What’s in a name?

Verstela (previously Terra) are a huge blue-collar staffing firm in Arizona looking to expand nationally across the US. At a high turning point in the business, they needed a new name that could last, stand out and be legally owned nationally.

The naming process I did completely alone. Being based in the UK with the client in the US there wasn’t an opportunity to meet the client and workshop with them unfortunately.

Instead, I immersed myself in as much reading material the CEO had written about the company as I could. The CEO was the key decision maker, given she is the third-generation family owner. She is a very ‘to-the-point’ person so I wanted to get this across in the name.

Here was my first presentation, whittled down from 60+ names.

“More traditional”

The approach I took was a more modern approach to naming but though they liked many they wanted a more “traditional” name. To me, this means using the more traditional Latin-sounding names.

On meeting the team for the first time during the first presentation, I also realised a feminine name would work well for this client. In a very male-dominated industry, this female-led company could create real cut-through.

Using the same techniques I normally use I landed on Verstela, which was loved and immediately trademarked.

Verstela comes from:

Versus (Latin for “towards”) + Stella (Latin for “the stars”)