A creative business name can reflect your brand identity, help your customers remember your business, and set you apart from competitors.
For men’s grooming brand Manscaped, the right name became more than a label. Founder Paul Tran says that “manscaping” has now become synonymous with the category. “We are kind of the Kleenex of the space,” he says on Shopify Masters. “You don’t say ’grooming,’ right? You say ’manscaping.’” While not every unique business name becomes part of everyday language, a name can shape how customers think about your brand from the start.
This guide shares practical strategies for coming up with creative business names, along with real examples from ecommerce brands and founders who found names that fit their businesses.
Strategies to generate creative business names
- Tap into authentic storytelling
- Tap inside jokes
- Go minimalist
- Try wordplay
- Adopt alliteration
- Draw from idioms or phrases
- Consider industry or product
- Use your own name
- Pull from other languages
- Try free association
- Collaborate on ideas
- Use a business name generator
There’s no single formula for choosing a business name, but there are approaches that can spark ideas. Here are several techniques to find one that fits your business:
Tap into authentic storytelling
Story-driven business names can reveal the inspiration behind your brand. When backed by a compelling story, even an unfamiliar name can spark curiosity and invite customers to learn more. The beverage brand De La Calle, for example, sells tepache, a traditional Mexican fermented drink made from pineapple rind.
“The name De La Calle stands for ‘off the street’ or ‘in the street’ in Spanish—it’s where you find tepache in Mexico,” co-founder Alex Matthews says on Shopify Masters. The team eventually added the words “modern Mexican soda” to their packaging, not only to unlock demand from a broader share of American consumers, but to help the brand name land with more impact.
To uncover stories worth building a brand around, revisit the conversations you had when your business was in the earliest stages of development. What phrases or moments kept coming up? What were the stories that drove you the most in the beginning? Which one has become the cornerstone of your strategy now?
Tap inside jokes
Your brand name may not need to be laugh-out-loud funny, but it can communicate light-hearted vibes to the same effect.
Unsolicited Plant Talks began as an inside joke. When co-founder April Mall first got into plants, her excitement over a new leaf or propagation meant she would frequently interrupt her husband and co-founder Daryk’s online gaming sessions. One of his friends over the headset joked, “Oh, here comes unsolicited plant talks,” and April vowed then and there to make it her business name.
Go minimalist
A minimalist business name can communicate sophistication while leaving room for your brand to define what it means. High-end hair tool brand T3 intentionally selected a name that sounded more like a tech company and less like a standard appliance. The T stands for ‘tourmaline,’ the semi-precious stone that produces ionic energy from within the dryer; 3 was simply a lucky number.
“Although it was a beauty device, it was also the most technologically advanced. So we just wanted it to have a tech feel,” co-founder Dr. Julie Chung says on Shopify Masters.
For intimate skin care brand Fur, minimalism was a way to capture the essentialist spirit of the brand in a single word. “I don’t know how many names we went through before the moment we got Fur,” co-founder Lillian Tong says on Shopify Masters. “It’s beautiful. It’s the intersection between hair and skin. Let’s take care of our own fur. When we knew, we knew.”
When considering a minimalist name, think about the one word or concept that best captures your brand identity.
Try wordplay
Wordplay can help you create a distinctive name by combining words, inventing new ones, or giving familiar terms fresh meaning. These names can hint at your brand’s mission, values, or personality without being completely literal.
Cleaning brand Blueland, for example, mashed up two words that reflect its mission of reducing plastic waste. “It sounded optimistic and hopeful, and kind of like this ideal utopia that we were trying to get to,” co-founder Sarah Paiji Yoo says in a TikTok video.
Soup dumpling brand MìLà took a different approach. Founders Jen Liao and Caleb Wang changed the name of the business from Xiaochi (a nod to its restaurant origins) to a combination of two Chinese characters, mi (sweet) and la (spice).
“We really wanted a name that captured the duality of being Chinese-American,” Jen says on Shopify Masters.
Adopt alliteration
Alliteration is one way to create a business name with a distinctive rhythm. By repeating sounds or letters, you can make a name feel cohesive and memorable, whether the name describes your business or simply captures its personality.
Rather than being a standalone naming strategy, alliteration can strengthen other naming approaches. For example, personal care brand Salt & Stone combines two natural elements that represent founder Nima Jalali’s passions for surfing and snowboarding. Cosmetics brand Beauty Bakerie speaks to its products and industry, while Manitobah Mukluks pairs its Canadian roots with its signature product.
Draw from idioms or phrases
Leaning into commonly used phrases, idioms, or slang is another way to spark creative business name ideas. Self-described nerd bodega Revenge Of offers comics and graphic novels alongside a collection of pinball machines and an online store packed with figurines and apparel. The name pays homage to campy “geek media” titles (think Revenge of the Nerds or Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith) while leaving the phrase intentionally unfinished.
“‘Revenge of’ is so associated with movies or action or a guttural energetic feeling,” co-founder Joe Myers says on Shopify Masters. “Since the name is a dangling participle, it catches people’s imagination in a way that’s always interesting. Like, revenge of what?”
As you brainstorm, think about phrases, sayings, or slang your target customers already use when talking about similar products or the problem your business will solve. If there’s a particular catchphrase you’ve always liked, and it’s relevant, write it down.
Consider industry or product
If your business benefits from customers immediately understanding your value proposition or what you sell, adding a category-specific term to your name can provide instant clarity. This can be one of the quickest and clearest routes to a business name.
My Two Brows, for example, immediately signals an eyebrow-focused business, while Spatula Foods references a kitchen tool to reinforce its focus on gourmet meal kits.
Using a category-specific term doesn’t mean your name can’t also communicate a larger mission. Healthy Roots Dolls includes the product in the business name while reflecting the founder’s goal of helping children appreciate their literal roots (their natural hair) and their cultural roots.
Use your own name
Your own name can be a useful starting point for brainstorming a business name. Whether you use it directly or draw inspiration from it, it can provide a distinctive foundation that’s personal to your brand.
Fragrance brand By Rosie Jane originally went by Leila Lou, the name of its flagship fragrance. “Things were starting to get a little momentum, and I wanted to do another fragrance,” founder Rosie says on Shopify Masters. “But how could I when the entire brand name is the name of one fragrance? That’s when I decided to make the shift to By Rosie Jane.”
Sanzo sparkling water, known for its Asian-inspired flavors, also found inspiration by looking within. “When I started the brand, I actually had a dozen other names that I was workshopping. Unfortunately, a lot of those were already trademarked, or didn’t feel exactly right,” founder Sandro Rocco says on Shopify Masters.
“I went through an exercise of writing down all the letters of my first, middle, and last name, which is Alessandro Lorenzo Rocco,” he says. “One of the combinations ended up being Sanzo. And I was like, ’Okay, this could be interesting.’”
Pull from other languages
Words from other languages can inspire distinctive names while connecting your brand to a particular meaning, culture, or place.
Sock and apparel brand Bombas, for example, coined its name from the Latin word for bumblebee, bombus. As the company explains, bees work together to make their world better—a fitting symbol for Bombas’s mission to give back through every purchase.
Terre Bleu, a lavender farm that sells skin care products, gifts, and other items, takes its name from the French words for “blue earth.” The name evokes the lavender fields and French heritage often associated with the crop while giving the brand a distinctive identity.
Try free association
Free association is a brainstorming exercise that helps you uncover unexpected naming ideas. Start by writing down every word or phrase—on a whiteboard, in a spreadsheet, or on color-coded Post-It notes—that comes to mind when you think of your brand, product, customer, or impact.
Don’t judge or stop to identify the smart business name ideas at this point. The goal is to generate as many associations as possible. You may spot a pattern across dozens of words or find a creative combination of unrelated ideas.
Collaborate on ideas
Naming your business doesn’t have to be a solo enterprise. If you’ve hit a creative wall or just want some outside opinions, bring in a business partner, trusted friend, family member, or other collaborator to help you build on ideas and spot possibilities you may have overlooked.
Taza Chocolate founders Alex Whitmore and Kathleen Fulton arrived at the company’s name through collaborative brainstorming. Alex originally suggested Melt Chocolate, which Kathleen thought would make a great name for a chocolate café, but not necessarily a chocolate company, since you don’t want your chocolate to melt. They continued building on each other’s ideas until they landed on Taza. “We just kept talking through names,” Kathleen says on Shopify Masters. “We just brainstormed together.”
Use a business name generator
A free business name generator can help jumpstart the brainstorming process. AI-powered tools like Shopify’s Business Name Generator can quickly generate dozens of names based on details you enter about your business, industry, and brand personality. These suggestions may help you refine your existing ideas or explore new directions with name combinations you haven’t considered.
An AI business name generator may also let you check domain availability, making it easier to secure a matching website address.
Creative business names FAQ
What are catchy business names?
Catchy business name ideas are those that are easy to remember and repeat. They’re often short and evoke a feeling or emotional reaction within a customer. They should also be scalable and not limit your business when introducing new products or services or geographies.
How do I choose a catchy name?
If you already have a shortlist of ideas, narrow them down by considering how well they reflect your brand, how easy they are to pronounce and remember, and whether the name and matching domain are available. Getting feedback from trusted collaborators can also help you make a final decision.
What kind of name attracts customers?
The best business name is one that will attract your target audience. Some businesses benefit from descriptive names that immediately explain what they offer, while others use storytelling, wordplay, or names based on relevant phrases or idioms. The right approach depends on your customers and the impression you want your brand to create.
