the product, which in this case you are not versus placing a design even if that is a logo on a plain T solely for promotional purposes. My concern, as I see others have here as well, is that this might be perceived as "reverse passing off" which is a form of trademark infringement. I would not take any action until you received some proper advice and I will offer some general remarks on trademark clearance below as well.
Before you invest in any trademark make sure you get some legal guidance upfront. It is of course best practice to clear it before you start using any trademark and starting with a strong one is your best strategy. Know as well that merely registering your business name with a state or county agency or acquiring a domain does not convey any right to use that name in commerce as a source identifier or trademark. For example, I can presumably register my new tech start up "Boogle" with the TX secretary of state because there is no other business already doing business there under that name, but this does not mean that I would not be infringing on the Google trademark, which I would be. The onus is on you to ensure the name you choose is not a problem.
Your trademark will be one of if not the most important and valuable business assets you will have and you will ultimately spend more money in support if it than you will anywhere else (advertising, marketing, PR, branding, packaging, etc.). So you owe it to your business and yourself to make sure you handle this properly upfront and the first order of business always starts with a proper and comprehensive clearance.
Whenever you endeavor into investing in a trademark it is very important that you conduct the proper clearance due diligence on all the text names upfront and before you start spending any money in support of it or submit an application to the USPTO. In the US, this means searching under both federal (USPTO) as well as common law because trademark rights stem from use in this country NOT registration. This means that acquiring a federal registration does not necessarily mean that you are not infringing on another's intellectual property. See the links below on the importance of the due diligence process and common start up mistakes from Entrepreneur Magazine and our overview guide.
I suggest that you consult with a lawyer in private and discuss your objectives in more detail. You can start by calling around to several for a free consultation, get some insights then pick the best fit to work with and know you are free to work with counsel located anywhere as you have many options available not just those that provide services in your home state.
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/220224
https://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/the-import...
Best regards,
Frank
Natoli-Lapin, LLC
