10 Things to Keep In Mind When Naming Your Clothing Brand
This section includes 10 actionable tips that will help you create the perfect names for a clothing brand. In this example, I’m creating a name for a clothing name that conveys innovative, effective, and simple values for its users. I also want to differentiate the brand from other brands in the fashion industry. Here’s how I created these clothing brand names.
#1) Analyze Your Existing Competitors
Before we start brainstorming name ideas, we need to know our market and other clothing brands that are similar to ours. This is an essential step that a lot of people overlook when they start thinking about their clothing brand name ideas.
Start by listing down ten or twenty existing fashion and clothing brands that are similar to yours. Think of the brands you will compete against in the market.
These are some of the questions you need to ask yourself when analyzing your existing competitors:
- Can you find any trends and words that often appear in their clothing brand names?
- Do they use similar name types?
- Do any names stand out for being very different?
#2) Position Your Clothing Brand
There are two basic options you have when positioning your clothing brand:
– You can make your clothing brand fit in the market.
– You can make your clothing brand stand out in the market.
If you want to fit it, you should copy the name styles of existing fashion brands. You can even use the same words other companies use.
Just make sure you’re creating names that are different enough and won’t get you into legal trouble.
If you want to stand out in the market, focus on using unique words and name styles. Make sure your name is different from other fashion brands.
This is the approach I recommend for all new clothing brands. People remember things that are different and stand out. This is the easiest way to position your clothing brand for success in the market.
#3) Look for Inspiration Elsewhere
We already analyzed the names of other clothing brands in the market. Now it’s time to move beyond that. You can turn to different markets and niches for inspiration. Pick a niche that’s or market that’s different than yours.
Let’s, for example, pick beauty and cosmetics. Look at the names people use in these two markets.
You will probably notice a lot of companies use words like “ravish”, “perfect”, “glow”, “bloom”… Can any of these words be used for your clothing brand?
Of course. The word “glow” can represent how people feel wearing your clothes. The word “bloom” can serve a similar purpose. The words “ravish” and “perfect” can easily be used to describe a fashion brand. These are just examples. You can turn to any market or niche for inspiration. Don’t spend all your time going through the names in your niche.
#4) Understand Different Name Types
I won’t bore you with details or make this theory too complicated. But it’s important we understand the basics of naming theory. There are four main types of names:
- Descriptive (literal) names – These names describe what a brand does or its functions. This also includes acronyms, initials, founder names, and geographical names. (ex. Teens In Trend, Luxe Lingerie, etc.)
- Invented (made-up) names – These names don’t have any real meaning. They are either completely made-up or come from foreign languages. (ex. Vigorics, ASOS, etc.)
- Experiential names – These names describe the experience of using the brand. They basically show what people get when wearing your brand’s clothes. (ex. Evening Elegance, Forever 21, etc.)
- Evocative names – These names represent the clothing brnads in a metaphorical instead of literal way. They represent what the brand stands for instead of what it does. (ex. Always On, Monarch Attire, etc.)
We won’t go any further. This is enough to give you a basic understanding of different name types.
#5) Go Beyond Descriptive Names
We learned about different name types in the previous point. We saw that descriptive names are the simplest names out there. While there’s nothing wrong with them, they can’t help your clothing brand stand out in a crowded market.
I suggest we move beyond simple descriptive names when launching a new clothing and fashion brand. Descriptive names are great when we want to blend in. But we already learned that this isn’t the best approach for new brands, especially in competitive markets like fashion.
Instead, think of unique words, phrases, and metaphors that could be used to represent your clothing brand. This will help you stand out from your competitors.
#6) Brainstorm Your Name Ideas
It is now time to start brainstorming what words could fit into your clothing and fashion brand name ideas. Your goal here is to create a list of words or names that come to mind when thinking about your brand.
In my name ideas, I used words like “couture”, “mode”, and “allure”, you can see that while these words can be related to clothing and fashion brands, they also suggest that you can expect a modern, creative outlook from this brand.
If you’re stuck on words to use, try our clothing and fashion brand name generator. Here are my clothing brand name ideas after brainstorming:
Cool Couture, Urban Stock, Fitted Stitch, Revella, Monarch Attire, Classic Threads, Vigorics, Loosely Fitted, Teens In Trend, Elegant Mode, Evening Elegance, Formal Allure, Inner City Style, La Forme, Boho Belle, Luxe Lingerie, Admiralia, Bright Boutique, Always On, Walk Gracefully
#7) Shortlist Your Ideas
Once you’ve developed a list of possible clothing and fashion name suggestions, analyze your ideas. Remove any names that could be hard to remember, spell or speak aloud.
Keep names that are brandable, sound great, are memorable, and communicate your brand values to your target audience.
Here’s a quick checklist you can run your ideas through to help shorten your list of names:
- Is the name simple and easy to remember?
- Is the name easy to read and say aloud?
- Is the name different from competitors?
- Does the name convey a relevant meaning?
- Does the name avoid overused words or cliches?
#8) Get Some Feedback
You should now have a list of 3-6 great clothing brand name suggestions, and you can start gathering feedback. Ask potential customers or people working in the industry for feedback (your target audience).
Avoid feedback from family and friends. They are more likely to praise all your ideas, and they aren’t your customer.
Be sure to ask questions like:
- What first comes to mind when you hear the name?
- How would you spell it?
With your customer feedback, you can start objectively analyzing the clothing and fashion brand names you picked. Ask yourself – Are these ideas still relevant? Do they still represent my brand?
#9) Check If It’s Available
At this point, it’s good to have at least three great clothing brand names on your list in case any of your names are already taken.
You can start by doing a quick Business Name Search online to see if your name is available within your country/state. While doing so, it’s also good to make sure that the name is available for Trademark registration. It’s good to make sure you can legally use the names you created. This can save you a lot of trouble down the road.
Make sure you also check domain availability for your clothing brnad. You will need a URL address to create a website and potentially a webshop for your brand.
You can use our clothing and fashion brand name generator for this step. It shows available domains for all brand names it generates.
#10) Develop Your Brand
This is the last thing you need to do before launching your clothing brand. The name on its own isn’t enough to help you dominate the fashion market. You have to create exciting visual cues that go with the name.
How will the name look in the logo? Which tagline will you use for your clothing brand? What colors represent the emotions of your brand?
Make sure you create a cohesive brand where all elements work together. I suggest you get help from a professional graphic designer for this step.
