A franchise by any other name ...

Brand names are more than just monikers. A good brand name sticks with consumers, is recognizable and has stopping power.

Those starting out in the business game need to be thorough when picking out a name. Franchise Times spoke with Famous Toastery, a North Carolina-based better breakfast franchise that recently changed its name from the more common Toast Café. CEO Robert Maynard realized he had a problem when folks from different states would call him and thank him for inspiring them to open up their own Toast Café.

To combat the generic name, Maynard rebranded and is rolling out the new Famous Toastery logo and marketing materials to franchisees. The name, however, took longer to procure and distribute to existing franchisees.

“Trademarking and coming up with a name wasn’t easy,” Maynard said. “If you have a brand and you haven’t trademarked it, you better stop what you’re doing right now and do it, because it isn’t as easy as you think.”

Famous Toastery already had three franchise locations prior to the name change, so the company paid for all the collateral and signage. Famous Toastery spent approximately $70,000 on the change — $50,000 for signage and collateral and $20,000 in attorney costs —which Maynard admits could have been much less.

New York-based TRUFOODS also rebranded their iconic brand Pudgie’s Famous Chicken to Pudgie’s Naked Chicken in order to steer public perception to a healthier one, as the brand’s core product is skinless fried chicken.

“I don’t know that you can innovate or be creative by democracy,” Gary Occhiogrosso, president and chief development officer of TRUFOODS, said. “We went through the focus groups and online surveys and conversations to validate what we already knew to be the truth — it perfectly described the product and brand, and it was fun.”