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Annnik Mar 19, 2008

Has anyone changed the name of their business without much fuss?

I don't mean legal-wise, I mean from the stand point of your customers. 

Back in November, I did my first show and it was not well.  (for any of the vendors)  But one person did open my eyes to something I had not thought of before.
My business is "ALM Bears & Sculpts"... as in A nn L. M alone Bears & Sculpts.

"Alm Bears??  Are you poor?"  As in "Alms for the poor"!! 

How many people have seen my business name in that way?

So I was thinking of casually changing it to maybe something that start with ALM...  "Ann's Little Monsters"?  "Ann's Little Moonbears"??  (Moonbears is what I call my face-less little bears)

HELP!  I don't know if I should change this.  And if I do, I don't know what to change to.

Melisa Nichols Mar 19, 2008

I haven't changed my name for selling my bears... simply as I've never thought of something great to change it to.  I think if you advertised that you were changing your name well enough in advance it wouldn't make a difference, but I could be wrong. 

Just a thought... I was wondering what your username "Annnik" stands for ... I thought "Annnik Bears" rolles off the tongue nicely... could be catchy!   

Kilde Mar 21, 2008

If you feel uncomfortable with your business name or it can be misunderstood, I would change it. I don't have a business name (or a business!  ) but if I were to choose a business name, I wouldn't choose one like "moonbears". What if you at some point get tired of making moonbears and find that your bears are going in a different direction from moonbears to traditional bears, gollies etc?

Business names and website names - in my opinion - should be easy to remember and spell. Why not go with Malone Bears or Malone Bears & Critters? It might not be that catchy, but its easy to remember. 

rkr4cds Mar 21, 2008

If you are fairly new to selling, I should think that it would be very easy to change at this point, as collectors may not have made a permanent connection with you & your trade name yet. And hopefully you haven't invested heavily yet in business cards, imprinted bags or boxes for packaging your work, business forms, etc...

I was a hairdresser who stopped work in a shop just before our first child was born, but soon had a thriving business going at home, for just hair cuts. It was a Cash business: when I decided to apply for a State of IL Sales Tax Resale number and in other states that I exhibited and bought inventory in, I thought long and hard about it. (You can't imaging the # of ppl who were puzzled why I'd want to change from an off-the-books cash business to accounting to the State & Fed) but I wanted it if for nothing else than being able to take advantage of wholesale pricing & discounts from suppliers.

As a side light: it is to the governing office's advantage to offer tax-free sales to licensed businesses: when I purchase $5 worth of goods going into producing something selling for $100, the State loses the income on the $5 purchase but receives a much larger sales tax amount when I, in turn, sell it for $100.

So, in 1980 I knew I'd probably do many things different things in my lifetime and chose a Studio name instead of using my own name, and Creative Design Studio has covered my continued haircutting, a stained glass business (finished pieces & patterns), a custom knitting business and now many different aspects of the bear world.
I do use it more than half the time with my name included, (rkr4cds and Roberta Kasnick Ripperger for/4 Creative Design Studio) so ppl become familiar with seeing me personally by name association with a chosen trade name.

I use something else for a website however, as Creative Design Studio had already been trademarked and I wanted something evoking more than just Bobbie's Bears (though I'm a big fan of alliteration!) so chose Beyond Basic Bears (BBB!), knowing that it would leave open a wide margin for moving in many different directions in the artist field.

JMO on choosing trade names.....

Annnik Mar 21, 2008

thanks everyone for the advice!  I hate to change the name, but I think it might be wise.

Melissa, "Annnik" is a user name that I was given YEARS ago on some website I can't remember!  It just "stuck".     "Annnik Bears" does roll nicely!

Tina, very good point... "Moonbears" is a line I just now created and don't know if I'll continue with it.  I was looking at tying in "ALM" with the new name, thought it might help.  And "Monsters" doesn't quite work.

Bobbie, I've been selling under ALM Bears & Sculpts for a little over 3 years and am just now getting a repeat customer base.  I guess I could streatch it out to "Ann L Malone Bears"...  then I wouldn't have to change much.  My website is already "almalone.com"...

hmmmm... lots to think about.

Thanks again!

FenBeary Folk Mar 21, 2008

Ann, wanted to post the other day but I have been so busy

To be really honest, it never even occured to me, strange to think of that association

At the end of the day if you are uncomfortable then I would alter it in some way that maybe is a longer version, I have just noticed your web address.............almalone...........so AlmaLone Bears. AL Malone Bears, or almalone bears, if people know your website they will be familira with the name

bearhug07 Mar 24, 2008

As it is your initials why  not make it  A. L. M.     and make the full stops little bear faces or something cute like that. In Australia you don't need to register as a business if you use your name. So if that is similar for you that may solve that problem as well.......and it is not too big a change. Just a tweak.

Annnik Mar 25, 2008

Thanks everyone for some great suggestions!  I have alot to think about now. 

Hopefully I'll make a decsion soon as my website is whoa-fully in need of an update.

Thanks again!!

Cleathero Creations Mar 26, 2008

I had to change my name due to tax reasons and the fact I do several things now.  I kept my original bear web domain though and will continue to do so as people have associated that with me for a little and I can't remember where everything is.