Tips & Ideas For Naming A Sewing Business

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Last Updated on October 18, 2020

Today, the clothing alteration services industry is a $1 billion dollar market with more than 67,000 businesses across the United States.

With that many businesses, it probably feels like all the good ones are already taken, right? Furthermore, how do you find a creative name representing your brand and speaking to your target audience?

How do you make the final decision?

If you’re struggling to name your sewing business, don’t worry. You’re in the right place. In this article, I cover some of the top tips for coming up with a business name idea and how to make sure it’s available for you to use.

Let’s get started!

Related:

Helpful Tips and Tricks for Naming Your Sewing Business

The naming process for a business can be challenging, especially if you don’t have any ideas or a place to start. So, before you dive in, grab a piece of paper and a pen or open up a blank spreadsheet.

Then, use it as a place to brainstorm ideas and write down words or phrases that come to mind as you go through the tips below.

From there, we’ll talk about how to narrow things down and land on the perfect name.

1. Keep It as Short as Possible

Short business names are usually snappier, catchier, and easier to remember. Ideally, you want to stick to two to five syllables and hopefully no more than 25 characters total.

However, the shorter the name, the better.

With that said, there are exceptions to this, and it’s not a hard rule. But, when you think about huge, notable brands, which ones come to mind?

Nike. Apple. Ikea. Febreeze. Target. Honeywell.

They’re easy to remember because they’re short, simple, and brandable.

Obviously, there are exceptions to these rules. But typically, the shorter and simpler your name, the easier it is for everyone to remember.

2. Avoid Words That Are Hard to Hear and Pronounce

Voice to text and voice search is more popular now than ever before. So, it’s important to consider making your name easy to pronounce and hear.

To do this, avoid using:

Commonly misspelled words
Complex terms that are hard to spell
Words that have several pronunciations
Homophones like to, too, and two

Try to keep things as concise and simple as possible.

3. Consider Sewing Related Terms

Since you’re opening a sewing business, it might make sense to use sewing-related words in the name, especially if you’re feeling stuck. It may help just to start brainstorming terms, phrases, and words to get all your company name ideas down on paper.

For a boost of creativity, expand use the thesaurus to find synonyms around the words of what your business does. You can either use the thesaurus function from your word processor or thesaurus.com to develop additional synonyms.

From there, you can cross off bad ideas or any terms you don’t like.

4. Phrases Your Audience Uses

Your business exists for your customers, so it’s important to consider phrases and terms they use when they need sewing services.

There are quite a few places you can look to see what your customers (and competitors) are saying, including:

Facebook groups, posts, and stories
Forums related to the sewing industry
Competitor websites, brochures, and flyers
Trade journals
Magazines or blogs

Alternatively, you can ask friends or relatives in your target audience. Hearing it directly from them may help you brainstorm and narrow down your choices.

Remember to avoid anything limiting your business’s future growth if you decide to go in another direction down the road.

5. What’s Your Specialty?

Do you specialize in a particular service? Maybe you focus on hemming garments or making new clothing.

Regardless of your specialty, consider alluding to it in the name of your business.

6. Neighborhoods, Cities, and Nicknames

Including the name of your city, street, or neighborhood is an excellent way to encourage local shopping and create a strong sense of community in your area.

You can also think about nicknames for your city or neighborhood, as well. Here are some examples to use as inspiration:

Avondale Apparel
North Broadway Needle
Southside Sewing Co.
Tennessee Tailor

With that said, make sure the name you choose isn’t limiting if you decide to move or expand your sewing business down the road.

7. Incorporate Your Name

If you’re still struggling to find the perfect name, consider using your name, a nickname, or something personal and unique to you.

This is a fantastic way to build a personal brand if that’s something you want to do. Some great examples of this in action include:

Teresa’s Tailor Company
Sue’s Sewing
Edna’s Embroidery

If you go this route, keep in mind it may make it harder to sell your sewing business later on.

8. Look at the Names of Other Sewing Company Names

Here is a list of existing sewing business names that may help give you some creative name ideas. While many of these names may be available for you to use, be sure to check first to be sure it can be used.

Tips on how to check business name availability are after the list of names!

Alteration & Total Fashion
Alteration Station
Alterations & Repairs
Alterations By Hannah
Alterations Plus
Alterd By Laura
Andrea’s Design & Alterations
Anna Dressmaking Studio
Best Fit Alterations
Butterfly Alterations
Caribbean Seamstress
Classic Alterations
Clothes Clinic
Cool Spool
Custom Design & Alterations
DJ Sews
Essential Alterations
Express Alteration Co
Fit To Perfection Alterations
Four Sisters Quilting
Gabby’s Alterations
Golden Machine Alterations
Haute Couture Alterations
Hem & Sew
Hidden Needle Design & Alterations
Hi-End Alterations
Island Alterations
Jackie’s Quality Alterations
J’s Alteration & Custom Sewing
JR’s Alterations & Crafts
Kahala Fashions & Alterations
Karen’s Thimble
Leather Alterations By Yolu
Luxury Alterations
Main Street Alterations
Make It Fit Alterations
Mannequins Design Alterations
Margie & Irena’s Alterations
Miracle Clothing Alterations
More Than Stitches
Mr. T’s Men’s Fashion
Needles & Pins Alterations
Next Thread
Paradise Alterations
Peachy’s Apparel & Alteration
Pearl Street Alterations
Perfect Fit Alteration
Pieced Together Studio
Pro Alterations & Suits
Quick Stitch Alterations
Rapid Alterations
Same Day Alteration
Sew It Seams
Sew Knotty Leather Alterations
Sew N So’s
Sew Creative
Sew Perfect
Sew Right Sewing Machines
Sew Simple Alterations
Sewing Alterations
Smart Fit Alterations
Stanton Tailor Shop
Steady Fingers Fabrics
Stitch N Time Alterations
Stitch Boutique
Stitch Two Stitch
Stitches-N-More
Stitching & Alterations Co
Stitch-N-Save
Tailor Made Alterations
Taylor Made Alterations & Repairs
Tennessee Alterations
The Sewing Shop
Thread & Needle Alterations
Unique Alterations
Vest Alteration
Yoo’s One Stop Alteration
Your Fashion Fitter

Finding the Perfect Name: Putting It All Together

By now, you should have a lengthy list of words, phrases, and terms you can use in your business name. At this point, I highly recommend going through and removing any that are hard to spell or pronounce.

Now, you can start combining pieces together until something stands out. It may help to create a list of potential names you can use. From there, you can narrow things down to your favorites.

But before you make your final decision, it’s important that your new name passes a few tests.

Say It Out Loud

Make sure you say your new name out loud. It may look great as a logo, domain name, and on a business card. But it also needs to sound good when you say it out loud.

You can also sit down with someone and talk about your business. Does saying the name in casual conversation sound natural? If not, you may want to consider something simpler or easier to say.

Logo Design

Lastly, think about how to incorporate your new name into a logo. Logos should be simple, memorable, and indicative of your brand.

Take Apple, for example. Their business name easily incorporates into a logo. And today, it’s a household symbol that everyone immediately recognizes.

A logo is an important part of your brand identity, so don’t forget to consider turning your name into a memorable logo as you make your final decision.

Checking the Availability of Your Top Considerations

At this point, you should have several top considerations to choose from. And the best way to narrow it down further is to check each one for availability.

This step is vital because using a name that someone else is using could be very costly, time-consuming to rebrand your business, and possibly embarrassing. There are several places to look to check whether a name is available to use, so let’s walk through each one.

Trademark Search

Trademarks are the most critical, so we’ll start here.

If a name or phrase is trademarked, you’re not allowed to use it in a similar capacity. So, run a trademark search for each business name you’re considering and cross off those that aren’t available.

Learn more about how to do a trademark search before choosing a business name

Local Search

Just because there isn’t a federal trademark on a name doesn’t mean the name you want is available. That’s because there is a trademark known as a common law trademark. A common law trademark isn’t filed anywhere but provides someone who uses that name in commerce some limited rights in their geographical area to use the name. It can be hard to define how far geographically these rights extend as each industry is different. Still, at a basic level, someone can’t open a business and name it the same or similar name as a competing business in town. If you think the name could potentially create confusion with customers, it is usually best to just find another one to use to avoid potential legal issues down the road.

To do a local search, open up the phone book (if you still have one), and do a Google search to see if there are any local competitors with a similar business name to the one you want to use.

Cross off any similar names from your list and take the rest and let’s keep checking.

State Entity Search (If Applicable)

If you plan to register your sewing business as a corporation or LLC, you must register with a unique business name. Each state requires every corporation or LLC to register a unique name for their entity. This doesn’t necessarily protect your name from anyone else using it, but nobody can register a corporation or LLC under the same name in your state.

If you find the name is in use, cross it off your list and move on.

Domain Name Availability

Website addresses aren’t as critical as the first three searches, but it’s still worth doing. Typically, you want your domain name (also called the URL) to be “yourbusinessname.com” without any numbers, dashes, etc.

It’s easiest for customers to remember, but these are hard to come by.

However, you can explore other configurations and extensions if your preferred domain name isn’t available. Just remember your customers may have a more difficult time finding you online.

You can start with . Type in the domain name you want to use to see if it’s available. The tool also returns other possibilities you may want to consider.

Social Media Profiles

Next, especially if you are stuck between a couple of names, check and see if anyone is already using your potential sewing business names on social media. Consider which platforms you plan to use and start with those.

Keep in mind you may have to shorten your company name for some platforms. Twitter only allows 15 characters, for example.

Start with your preferred platforms and do a quick search for your name. If nothing pops up, that likely means no one is using it, and you’re good to go.

Example: Someone is using startingyourbusiness on Instagram, so I would have to choose a different handle, making it more difficult for customers to find me.

Vanity Phone Number

An inexpensive way to make your business stick out and is easier for your customers to remember is to get a custom phone number with your business name. How much more of a memorable name would you have if your phone number was 855-513-2SEW? Vanity phones are pretty affordable too, with pricing typically around $10-$25 per month, depending on the level of features you need.

Companies like and let you type in words to quickly see if a local or toll-free number is available.

Hopefully, you now have some good name ideas on your shortlist for your sewing business. Once you have this list narrowed down to just a few and researched that they are all available, start asking friends, family, and potential customers their thoughts to get feedback, and then pick your perfect sewing business name!