What’s in a name? A lot apparently, as entrepreneurs, artists, and makers of all kinds spend enormous amounts of energy searching for the right name for their business, project, organization, or creation. Below, you’ll find the stories of how various successful brands, creators and entrepreneurs came up with their names.

Charity Davenport

When it came to naming my business, I knew I wanted something that was catchy and relatable. So think about it…it’s after Thanksgiving dinner, Christmas dinner, Sunday dinner or even just any middle of the week dinner. You’ve had a huge delicious meal that has you on the verge of being completely stuffed. Read more>>

Taylor Marie

It’s actually such a full-circle story. When I was about 14 years old, my mom had the idea of starting her own candle brand. She has always been a lover of aromatherapy and wanted to start her own but couldn’t decide on a name. I came to her with a few ideas, but my favorite was Euphoria. Read more>>

Kimberly Genevieve

My Art gallery is inspired by the Art of Living, the name “Art of Vieve” is a nod to living a life of creativity and self-expression. The word Vieve, short for Genevieve, also stands for Vivre, the french word for Living – it’s about creating a home and a life that truly represents you and your unique style and personality instead of letting the outside world decide for you. Read more>>

Nikki Reed

Our name speaks to the marriage of both of our backgrounds which is the inspiration behind our company and ethos – fashion + food! “ATELIER” translates to “house of” and is a term often used by fashion brands. “SAUCIER” is a position in a classic French brigade kitchen. Read more>>

Simone Gaddy

Sow and Glo, is a reflection of my personal journey during the pandemic and my desire for personal growth and happiness. When I started this venture, I was working in a corporate job that left me feeling stressed and unfulfilled. Like many others, the pandemic had me reevaluating my life and priorities. Read more>>

Dr. Shannan T. Payne

I like to play with words and I also didn’t want a name that suggested that the kids were going to be sleeping, because I have never heard of kids who are interested in actually sleeping at a slumber party. I also wanted a name that immediately let potential clients know what I offer. Taking these things into account, Teepee Jamboree came about. Read more>>

Brittany Pomplun

A good ole google search is how I came up with the name. I decided when I came up with the business idea that I didn’t want anything about it to be vulgar or crude. I was thinking about bachelorettes and I wanted people to see my product and laugh. Read more>>

Kristyn Ivey

When I first heard about Marie Kondo and the KonMari Method®, I read her book cover-to-cover and ran to my closet to try this “Does this ‘spark joy?’” thing. I quickly realized the phrase just doesn’t click with me. It felt awkward to say out loud. I inherently understood the feeling Marie was trying to convey, but the phrase felt unnatural. Read more>>

Dee Sali

I started the agency with my husband, Kris. We wanted a name that not only encompassed what we do but also how we do it. Our character, our style, and how we do things is what sets us apart. We are a powerful force for change, helping to bring genius ideas to life, cultivating connection, and bringing heart and a feeling of community into all that we do. We wanted to choose a name that reflects all of the above and so much more. Read more>>

Nat & Mia Vargas

Our company is called Mousse in honor of our beloved childhood dog, Mousse Mel. Read more>>

Dr. Monica Lara

I really like those names that are “something & something” Like Metal and Smoke, Willow and Oak but nothing described my business. I am a biologist so I thought somthing in Latin because scientists give everything a 2-part name in Latin. Again a fish name didn’t make sense ( I am an ichthyologist and worked on fish but it had nothing to do with jewelry). Read more>>

Bree Wolfe

I thought hard on this one. What would encompass who I am, what can bring to the table, and what will my clients need? I love science. I love people. I love to love. Read more>>

Migs Mendoza

Diamond Skills 108 name came from a brain storming day I had where I was playing with different types of names, mix matching words and playing off other words. I was avoiding names that are overused in our industry such as Academy, Elite, Next level, the number 101 to name a few. I got to about 20 names and needed to get to my top 4. They were 1) Diamond Republic Read more>>

Pamela Urcid Martinez

After some self-exploration on my practice, my intentions and my actions, I kind of went from there to finally chose to be recognized as The Bhogi Yogi. Read more>>

Fruzsina Szemzo

This is a funny story :) I randomly asked an old client how she felt after my classes and she said, like an Amazon and that was it. Initially, I called the method Amazon Body, which then morphed into Amazon Rising to match the energy I was tapping into through my personal evolution. And just this year I tuned in deeper and the energy that the movement method had begun to really embody was more of an internal activation of true power, so The Amazon Activation was born and feels very RIGHT. Read more>>

Jane Heur

Naming our brand, Roseray, was a reflection of a deeply personal and transformative realization. I had always held the belief that beauty was a pursuit primarily associated with youth, a notion that sadly reinforced shallow ideals. In the beauty industry, I witnessed the pervasive pressure to conform to certain standards, the need for specific products to attain a predefined concept of beauty. Read more>>

Ilya Levin

I named my company, Train Like Pablo, after my first dog Pablo. He’s a Rottweiler I adopted while I was in college and he’s the reason I became a professional dog trainer. By working with him I discovered my passion in life. While I would train Pablo in the street, so many people would call to me and ask me to train their dogs just like him. Once I officially set up my business, I couldn’t think of a better name other than Train Like Pablo. Read more>>

Anita Tak

Hi, I’m Anita! Besides my full-time job as a graphic & web designer, I also recently started an online store, ShopCozy. Read more>>

Leah Hoffman

Coming up with a name was definitely a challenge, especially with so many existing brands already out there. I needed something that felt personal to me, yet others could connect with. That’s when I decided to incorporate my Confirmation Saint into my story. Saint Gianna Beretta Molla is the Patron Saint of mothers, Phyicians and unborn children and her last name in Italian means “motivating force”.  Read more>>

Jay Allman

“The passion I have for a clean network and home automation is what ignited the creation of our business acronym. It’s all the things I cherish about these technologies that have served as the driving force behind our company’s inception. Read more>>

Peggy O’Brien

It is! One of our first investments after starting the business was working with a branding agency to help us develop our name and visual branding. While all of the exercises they hosted were incredibly engaging and beneficial to our thought process, it ultimately led us to our own brainstorming work. We dove into our personal and professional values and styles as California-based individuals. Read more>>

Tyler Ham Pong

People ask about our name all the time, so it’s definitely a conversation starter. At its heart, Kill the Pig Productions is a reference to “Lord of the Flies” — and like those lost boys in the novel, we’re independent, we’re scrappy, and we do it ourselves. In that way, our name is also a battle cry against the establishment. Filmmaking is a competitive industry, and both my wife and I have had to make our own opportunities to level-up and be heard amongst the noise. Read more>>

Jake Buhler

The name Deli & Grocery came about during the summer between my Junior and Senior year at MICA (Maryland Institute College of Art). I met Roman Finkelstein a few years earlier at MICA. He was also from NYC. During that transitional summer my dad was away, so Roman and I would meet up at his studio almost every night after out internships. We took over the studio dubbing it Toyland. Read more>>