What should I ask about a design agency’s reusable templates and stock assets?

Start with an inventory. Ask the seller to list every template, layout kit, icon set, font and photo the team reuses on client jobs, and to say who made each one. Separate what staff created from what contractors created and from what was bought or downloaded. Work made by contractors is the item most often left unclear, so ask for the signed agreements that cover it.

Then read the licence terms on the outside pieces. Some stock licences cover a single client project, some cover one named account holder, and some stop when the business changes hands. Ask whether the subscriptions sit in the company’s name or in an employee’s personal name. If a licence will not move to you, ask what the replacement would cost and how many past projects depend on it.

Finally, look at the client contracts. Ask whether clients own the finished designs and whether the agency kept any right to reuse the underlying templates. Your lawyer can read those terms and tell you what they mean for a buyer. Pick a few recent projects and trace each asset back to the inventory to see that nothing is missing.

Key takeaways

• Get a written list of every reusable file and where it came from.
• Check whether stock licences and subscriptions can move to you.
• Ask for the agreements that cover work done by contractors.
• Have your lawyer read the client terms on reuse.