ALLEN WHETZEL KNOWS the name of his Culpeper company is offensive to some, but Miss Virginia and Cooter from the "Dukes of Hazzard" sure do like it. Whetzel has run Redneck Equipment Co. Inc. for about a year and a half.

The name is one of many noteworthy company monikers in the Fredericksburg area. Whether flashy, catchy or straightforward, names are how businesses are recognized and play an important role in their success.

The 28-year-old Whetzel said he didn’t come up with the name because he considered himself a redneck. He does have red hair—with a rattail—and he said he comes in contact with a lot of rednecks.

But it’s the merchandise to which the company name really applies: tree-cutting equipment, some for sale, some for rent.

"You think of a chainsaw, something like that, you think of a redneck," Whetzel said.

But back to Cooter and Miss Virginia.

Ben Jones, who played Cooter on the CBS TV show "Dukes of Hazzard," saw a float the business had in a parade at Brandy Station last summer. Jones recently had re-created his role as the proprietor of Cooter’s Place, a converted garage on U.S. 211 near Sperryville.

"He said, ‘Redneck, that’s just cool as hell,’" Whetzel said.

Miss Virginia Crystal Lewis saw the same float in the Madison County parade.

She gave Whetzel an autographed picture with this message: "Don’t let the rednecks steal this off the wall in your shop!"

Others have had nothing nice to say.

Whetzel said he was in West Virginia, and a passer-by saw his truck, which bears the Redneck name in letters drawn to look like they’re made of logs, and painted-on bullet holes.

The man looked at the truck, then at Whetzel’s Virginia tags and said, "You think you come up here being funny?"

Nevertheless, Whetzel is putting a Redneck store there, in Hedgesville, W.Va., north of Charles Town. He also plans to add another store in Culpeper.

"If you want to go out and play the weekend redneck, we can hook you up," he said.

Whetzel said he has had a good time with his Redneck name; he wouldn’t have put his own name on the front door.

"You take somebody that names a business after theirself, they’re on a serious ego trip," he said.

Guess he wouldn’t have agreed with the naming process of the law firm Allen, Allen, Allen & Allen, which has an office on State Route 3 in Spotsylvania County.

Simple and useful

Some names are simple, like Bob’s Carwash on Leavells Road in Spotsylvania.

Others literally explain the service, like Apartment Finders on William Street in Fredericksburg.

Sweet Caroline, a bakery and candy shop that opened in Fredericksburg last summer, gets double mileage out of its name.

It explains the product and gives the address (Caroline Street).

And it might entice fans of the Neil Diamond song of the same name.

Co-owner Josette Kleykens said she and her husband weren’t fans of the tune, "but we knew it."

Choose well.

Elizabeth J. Goodgold, chief executive officer of The Nuancing Group, a San Diego-based company that helps businesses develop names, said four factors are important in choosing a name: how memorable it is, how identifiable it is, how positive it is and if it is unique.

Memorable is the nail salon Get Nailed.

The business has been in operation in the Salem Professional Building on Route 3 in Spotsylvania for more than 10 years.

"I get a lot of comments about my name, but it’s cute and it’s catchy, so it works," said owner Debbie Jenkins.

Jenkins, 28, said she gets lots of calls—some figuring the business to be a hardware store.

Identifiable is The Daily Planted Co. in Spotsylvania near Lake Anna.

Jill Gajarsky, one of the owners of the family nursery business, said the name came about like this:

An exterminator was working in the company’s building before it opened and asked the name of the business.

The family hadn’t thought of one, so the exterminator said she would have one the next day.

Her mother thought of The Daily Planted, and "she got a free magnolia out of the deal," said Gajarsky, 33.

Gajarsky and her father Al have "Lois Lane" and "Clark Kent," respectively, on their license plates. But some people still don’t get the "Superman" reference (Clark Kent worked for The Daily Planet.)

Being positive also is important because businesses shouldn’t make consumers feel bad, Goodgold said in a telephone interview from California.

Two of the worst she’s seen—for obvious reasons—are the wood stripping business Jack the Stripper, and the decorating firm Country Clutter.

Tom Sablon Jr. wanted a positive name for his North Stafford business.

He opened Yes Yes Air-Conditioning and Heating Inc. in 1990.

"I didn’t want to name it ‘something something air,’" the 42-year-old entrepreneur said.

Unique is best.

Sometimes, names can be confusing.

For example, mechanics at Merryman’s Service Center would need to wash the grease off their hands before eating at Merriman’s Restaurant & Bar.

Twenty-one business listings in Bell Atlantic’s new phone book carry "Southern" as part of a name.

And 13 listings include "Wilderness," to commemorate the 1864 battle in Spotsylvania where Confederate Gen. James Longstreet launched a surprise attack against Union troops. Longstreet was wounded during the battle by his own men.

Likewise, Goodgold, who helps companies develop identities, said the recent trend of Internet firms calling themselves e–this or i–that is becoming so prevalent that it should be avoided.

"What we say to that is e–nough!"

The Free-Lance Star, April 2, 2000. Reprinted with permission.