Had to change name

[pinknfluffy]

Bit of advice please
I have recently had to change my business name, I'm very newly mobile, and did the research etc, but yesterday a sign appeared in an empty window literally down the road reading "new beauty salon coming soon" and with a business name almost identical to mine :grr:

anyhow, after a few tears and tantrums, my hubby suggested a new name, which i like lots and am going to go with.
Problem is, I dont have money to spend out on new domains, websites, flyers, business cards. So, can I do a gradual change? My idea was, I have set my old website to re-direct to the new, free website I have created on weebly, with a homepage message saying "welcome to *** foremerly trading as ***.
I was going to keep handing out the flyers, knowing if they go to the website on them they will be redirected, and only pay out for new business cards, which will have the new website (***.weebly.com)
Will potential clients find this off-putting? How have others gone about changing names?
Thanks in advance

 

[apollo_24]

Hey

First of all the general public can be/is mostly on the silly side. Handing out flyers with the old name on and then saying this is the new name, will confuse and look unprofessional. "Oh ill just hand out these old ones because I've not got money to buy some new ones with my actual business name on it"

250 business cards will cost you under 10 quid on vista print.

Website domain can cost as little as about £13

Then go through your client records and email and text everyone saying the new name.

Free websites I'm afraid in my opinion do look a little naff. "Oh there's yet another poorly thought out free website"

Just spend the extra time and money and do it right in the first place. Always pays off.

 

[elizabeth1]

Why not register the name with company's house... Then it's yours! And your name only! Xxx

 

[SerenityNailz]

I disagree regarding free websites looking naff - I'm actually quite pleased with mine and have had alot of compliments on how professional it looks x

 

[NiCshairstudio]

Hey

First of all the general public can be/is mostly on the silly side. Handing out flyers with the old name on and then saying this is the new name, will confuse and look unprofessional. "Oh ill just hand out these old ones because I've not got money to buy some new ones with my actual business name on it"

250 business cards will cost you under 10 quid on vista print.

Website domain can cost as little as about £13

Then go through your client records and email and text everyone saying the new name.

Free websites I'm afraid in my opinion do look a little naff. "Oh there's yet another poorly thought out free website"

Just spend the extra time and money and do it right in the first place. Always pays off.

Where can you get a web domain for as little as 13? As it stands im using weebly and qute a few new customers have commented on calling through liking my site, and im desperate to remove the. Weebly. Section

To the op, i wouldnt hand out old cards saying new name, just let all your current client list know te change in name, ans new customers will know no different anyway xx

Is you knew name an open name or closed? Like is it xxx nails or xxx hair? maybe you could word it saying xxx firmally know as xxx And a mini paragraph saying due to exciting new prospects we have decided to change our name to xxx



Sent from my GT-N7000 using SalonGeek

 

[Lynne Baker]

Why not register the name with company's house... Then it's yours! And your name only! Xxx

You can do that only for limited companies, and all that that entails. You can't do it as a sole trader.

 

[SerenityNailz]

Where can you get a web domain for as little as 13? As it stands im using weebly and qute a few new customers have commented on calling through liking my site, and im desperate to remove the. Weebly. Section

To the op, i wouldnt hand out old cards saying new name, just let all your current client list know te change in name, ans new customers will know no different anyway xx

Is you knew name an open name or closed? Like is it xxx nails or xxx hair? maybe you could word it saying xxx firmally know as xxx And a mini paragraph saying due to exciting new prospects we have decided to change our name to xxx



Sent from my GT-N7000 using SalonGeek

Look on 123reg.com for domain names and you should be able to add that domain to your weebly account so that your website address doesnt have weebly in it

X

 

[apollo_24]

Sorry my mistake. £6.99 for one I just searched for.


For example www.blahblahsnailsalon.com from godaddy comes up at the above price. Websites 'if you know what you are doing' need not cost much at all.

Mine with hosting cost total of about £30

 

[Verve Designs]

Almost identical isn't the same as identical.

What are the names?

Are you sure you're not over-thinking it?...

 

[sallyl]

Also just to add if you are handing out leaflets etc with the old name on, someone misplaced the leaflet but they remember your name, search for it and they get your competitors details, great for them, not great for you. X

Sent from my GT-I9100P using SalonGeek

 

[apollo_24]

Yes very true. What are both of the names?

 

[NailsXpress]

You CAN register your name at Companies House and then just let them know that you are just registering a name, not trading as a limited company at the moment. As long as you don't use Ltd you are ok. This keeps your name for you only.

 

[Lynne Baker]

If you register your name e.g. Acme Nails Ltd, at Companies House, you can't then trade as Acme Nails minus the limited. You can only register the name and then trade as a limited company. You can register the name and file it as a dormant company but if you start trading then you have to trade as a limited company and file end of year accounts, signed off by a suitably approved accountant, and then pay corporation tax (or not, if you make a loss)
If you decide to go ahead and register the name Acme Nails Ltd your competition can also trade as Acme Nails (notice the lack of Ltd), and you're no better off.

Registering the name at Companies House does not constitute a protection of the name.

Information & Guidance - Starting a company

In order to gain even a modicum of protection you would need to trademark the name, which would cost you a great deal of money. The non refundable application fee alone starts at £170, and there is no guarantee that it would even be accepted

People might tell you that you could accuse the other company of passing off, but you would need to demonstrate that you have goodwill in your business, but as you're a new business yourself there will be no goodwill built up in your name, and your claim would fail.

As harsh as it sounds I'm afraid that this sort of thing goes on all the time, and affects large and small businesses alike.
Witness CND and CCO; even the big boys aren't immune from this sort of thing.

Sorry.

 

[pinknfluffy]

Thanks all, lots of useful advice, and guess I'm going to have to bite the bullet and pay out more! my old business name was (myname)holisticbeauty, and the competition are (myname/theirname/samebloodyname)healthandbeauty.
Too similar for me to do nothing..and I havent exactly got a common name!!
The new name is completely different, doesnt mention my name, and have searched google and the only name even close is a mobile therapist in Scotland, so I should be safe ... although thats what I thought last time!
I have 5000 flyers sat here, waiting to go out, and its just such a waste of money (which I really dont have much of at the moment) to just bin them!
Have set up a facebook page in new name, so might be better to just pay out for new business cards. I certainly dont want to seem unprofessional, and have already contacted exsisting clients, just really hate seeing the money I wasted on flyers / printed polo shirts, business cards / etc etc go to waste :cry:

 

[LilMissEmmylou]

So the only common element is the first name and the word beauty?

E.g. Emmys Holistic Beauty and
Emmy Lou Lous Health and Beauty

Really they don't seem too alike to me at all and I think you are over thinking it.

 

[Verve Designs]

Thanks all, lots of useful advice, and guess I'm going to have to bite the bullet and pay out more! my old business name was (myname)holisticbeauty, and the competition are (myname/theirname/samebloodyname)healthandbeauty.
Too similar for me to do nothing..and I havent exactly got a common name!!
The new name is completely different, doesnt mention my name, and have searched google and the only name even close is a mobile therapist in Scotland, so I should be safe ... although thats what I thought last time!
I have 5000 flyers sat here, waiting to go out, and its just such a waste of money (which I really dont have much of at the moment) to just bin them!
Have set up a facebook page in new name, so might be better to just pay out for new business cards. I certainly dont want to seem unprofessional, and have already contacted exsisting clients, just really hate seeing the money I wasted on flyers / printed polo shirts, business cards / etc etc go to waste :cry:

Either I'm being thick (which is a distinct possibility) but I can't what the similarities in name is.

I'm reading that you've got different names and the suffixes to the business are different too.

Am I missing something here? Have they got literally the same name as you?

"myname/theirname/samebloodyname"

Which is it??

 

[NiCshairstudio]

Either I'm being thick (which is a distinct possibility) but I can't what the similarities in name is.

I'm reading that you've got different names and the suffixes to the business are different too.

Am I missing something here? Have they got literally the same name as you?

"myname/theirname/samebloodyname"

Which is it??

I think she is basically saying, lets say her name is Emily, then her business just now is emilyholiticbeauty and they are called emilyhealthandbeauty (I could be wrong here but that's what I gathered) and they don't have a common name like Emily.

Buuuuuut I do think you may be thinking too much into Hun, why change? I understand its close, but I'm Nikki C's Hair Studio, someone has gone and set up mobile in my area now with Nikki's Hair Salon I think, but to be honest, I'm a shop so won't be changing my name, plus I've been Nikki C's since mobile days so most people know my name as mine, lots of hairdressers are called nikki so it was bound to happen lol.

If I started to hear bad word about her work though, I would have to call her and ask her to change her name lol.

 

[nickij]

My heart goes out to you as this happened to me a few years ago.
I was eden beauty & wellbeing and they were opening as eden hair an beauty, which is different enough to not give me a leg to stand on but similar enough to confuse clients when your salons are near one another.
It really miffed me to say the least especially since she knew my business existed but had already seeked advice on whether or not shed be able to "steal" the name without me being able to do a thing about it.
Needless to say i just changed my name and relauched with a clean slate. It did cost me a fair bit but it was worth it, i didnt want people confusing our businesses especially since that salon owner is quite clearly a cow lol.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using SalonGeek

 

[facelashbrow]

The amount of money you've spent, I'd probably keep it the same. I assume your branding is different?

My domain name cost me £12 for 2 years and my site costs me £4pm.

Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk 2

 

[Baggybear]

I think it is up to you if you want to change the name or not BUT if your going to change it then you have to get all new business card & flyers done and stop handing out the old ones, crappy I know.

As for the domain name it's quite easy and isn't that expensive either. I have a weebly site and a domain from 123 reg.

I have no monthly hosting bill as Weebly host for free, I just have to pay the domain name cost for 2 years which was approx £8.