# Add-on at the end of a business name



## jasonsmith (Mar 30, 2011)

I've got a business name. But I'm wanting to add something to the end of my name. Something like "clothing". I know alot of company names have an add-on like clothing, limited, enterprises, company, apparel, etc. But I'm not sure what that is called?

As I was wanting to look up examples of these add-ons to see if I wanted to go with something other than "clothing". But since I don't know what you call this, I can't find any examples.


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## jonkeefe (Mar 11, 2011)

Generally, you can divide a company name into three parts: a "distinctive element", a "descriptive element", and a "legal element".

For example, I own a software company called MilkTouch Software Limited -- MilkTouch being the distinctive element, Software being the descriptive element, and Limited being the legal element.

If you're incorporating, all three parts are usually required, and there are a set number of legal elements you can choose from -- Corporation, Limited, Incorporated, etc. You'll often see the legal element abbreviated (Corp, Ltd, Inc, etc).

The descriptive element should be, well, descriptive (people should be able to get an idea of what your business does from the name), and the distinctive element is the part where you can go hog-wild.

Corporations Canada has a handy guide with some starting points on choosing a business name, located here: Naming your business | Business name and registration | Canada Business

Depending on where you live, your government's website probably has similar region-specific resources.

Cheers,
Jon


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## jasonsmith (Mar 30, 2011)

jonkeefe said:


> Generally, you can divide a company name into three parts: a "distinctive element", a "descriptive element", and a "legal element".
> 
> For example, I own a software company called MilkTouch Software Limited -- MilkTouch being the distinctive element, Software being the descriptive element, and Limited being the legal element.
> 
> ...


Thanks. Looks like I'm looking at the descriptive element. As the name alone doesn't really tell you anything. So, I wanted to add something like "clothing" to the end so people would know it is an actual business name vs. a couple of words on a t-shirt.


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## rawbhaze (Jan 29, 2011)

Excellent post, Jon.


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## I|NFANT|S LLC (Sep 2, 2010)

Thanks Jon. Helped me too.


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

why limit yourself with 'clothing' at the end of your name? if you want to add custom ping pong balls someday you will either have to change your name to jasonsmith clothing and ping pong balls or drop the 'clothing' word. 

look at nike, amazon, ebay, and others like that. use a tag line or slogan with your name and you can add to it or change it later without changing your brand.


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## jasonsmith (Mar 30, 2011)

binki said:


> why limit yourself with 'clothing' at the end of your name? if you want to add custom ping pong balls someday you will either have to change your name to jasonsmith clothing and ping pong balls or drop the 'clothing' word.
> 
> look at nike, amazon, ebay, and others like that. use a tag line or slogan with your name and you can add to it or change it later without changing your brand.


It's really not a business. I don't plan on selling shirts or running a business. I only plan on making shirts for myself and maybe a few others if they want one as a hobby.

I had read of people screen printing their logo where the tag goes. And I already had a brand name I came up with from years ago if I ever did anything. So, I messed around and came up with a logo I liked. And thought of printing the brand/logo on the neck line and also making up some shirts with the brand/logo on the front of the shirt. As I came up with some different variations.

And so I figured of adding something to the end of the name so others could see it as being a brand vs. just a couple of words.

Example. You could have "Golden Shoe" on the front or "Golden Shoe Clothing" or something that would give an indication of being a brand.

I was wanting to find a list of these types of descriptive elements to see if I could find something else I might like better that would work.

If I was going to register it. I wouldn't have any descriptive terms with the name on the registration.


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## scuba_steve2699 (Nov 15, 2006)

Great info Jon!


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## jasonsmith (Mar 30, 2011)

When you register your brand name. Can you just register just the _"distinctive element"_? And then add a _"descriptive element"_ to the brand name that you put on t-shirts, etc.?

For instance. You register "Golden Shoe" and list "Golden Shoe" on the application for an RN number. But on your T-shirts, you put "Golden Shoe Clothing". Just wondering if you can do that. Or if you have to register to descriptive element also?


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## jonkeefe (Mar 11, 2011)

I think we're starting to get mixed up here between company name and trademarks/brands.

Whether you can register your company without a descriptive element may vary based on where you're registering and at what level of government (state/provincial, federal). You'll probably have to have one. Keep in mind, though, that you can put whatever you want on your actual clothing. Your brand name doesn't have to relate to your business name in any way. 

For example, let's look at Froot Loops cereal:

Froot Loops (delicious!) are not made by Froot Loops, Inc -- they're made by Kellogg Company. Kellogg Company owns a trademark on the phrase "Froot Loops"; they also own a trademark on the stylized "Kellogg's" text. So, when Kellogg Company wants to sell cereal, they don't have to produce boxes that only say "Kellogg Company" -- they can put "Froot Loops" on the front of the boxes, and "Kellogg's" in the upper-right corner.

So, basically, you can register your business under whatever name you choose. It doesn't make a difference. You could register your business as Jason Smith Imprintables, Inc. if you wanted to.

Once your business is registered, you can use completely different branding on your products. Jason Smith Imprintables, Inc. could have a line of shirts called "Golden Shoe Clothing". The important thing to note here is that unless you trademark "Golden Shoe Clothing", you run the risk of someone else selling products under the exact same name -- or, even worse, THEY could trademark it and then sue you for all you're worth.

Sorry, this is getting a bit long-winded -- but does what I'm saying make sense? Your business name and your brand name can be the same, or totally different; it's 100% up to you.


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## jasonsmith (Mar 30, 2011)

I understand what you are saying. I plan on keeping it simple and have the company name being the brand name. Since when I came up with the company name I liked, I wanted that to be the brand.

Can you have a brand like "Golden Shoe". And then put "Golden Shoe Clothing" on the shirts? Or do you have to register it as "Golden Shoe Clothing"? I say it probably doesn't matter as long as I have the distinctive element registered. Then I could add on whatever I want on the merchandising.

I did look up the brand name I came up with. And the only thing registered with that name was a restaurant. They did list some others, but they changed some of the letters to have it spelled differently and made one word out of two. And I think they had clothing listed. But I wouldn't think that should be a problem since I have the two word name spelled correctly.


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