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.

Hanny Lerida-Fester

When I first started, blogging was just a hobby. It was something I had started due to all the travel I was doing and I wanted a way to keep my family and friends posted. I started out as ‘TravlJunkie’, but the more I blogged, the more I started to learn that this could ultimately become a company and a full-time job. This led me to go to my first blogging conference ever and learned about trademarking. Read more>>

Ashley Rouse

I went to culinary school in 2005 and have worked in restaurants and hotels ever since. I’ve always cooked a ton at home and even used to have a blog called ‘I Speak Kitchenese.’ Part of that was canning items – squash, green beans, jams, mustards – as I’m a big fan of home preserving and also love condiments. I started making jams and giving them to friends and family and I just absolutely adored it and knew I wanted to sell them one day. During my years in Charlotte, North Carolina, I lived in this awesome tiny apartment on Trade Street. Read more>>

Christie Shirk

You don’t really forget the moments you step into paradise. The salty air. The breeze. The sound of waves. If you’re not a local, maybe your soul is. We were inspired to create a brand that will reflect the love we have for the lifestyle we live. The one we dream of…or the one we create. Your zip code doesn’t matter when your heart is always at the beach. Hence, Local Soul. Read more>>

BLNK Studios

I (Cece) was sitting on the computer making an initial website design without a company name. I decided to use BLANK and a filler name/logo. When I turned around, Seth & Nick thought I was some genius with the BLANK idea but suggested we drop the A. So, we went with BLNK. The name is simple, but it has a deeper meaning. We were very inspired by the idea that a studio is a “Blank canvas,” and the photographer has the power to create something unique. Read more>>

Manuela Hoyos

the name of my company came with the conjugation of the first two initials of my sister Name (Marcela) and me (Manuela) and we complement it with Craft, which is what we do. that’s why we’re called MAcraft Read more>>

Julia Freeman

I’ll be honest, I don’t feel that I am the best at things like picking a company name. I didn’t want to go the route of using my name when I started my company but I am sentimental so I came up with The Avera Boutique. Avera, pronounced “Avery”, is a town in Mississippi where my great, great, great grandparents lived and ran a boarding house. I’ve always thought that the Avera boarding house was a cool bit of family history so I used that to come up with my company name. Read more>>

Reid Torrens

Our name “Cura” comes from Latin, where it has the meaning help, care, and heal. We believe in the healing aspects of food as medicine and that a nutritious diet is a critical component of maintaining a healthy lifestyle. We wanted a name that embodies our belief that prioritizing nutritious food in an individual’s life can either prevent, reduce symptoms of, or reverse disease. We believe the words to help, care, and heal represent our brand and mission. Read more>>

Charlie DeSando

77 % of the chefs in restaurants in the US are men. So why do so many men either hate, avoid or just stink at cooking? To me the reasons are simple – either they just don’t want to learn how to cook or they are intimidated by anything more than simple grilling of steaks. I love to cook. It is a form of creativity that is hard to duplicate at work. You plan, prepare, serve, devour and then take in the adulation of your adoring public, for the wonderful meal you have created with your own two hands. Read more>>

Andrease Crosby

The name Curves and Curls comes from the two main things that my product line helped with your Curves and your Curls. At first I thought it was a lot to say but I wanted my title to actually tell you what it was for. Later on I started modeling more often and I adapted the name MissCurvesandCurls which then led to me going into management A&R and promotions essentially the entertainment business I wanted to give my business its own name but I still want it to be associated with my original company so I ended up naming my entertainment company MCC Entertainment . Read more>>

Chelle Antoinette

With Berani Femme Couture Scrubwear & Medical Supply being owned and operated by a woman, I wanted a name that not only reflected that but that would also stand out from other stores similar to mine. “Berani” is an Indonesian word and it is an infinite word that has many meanings such as strong, courageous, resilient, and any other positive word that captivates the positive attributes of “Femme” (women). This is also why I utilized an infinity sign in my logo as an illustration of the name. Read more>>

James Manning III

The Brand started as YBC ENT. ( Young Black Culture Entertainment.). A. Rhodes and myself were in his garage brainstorming on a way to expand and be more inclusive with the brand. We Realized that while showcasing, embracing and expanding the Young Black Culture that we all love, The name could give the impression that we’re tending to one demographic when the entire goal is to give everyone an insight and expand people’s mind while entertaining. This lead to me saying “All I can think of is when we expand the culture, then it becomes Elevated.” We then decided Elevated Culture was the best name for us to be inclusive to all cultures. Read more>>

Sierra Jolivette

About two years ago, there was a time period where I was depressed. I wanted to occupy my time with healthy distractions. I started a new hobby creating candles, bath salts, and body butter. I noticed that every scent I was testing was a calming one: lavender, eucalyptus, chamomile, and peppermint . When the hobby turned into a business idea, I knew that I wanted to do more than just candles. Read more>>

Michelle “Honey” Thomas

The name of my company is Red Lotus Reads LLC. Red: was my mom’s favorite color Lotus: I love the symbolic meaning of the Lotus Flower Reads: I’m a writer and author, and I’ve always loved to read. Read more>>

Charity Lane, Ph.D.

My passion is to create bodies that people are proud of and I was intent on developing a catchy name for my company that would portray that. These types of ideas are typically generated in my sleep – and one super early morning I woke up around 2am with the name – Body Carvers! I was so excited that I couldn’t wait until the next day to make sure it was an available URL, business name in Florida etc, so I hopped on line and bought the URL. No one has asked what the name means, but folks have commented on how cool the name is and that its clear what the intent of it is! Read more>>

Tulika Agarwal

Tulika’s Furry Buddies says it all! Every pet that comes to our home will leave as a member of our family. Tulika’s Furry Buddies represents the growing community of dogs who have joined our family through petsitting. Read more>>

Shalley Gordon

The company name, Taste of Sleek, was hand picked to represent the aesthetic I wanted for my brand. I not only want my clients to have delicious treats, I want all of my clients to have a luxury experience. “Taste” comes from the experience their taste buds will encounter when enjoying their tasty treats. “Sleek” was chosen because it represents elegant, polished and well-designed, which is how I want all of the custom treats I create to uphold. So “Taste of Sleek” was chosen because I was all of my clients to have a sweet, delectable and appealing experience as we work together to bring the vision of their event to life. Read more>>

Majazz Muwwakkil

Originally, I wanted to start a TV Mounting specific company (called Majazz’s Mounting or Mounts by Majazz), but I felt as if I would be selling myself short and not utilizing all of my home improvement talents. I really have never actually liked the word “handyman” but I wanted to incorporate some form of relation back to essentially what comes with being good at a lot of different home improvement tasks. On a slightly deeper meaning for me, it showcases what I am able to produce with just my hands. Read more>>

Chanell Banks

I opened the dictionary and flipped through some pages, until I found a word that stuck with my gut the most. Brave is my life experience for the most part. And to me…. Being Brave means DOING the things you want to do. The things you can do. However, you keep telling YOURself you can’t do. In regard to personal style it is said to me often. Read more>>

Kendra Thomas

I came up with Books By Ken while I was writing my second book I wanted to brand myself so i took a part of my name Kendra and shortened it to Ken and because I was writing books, I added that and my company name was born, Books By Ken. Read more>>

Majorie Dorismond

I came up with the name of my company from my Second Book (#SpeakFreely). How did I come up with the name #SpeakFreely? One early morning on January 8th 2018 I was walking out my front door to go to the airport and (God) spoke to me and said #SpeakFreely. After getting out of jail the last time on April 9th 2018 I’ve been asking myself what will I name my second book. Boom, GOD said #SpeakFreely. 3 months later April 24th 2018 I self Published my second Poetry book #SpeakFreely. Months after, September 8th 2018 I started my own Clothing Line (#SpeakFreely the Brand). Read more>>