Stop and Smell the Corpse Flowers
Back in the days when my son was learning to read he would regale us with his newfound ability by reciting the names on storefronts as we cruised down the street. One day, as we past the local “Pick ‘N Save” (as “Big Lots” was then known), he proudly pronounced the store’s moniker.
“Pick ‘N Save,” followed by, “that’s a funny name.”
After a brief moment of reflection he offered, “Pick ‘N Nose – now THAT’s a GOOD name!”
Shakespeare’s Juliet reflected, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Yeah, but if the rose had the name “Corpse Flower” (which actually is the name of a rare flower, which actually does emit the odor of rotting meat), how many people would want to smell it?
You’d never hear anyone say, “you have to take time to stop and smell the corpse flowers.”
Parents wouldn’t be naming their precious little girls after that particular flower.
Obviously, the choice of a name can enhance or detract from one’s perception of an entity.
In a previous life, I lived on the outskirts of the advertising industry for 20+ years. There I learned to appreciate the role an appropriate name plays in “branding” an entity or a product. However, I have never seen an industry where the use of a play on words as a naming convention runs as rampant as in the grooming business. Don’t get me wrong, I have never backed away from a pun or a clever phrase spoken with tongue firmly planted in cheek.
But I can’t even count how many grooming shops sport names based on Central Park, Park Avenue or Bloomingdale’s Department Store in New York City. Or the title of Roy Roger’s theme song “Happy Trails.” (Don’t you dare ask “Roy who?”)
From the generic (such as laundromats and parking lots) to the famous (like Noah’s Ark of Biblical fame or the Queen of England’s residence, Buckingham Palace), all have been fair game for humorous appellations.
Paws, pets, pooches and puppies have all been pampered. All parts of the dog’s anatomy that you would care to mention at the family dining table, head, nose, whiskers, paws, claws and tail included, as well as those familiar canine vocalizations, “woof,” “bark,” and “ruff,” have been parodied and emblazoned on storefronts, business cards and web sites galore.
And what about that ubiquitous gesture of furry friendship, “wags?”
Oh yeah, we use WAGS, too.
You see, a while before I joined the family business, Ed, my father-in-law, asked me to rename his company. Now, I always assumed that creativity had rubbed off on me after so many years of close association with creative people. So, in an epiphany of self-proclaimed brilliance I thought: “well, wags is what a dog does . . . dogs get dirty . . . Ed sells dog shampoo . . . so WAGS could MEAN something!”
It was short and memorable, but it needed a purpose in life. With a little verbal crow barring, “West” and “Coast” became “Westcoast” and WAGS was born as an acronym for “Westcoast Animal Groomers Supply.”
Back to grooming shop names.
My affiliation with advertising was associated with movie marketing. Thus, in my humble, but biased opinion, some of the more clever shop names have been fashioned after titles of popular films:
“High Plains Clipper”
“Dirty Hairy’s”
“The Dogfather”
“Merri Puppins”
“The Wizard of Paws”
Here’s my personal favorite, “Indiana Bones and the Temple of Groom.”
However, there are also a lot of “plain wrap” names out there as well, like “Homer’s Grooming.” Not necessarily memorable . . . unless you’re a “Simpsons” fan.
Let’s face it. Some groomers just aren’t into “branding.” They think it is just for cows. And some customers merely select their groomer because they’re conveniently located.
But, if you wish to be more easily remembered, perhaps even with a chuckle, go ahead, use a punny name. Just be careful it isn’t such a stretch that customers are left scratching their heads as to its meaning.
Or that it doesn’t detract from the perception of your professionalism.
After all, Pick N Nose? Way too offensive.
And you surely don’t want to pick a name that stinks.
About the Author: Randy Pate is the Marketing Director of WAGS. He know a lot about funny names because his younger sister always referred to him by one . . . actually, more than one . . . uh . . . and still does.
