What's Nike got to do with it?
When my partner and I we were trying to find a name, we had pages and pages of names. Today Instagram is essentially your global search engine to see if anyone already has it. Especially if you ever want to have a shop online. Given the rise in Instagram shops and the drop in websites, that was my mindset anyway.
Some of our favorites, Covet, Alter, Keepers, Gem, Modern Elders (which is a retirement concept that is very very cool), Trophy Wife (totally not PC, but funny), Graceful Exit, Foundlings, McMusty (we loved this too, but seemed more for an antique store) …anyway, the list goes on and on and on. It was a fun exercise!
Being Nike retirees, we talked a little about the Nike Rare Air concept and originally, we thought it was Rare Heir, not Rare Air, we just remembered it wrong. Heir made so much more sense to me though because with athletes, you always consider the legacy that came before. Those that made the impossible records and made it possible for the next, the heir, the Rare Heir, to break the latest record. Then it hit Rare Heirloom = Rheirloom!!!
We were so into it! But then we weren’t. The loom part for partner wasn’t resonating. I had done some logo work that also wasn’t landing for either of us. For her growing up in NYC it was feeling a little Bloomies to her and I must admit the double oo was hard to work with graphically. We were also worried about mispronunciation of Rheir, sounding like rear to people. Ugh…please don’t.
For a brief period, we were working with Treasure, then Saint Treasure. The story on that one was quite amazing. Kimberly had given me this beautiful blue and gold crystal and had me place it in my dining area which would help with my “wealth” house in Feng Shui which she has studied quite a bit. Then the VERY NEXT morning, I am flipping through an interior’s magazine, and I stop on an article about vintage desks and the title of the article is Treasures. As I flip it open, the top of the article page is right below the crystal on my dining table. It then dawned on me, we NEVER even considered the word Treasure! Probably because I worked with someone named Treasure…it was her first name. Anyway, I immediately called Kimberly. She did some domain searching, of course someone had it, so we had to add something to it and eventually landed on Saint. So Saint Treasure it was! Done.
Phew!
Not so fast.
A few weeks later I was at a 40th birthday extravaganza a few friends from Nike were there. It was an all-day soiree. We were all vaccinated so it was quite the fun experience to all be together celebrating. I shared some photos of our new product and they asked about the name and how to find out more. We hadn’t launched social or a website yet. So, I shared about Saint Treasure and how the name came about. I got blank stares. They recommended we maybe revisit the name. It didn’t feel like it had soul to them, it felt like just like a brand name. So I told them about the first name, Rheirloom, and our meaning behind the name. Select heirlooms that have lived full lives, now transformed for modern living, no two are alike. They loved it. Huh.
So, we went back to Rheirloom, but we were on shaky ground. We were both so invested in Saint Treasure, but we were probably over thinking it. So after further consideration, we came up with on Rheirloom Design.
Now that sounds more like it..
I think in retrospect, I can see our struggle more clearly. Rheirloom has always been about the product and the feeling we want the buyer to feel when they see it, purchase it and take it home. It’s a rare heirloom that no one else will have. No two will ever be alike. The color, finish and perhaps hardware selection is one of kind. It’s even more rare than the original heirloom, not just because of its’ survival but because of its’ design transformation. We want the customer to have that sense of specialness, that the piece is sacred and important, just like a family heirloom should feel. Rheirloom is about you, the customer.
With Saint Treasure, it was just a catchy name, and it was about us and how we wanted to feel about the name, not the customer. In the end we want customers to hold onto these for another 50 years, pass them down from generation to generation, again and again.
Rheirloom Design is about honoring the legacy of craftsmanship and design that established the benchmark for the industry. We leverage those assets, contribute to a sustainable economy, and provide a beautiful bespoke keepsake entrusted to a new generation.
Now that feels right. ❤️