I found it singing to my babies

It is not an easy task to rebrand a business and a product line that has such intimate meaning to begin with.

How was I ever going to rename the JoJo? How am I supposed to introduce a new brand to families that have used “JoJo” as a household name since their baby was born?

I wanted the name to have meaning. To feel cozy but modern. To be easy to say and remember, but unique enough to not be confused with other trends. This limits me, folks. 

We want to upbrand. To continue to create products for littles that have longevity, simplicity and timeless essence. We want our products to last, to be coveted, to be something families feel safe, proud and excited to use. 

We want to be classy. Modern. Believable. Authentic. Timeless. 

We want to build community around these products. To create an environment that feels inviting and welcoming, warm and cozy and clean.

So as I sat, singing the song I have sang to my kids for four years. It comes naturally. I don’t have to think about the words, the melody. It just effortlessly flows out in my voice. I sat, singing this song on the living room floor while Cece sat in my lap and Joey played with his trucks and the baby in my belly started to roll around. And I thought… why can’t I think of a name for my business? The business I want to have for the rest of my life. The business I want to pass down to these kids. The business that encompasses my whole heart. Why can’t I think of a name for this business that means as much to me as this song, and that flows out of my heart like this song?

I’ve been collecting pieces of “swag” from other brands for so long that Adam thinks I have a collection of box inserts, linen bags and cut off tags that could make up an entire box of loungers. I’ve looked through this collection a million times over. Thinking about how they must have come up with their brand name, why they chose this kind of paper or fabric or stitching. Feeling it, reading it, wondering if the creators even cared as much about creating it as I care about looking at it. 

I want that. I want to create something that is worthy of holding onto. The box, the tag, the insert, the bag, the product itself. Is it valuable? Is it important? Or is it just another piece to be thrown in the trash when opened?

This is one of the many reasons we ship our products ourselves. Many laugh when I talk about how I like to bless, pray over, and touch each product that is headed out the door. It makes me sound extra sentimental, emotional, and attached. Which truly, I am, but that’s not why I do that.

I do this myself because I want to make sure the family it’s being sent to is getting something worthy. Each piece. That it is getting to them as perfectly as possible. And frankly. Amazon doesn’t care about this. To them, it’s another product in another box, get it to the customer as soon as possible, no questions asked. 

We are an instant society. I see complaints every day about how Prime is taking longer than two days recently. Or how the product they ordered from me isn’t available via Prime 2-day, because simply free shipping isn’t fast enough.

I get it. Especially with baby products. Whatever it is you need, you probably needed it yesterday. 

I feel this way about renaming our brand. It needed to happen yesterday, but I also don’t want to sacrifice getting the best of the best for convenience or speed.

But as I sat on the floor with my babies, singing, I found it. 

And with that, after weeks and weeks of stressful brainstorming and abundant prayers and hopes that we weren’t taking too long, I am so excited to announce to you that the new brand for us has been released. 

River: never ceasing to move, carrying the old away and making way for the new. A place of solace, faith and purity. A strong force of nature, one to embrace and one to fear. 

Robin: a symbol of new beginnings, fresh starts and hope. A bright reminder of contentment, clarity and happiness. 

And while I’m not going to sing the song for you, I will tell you, that my love for all of you is stronger than the river, and honest as a robin on a springtime window sill.