You wouldn’t believe the amount of times that I speak with entrepreneurs who unknowingly have named their business after themselves without understanding the legal ramifications of doing so.

And I can’t fault them from not knowing.

There’s just not enough education out there.

And with celebrities and other public figures naming every business venture they pursue after themselves, there’s no one telling the general public why it’s not safe to follow in their footsteps.

There’s no one telling them why they shouldn’t be creating eponymous brands.

Remember, these celebrities have lawyers and advisors who alert them of the dangers, who aid them in every aspect of their livelihoods! But us normal people?? We don’t have trusted professionals helping us with every decision we make.

We have to be resourceful, diligent, and hope we’re making smart decisions.

So, here I am on my soapbox for the 1000th time telling you, the resourceful entrepreneur, or anyone reading this – “PLEASE STOP NAMING YOUR BUSINESS VENTURES AFTER YOURSELF”.

And of course, I’m going to tell you why…

If you are a visual learner, you may enjoy watching the following video. It covers some of the main points that we’ll be discussed in this post.

What Does It Mean To Create a Self-Named Brand?

Many entrepreneurs mistakenly believe that naming their brand after themselves is the only way to feel a connection to their brand and to truly represent their legacy.

However, what most fail to realize is when you name your business the same as your personal name, your legal name no longer belongs to YOU. It belongs to YOUR company as one of its assets. In fact, it becomes one of your business’ most valuable assets aka a trademark.

We’ve talked about what’s a trademark before so review this blog post or our Glossary if you’ve missed it or need a refresher.

And because you’ve now made your personal name into a trademark, you stand a far better chance of losing the rights to your personal name once investors and big bucks get involved.

It happens all the time!

I often compare it to the notorious 360 music deals we always hear musicians complain about.

So often, eager entrepreneurs and creatives start an amazing brand, and name it after themselves for “legacy” or vanity reasons. And when the brand is growing bigger and better than ever, investors start getting involved and one of two things are likely to happen.

 Scenario 1

Either these creatives fail to truly read their contracts and sign over the rights to their name and likeness, like wedding dress designer, Hayley Paige, (formerly of Say Yes to the Dress) in exchange for more publicity, resources, money, fame, or whatever enticing offer.

Why You Don’t Name Your Brand After Yourself

Because what’s worse is that once you’ve lost the rights to your name, it’s gone forever.

It will continue to belong to the company in perpetuity as long as the company is still in business because remember, a trademark lasts forever!

And you will NOT be able to use your personal name to market or brand your next business venture if it’s within the same or similar industry.

For example, statements, like “a new line by Jaleesa Johnson” or “by Jaleesa Johnson” or anything along those lines will be strictly OFF-LIMITS.

To do so, would be to unjustly profit off the reputation and success of a company with its’ own proper trademark rights. It will not matter that it was originally your name or that you helped build the brand. You are now practically a complete stranger.

And what’s more – as consumers, we often don’t even realize that the original owner may no longer involved in their brand, which can make us incorrectly attribute strange decisions or company mistakes to the person and their reputation. Thus, further harming the owner after the fact…

And unfortunately, many celebrities and brands have fallen victim to this – Hayley Paige, Chloe Coscarelli, Joseph Abboud, Stuart Weitzman, the late Kate Spade, P. Diddy, Zac Posen, and many more.

After losing her first business, Kate Spade legally changed her name to Kate Valentine once she lost the rights to her name in order to start her 2nd fashion brand, Frances Valentine.

Zac Posen, though warned by one of his girlfriends not to name his brand after himself, still chose to do so. Now, thankfully he still has a role in his brand, but he has regretted his decision to name it after himself because “whoever is investing is in control”.

P. Diddy was only recently able to reclaim ownership of Sean John apparel brand for $7.551 million after selling a majority interest in his company in 2016 and retaining only a 10% stake. Since doing so, Diddy has been in and out of court with majority shareholders for YEARS fighting to regain control after repeatedly disagreeing with their business’ decisions.

And according to Hayley Paige,

“It is not enough for JLM that I cannot work and cannot use my own birth name. Now, JLM wants to strip everything from me — including my right to speak and draw. JLM wants to silence me in the public domain and financially drain me. That is neither right nor just.”

Additionally, Hayley claims that she has been unable to “maintain any employment” as she is unable to design and/or enter bridal until August 2022, and has missed out on opportunities, including tv and commercial appearances, due to her inability to use her own name.

Even Hayley’s social media campaign to legally change her name, like Kate Spade, has been thwarted by her former employers as a breach of her preliminary injunction.

And P.S. if you didn’t know, this is not unique to Hayley; her current position is VERY common in these sorts of contracts! [Essentially, the original owner has transferred rights to their name to their business via trademark and should a dispute between investors and original owner ever arise, the owner is estopped from using their name and working in their industry for a specific time period for non-compete reasons. This is standard industry practice.]

So, in summation, you don’t name your business after yourself because of legacy. Your legacy is actually more at risk when your business is a clone of yourself. 

What Should You Name Your Business Instead?

So now you’ve read all the legal ramifications, you’re probably wondering, what should you name your business instead?

If you’re looking to rebrand, the first thing you should consult is the Spectrum of Marks. The spectrum will help you understand what it means to create a strong business name capable of trademark registration.

And though technically, an individual’s name would fall into the fanciful/arbitrary side of the spectrum, the legal ramifications of this post, should persuade you to avoid using your name.

So for the reasons above, we STRONGLY encourage all entrepreneurs to create names that meet the spectrum, but avoid putting their personal name at risk.

The two exceptions we’ve created for this no-personal name rule are:

 (1) If your personal name is required in your business name as part of your profession’s code of ethics and/or license requirements, like in the medical or legal field; or

(2) If you, i.e. your person, is the product/service you’re selling. Think bloggers, motivational speakers, content creators, etc. If you’re operating as a celebrity would, where your personality and likeness is the brand, I can understand the decision to name your business after yourself.

However, if you’re providing some other service or a product, there is no need for you and your business to share the same identity.

Your business should be an extension of you, not your clone!

And consider this: Do you plan to be the only person providing the product/service to customers or will you hire a team one day? Do you really want to create the expectation in customers’ minds that they will work directly with you as you expand and grow? If yes, don’t let us stop you!

However, if you do foresee yourself expanding, our advice: Rebrand.

In fact…

💡 If you really LOVE the sound of a “name”, consider naming your business as you would your baby. We don’t mean create a junior! Give your brand a new identity.

Your brand can still have elements of you and your personality without sharing your personal name. After all, parents can share these features/similarities with their children without sharing the same identity as their child.

Need More Help?

If you’ve decided to still name your business after yourself OR a new baby name, you may want to pick up our eBook, 10 Mistakes to Avoid for a Smart & Successful Brand Name.

In this eBook, one of the topics we cover is the likelihood of successfully trademarking a personal name, i.e. first name, first & last name, two or more last names, initials, and other variations. Take advantage of our 50% off limited time offer!

Or if you need our help selecting an entirely new business name, check out our Brand Name Consultation, a 60 Minute Legal-Marketing hybrid session designed to create a name that is not only trademarkable, but also marketable within 1 hour. It’s our 1 Hour Trademark. Book below.