One of the best parts of my job is going to shows and meeting new people. When folks visit my booth and see my business name, Emily Claire, the first thing they usually ask is, “Are you Emily?”
The answer is, yes, but I go by Claire. I am one of those people who goes by their middle name.
It’s a little unusual, and I’ve heard that it is more common in the South.
Some people think that I choose to go by Claire, but actually my parents made that decision for me. I have been Claire since day one!
See, Mom and Dad wanted to name me Claire. They also wanted to name me after my paternal grandmother, Emily. They thought that Emily Claire sounded better than Claire Emily, so that was that.
When it came time for me to choose a name for my business I thought a lot about it. “Claire Jacobs Jewelry” and “Claire Jacobs Designs” were two contenders, but at the end of the day, I really liked Emily Claire.
In fact, despite my social media handles (@emilyclairejewelry) and my website URL (emilylclairedesigns.com) the name of my business is simply Emily Claire. There is no “designs” or “jewelry” in the name. After all, I’m an entrepreneur right? I didn’t want to limit myself by having an overly descriptive word in my business name, just in case I decided to change my plan for world domination and engineer a yoga top that actually doesn’t ride up when you are in downward dog. (Really, please someone needs to do that!)
Emily Claire felt right to me, and I loved the idea of having my grandmother’s name in the name of my business. She’s a pretty neat lady- very smart and an entrepreneur as well!
Sometimes my business name confuses people. They aren’t sure whether to call me Emily or Claire. I totally understand, and I’ll answer to Emily as well. Still as you get to know me and stay in touch (which I hope you do), you will come to know me as your friendly neighborhood jeweler, Claire.
Thanks for reading!
~ Claire