Help Me Name My Business

[Ash]

It won't be long before I finish my degree in Business.  I've still got about a year before that happens, but it'll arrive quick and I want to be prepared.

In the Entreprenuerial class that I'm currently enrolled in, the instructor is already asking me if I've decided on a name for my business.
I have to present my idea to him as part of my final grade and so far, I'm stumped on coming up with a good name.
My business will be a hat and headgear store. 
Kind of like Lids.com.  Check that site out to get an idea of what my store will be like.  My store will obviously be different and sell somewhat different products, but it will be a hat and headgear store just the same.

I've come up with a couple of names, but they sound kind of lame.
Most of them involve the use of my last name, which is Davis.  Most of my family members own their own businesses and all of them use their last names in the title.
So far I've come up with:
The Davis Hat Emporium
Davis Hats & Headgear

See what I mean?
Lame.   

I need a great business name that jumps out at the customer and grabs their attention.
It can't be a name previously taken by another business.
It needs to be a name that reflects what I sell, yet still be original.

Got any suggestions?

[Doggett]

Shopping for Head

[Ash]

Shopping for Head

Ha!  That's hilarious!   

Doggett, at first, the only thing I could think of when I saw your business name was the sexual overtone it implies.
If only fellatio wasn't referred to as "head"!

Nice try, though.   

[Menaaard!!!]

Shopping for Head

I love that!

It's memorable and works.

Kind of goes along with what I was thinking, in the subtext: Davis on Top 

[Doggett]

I need a great business name that jumps out at the customer and grabs their attention.
It can't be a name previously taken by another business.
It needs to be a name that reflects what I sell, yet still be original.

Got any suggestions?

1. My title grabs peoples attention.
2. I doubt there are many places called it...I'm hoping...
3. You sell hats for your head, so I have that covered.

I don't see what's wrong, I think you should try it.
There are hairdressers called curl up and dye, so why not ?

[Menaaard!!!]

There are hairdressers called curl up and dye, so why not ?

Successful?

A name like Curl Up and Dye is certainly memorable; and if the business is successful, then it can become memorable. The name alone, though, is not something I would have suggested for a hairdresser.

Remember that Ash is being graded for this. Risky business names because they are cute, regardless of how memorable they may be, may not get a good mark simply for the risk factor; despite how creative it is, there is still an association to consider which may be off-putting to potential clients. Of course, if you are targeting clients who would find such an association in the name as an attraction, then you are fine.

I think Shopping for Head is great, and would be great for an online store or a shop in a college community, but keep in mind that Ash has to present this to a professor who knows better about how to market a name better than we do; and Ash has to, in my estimation, consider risk and association in his business name.

[Ash]

Good points Menard.  

Keep in mind that I really am going to start up a business after I get my college degree.  This isn't just for class.
Remember, I'm going to open up a retail store here in my city.  The population here is middle to upper middle class and the name cannot be offensive in any way, shape or form.

While I do like the suggestion for Shops For Head, it simply isn't appropriate.
The first thing I thought of when I read it was "blowjob!".
And if I thought that, others will think it, too.

I need help coming up with a memorable business name that is legitimate and respectable.

While we're at it, I want to insert a disclaimer here that says that if I do use a name that one of you created, you did it of your own free will and agree that I am not legally liable to you for anything.

Don't let that scare you away.
Anyone have some more suggestions?

[Menaaard!!!]

Keep in mind that I really am going to start up a business after I get my college degree.  This isn't just for class.
Remember, I'm going to open up a retail store here in my city.  The population here is middle to upper middle class and the name cannot be offensive in any way, shape or form.

Well, now, that kind of changes things a bit.

My natural assumption was that you would be selling baseball caps; though that may still be a line for you, with a middle to upper middle class clientele (especially upper middle class), you are probably looking at a variety of headgear from baseball caps to formal wear.

Unless you are in a big Nascar fanbase selling baseball caps, you've got a tough hill to climb.

One of your considerations in names, IMO, is going to be location. Naturally a mall or large, crowded shopping center are going to be the best choices as you are probably looking at tangent traffic rather than directed.

Though I think my suggestion of Davis on Top might work for online or a small store with an online presence, it is not going to say anything across a crowded mall or shopping center about you or what you do.

Another thing is the association and appeal of each word in the name. Head is going to be difficult to work in, though it can be done, without negative associations without careful use. Davis Head Covers would be a relatively safe association (except for perhaps people with dirty minds like myself who would think 'condoms'), except that it does not speak to people in an upper middle class environment who are likely to not refer to hats as 'head covers'.

Pretty much what you are looking for, again in my estimation, is something someone can see across a mall or shopping center that not only tells them what it is, but makes them want to check it out. Of course, there is the caveat that you cannot make someone want a hat if they don't want one.

This may be a case where you may not want to use your name, but use a name, someone else's name, which may have a bigger appeal.

Something like Costello's Hat Shop or maybe even Hats on First; associating, though old as it is, with Abbott and Costello, their Who's on First routine, and their also famous Susquehanna Hat Company routine.

Of course, the above could be way off base (pun intended).

[CaptnTripps]

Kick Ash Hats

[meQal]

How about Ash Hat?

[Trevor]

How about "Davis Rules", Ash? I like the sound of that.

[RCMerchant]

Ash the Cat in a Hat? 

Ok...seriously...hmmm...Heads Up? Gear Head? Skullduggery?

[Derf]

The Lids.com site seems to be just various caps. Is that what you plan, Ash? Will your store be mainly a sports cap shop, or do you plan to include more formal hats as well (I have no idea about fashions in Iowa, so I have no idea if there is a market for "real" hats). If you plan to run the gamut of hat and cap offerings, something classic like Davis Milliners or The Milliners Shop might work. If you plan to keep it informal (i.e., mostly sports wear/caps), you might go for a more humorous name like The Mad Hatter. Other possibilities include neutral names like J.D.'s Toppers or Davis Sports Caps. Could you provide a few more details about your plans?

I almost suggested Ash Hats as a joke, but meQal beat me to it  .

[zombie no.one]

The Davis Family Trademark Gentlemens' Headgear Emporium Ltd.

[Menaaard!!!]

...I have no idea about fashions in Iowa...

Neither do the people who live there.