i didn't even worry about a name
because i just thought that it would come to me eventually
just like everything else that i'm supposed to do does
(in the shower, always, of course)
& since i thought up this business idea around 4 years ago
i have taken at least 14 showers & guess what?
no name!
so i sat & thought hard about it quite a few times
& still.
nothing.
every once in a while something would come to me
& i would write it down.
& so a little list started
but nothing amazing.
& still i thought that the perfect name would arrive
on a silver tray
or at least a cute plastic plate
& guess what? (again)
never did.
never did come.
my smart friend tracy (who is also the graphic design girl)
recommended that i send out my list to some friends
& ask for opinions & ideas
& so i did...
before i give you the list
i will give a little description of the business
to paint a better picture :)
my idea is a community center type place
with a restaurant, indoor & outdoor playgrounds, retail shops, classrooms & more :)
i want it to appeal to men & women as well as kiddos...
the decor is vintage schoolhouse (50's-70's)
lockers, lunchboxes, chalkboards, crayons...
(more on all of that in another post :)
here is the grand list, with my original ideas
& the ones that friends added...
the list on the left is what i sent out,
the other two are additions from friends
recess school house academic assembly collection super hive old school multi-purpose intermural beeswax | craftateria clubhouse Homeroom Arithmetic Peachy, Pee-Chee Elementary Pink Eraser Safety Scissors Grover Cleveland Dixon Ticonderoga Sandbox | Auntie Em's The Place 2B 2BU 2nd Home The Center Hopscotch niche The rec room beehive Susie Q The Art Box PLAY |
i loved hearing what people thought & their ideas, too!
after i listed all the names i ran them by just a few people, including brian
& then i came up with a short list...
recess
the hive
old school
elementary
homeroom
hopscotch
at this point i didn't really know what to do
thank goodness for tracy!
she gave me some great tips...
she said that i needed to think about what other people would like
but to keep in mind that
i was going to have to see the name everyday
& i was going to have to say the name a trillion times
& i was going to have to write or type the name over & over & over
so it needed to be something that i really liked & connected to & felt was right...
my friend, aaron, who i play 'words with friends' & 'draw something' with
is a creative director at an ad agency
(i do not feel old enough to have a friend who has that title
but of course, i'm almost old enough to have a kid who has that title
or at least a younger cousin,
so who am i kidding?)
gave me some good tips, too:
The name will get meaning as the place lives.
It doesn't have to say it all right off the bat.
McDonalds didn't mean anything to anyone when it first started,
so don't think it has to do heavy lifting.
that's some high quality advice, don't you think?
so there was one name that i liked from the start
but it has some baggage that comes with it
in the form of a movie starring one will farrell...
but i decided that with a little graphic magic
images of will farrell's butt will not be conjured up every time the name is mentioned...
& so if you are not familiar with the film
(because you only watch wholesome movies, & good on you, if that's the case)
the name i decided on for my business is:
old school
all lower case (no fainting from surprise, please)
it goes so well with the decor & the dream location
& i love how it sounds
'hey, let's meet at old school!'
also kids can pronounce it & they know what both words mean
& hopefully it's easy enough to remember so when their parents say
'what should we do today?'
they can yell
'let's go to old school!'
& then start chanting it
'old school!
old school!
old school!'
& then they will be sent to their rooms
but at least the name is stuck in their parent's head...
yep.
that's what i'm hoping.
also
after i decided for sure on the name
i saw the phrase 'old school' everywhere...
of course i did.
maybe it's just because it's a popular phrase
or maybe i wasn't noticing it before
but i like it when that happens
& so i just took it as a wink & a smile sort of thing ;)
& i do enjoy the wink...
hmmm maybe that should have been the name!
wink!
no!
stop.
just stop.
:)
a whole heck of a lot, it seems
(or at least a lot to figure one out)
& i'm so happy to have decided.
hooray!
coming soon,
tracy is going to work on logos
& i will share them here as soon as they are finalized
& if there is more than one choice
maybe i'll post them here & let you vote on your favorite...
that would be pretty fun, i think!
thanks for stopping by today!
i'm so happy to get to say to you:
hello, my name is old school
:)