# Naming your Commercial School?



## Yuen Kay Jun

Hello,

I am considering reopening my commercial kwoon after many years, to spawn off of my private teaching.    i wanted to ask my fellow brethren about naming my school, how to name it and what to consider.

I teach Wing Chun and will be opening in the Savannah, GA area.  There is already one Wing Chun school here named "Savannah Ving Tsun".   So although i can name mine Savannah Wing Chun, i do not feel that would be professional or show much Wu De/Mo Duk.  Your opinion and advise is appreciated.

I have been involved in CMA for a long time, so i am unable to view naming from a novice mind or a public/non-cma mind... LOL (shallow i know).

Since the school name is the first point of impression and marketing (from a public standpoint), would anyone be willing to share their method of thought or suggestions?


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## oaktree

Yuen Kay Jun said:


> Hello,
> 
> I am considering reopening my commercial kwoon after many years, to spawn off of my private teaching.    i wanted to ask my fellow brethren about naming my school, how to name it and what to consider.
> 
> I teach Wing Chun and will be opening in the Savannah, GA area.  There is already one Wing Chun school here named "Savannah Ving Tsun".   So although i can name mine Savannah Wing Chun, i do not feel that would be professional or show much Wu De/Mo Duk.  Your opinion and advise is appreciated.
> 
> I have been involved in CMA for a long time, so i am unable to view naming from a novice mind or a public/non-cma mind... LOL (shallow i know).
> 
> Since the school name is the first point of impression and marketing (from a public standpoint), would anyone be willing to share their method of thought or suggestions?


Hey I am in Georgia in Snellville my wife is Cantonese so if there is something you need help with in creating a name no problem.


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## dancingalone

Yuen Kay Jun said:


> Hello,
> 
> Since the school name is the first point of impression and marketing (from a public standpoint), would anyone be willing to share their method of thought or suggestions?



The name from the start should explain what you are offering.  Most lay people have no idea what Wing Chun is, so I don't view it as important at all for inclusion.  Perhaps something like Savannah School of Chinese Martial Arts?  You might even switch out Savannah for the street name you are located at if it is a large commercial one.


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## JP3

Obviously, my place isn't a commercial school. The suggestion above of the city's name being used, or if a sizeable street name is your school's retail frontage, is an excellent one,  (say the street name is Trenton, for example), "Chinese Martial Arts of Trenton," or as stated above "Savannah School of Chinese Martial Way," something like that. Obvious to people who don't know diddly about Wing Chun of basically what it is that you do there, to make the most out of the marketing $$$ you are spending to have such frontage.


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## Andrew Green

Simple, easy to remember, something people will actually use in conversation. 

I'd vote against "savanah school of Chinese martial arts" because no one is going to say that in casual conversation.

Most people that don't train also have no idea what wing chun is, nor will they care that much unless you teach them too. So I'd not use that in the name either.

Simple, unique, and something people will actually use in conversation would be my starting point


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## yak sao

My Wing Tsun group uses Chinese Boxing Club for our name.


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## Yuen Kay Jun

oaktree said:


> Hey I am in Georgia in Snellville my wife is Cantonese so if there is something you need help with in creating a name no problem.



Oak tree. Thanks brother!!!    Is gwai-lo have a tendency to butcher translations.   Especially verbal teachings. , when converting to English. Lol


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## Yuen Kay Jun

Hmmm.  Good advice and I thank y'all.  

So, your thoughts?

Savannah Kung Fu Academy

Savannah Chinese boxing academy.


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## Yuen Kay Jun

I chose those to start, because there is only one other Kung fu school around and a few  of karate


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## oaktree

Yuen Kay Jun said:


> Oak tree. Thanks brother!!!    Is gwai-lo have a tendency to butcher translations.   Especially verbal teachings. , when converting to English. Lol


Hey no problem, I actually called mine 
Chinese martial arts of Loganville - Loganville, GA
I think the simplest the better.


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## Danny T

Does the average person who could be a great potential student know or understand what Wing Chun is?
Your school name needs to tell the average person your school is obviously a martial arts facility. Your marketing should brand what is available at the school.


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## Yuen Kay Jun

Good advice Danny.  As is wing chun, simplicity is key...


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## CB Jones

Yuen Kay Jun said:


> Hmmm.  Good advice and I thank y'all.
> 
> So, your thoughts?
> 
> Savannah Kung Fu Academy
> 
> Savannah Chinese boxing academy.



Savannah Chinese Boxing Academy has a better sounding acronym. S.C.B.A

But resemble Scuba too much

How bout:

Academy of Chinese Martial Arts. A.C.M.A

Savanah's Academy of Chinese Martial Arts----SACMA

Kung Fu Academy of Savanah---KFAS

Kung Fu Academy of Georgia ---KFAG (lol)

Savanahs Wingchun Academy of Georgia---SWAG

Savanahs Academy of Wingchun---SAW

Chinese Boxing Academy of Georgia ---CBAG

The Nameless Wing Chun Academy of Savanah ----now that is just crazy


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## CB Jones

Wait. I've got it:

Chinese Boxing Academy of Savanah---CBAS

Y'all battle cry:

Kick his a** CBAS


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## JP3

Andrew Green said:


> I'd vote against "savanah school of Chinese martial arts" because no one is going to say that in casual conversation


Yeah... now that I read it out loud.. it doesn't exactly flow trippingly off the tongue, does it.  But, you'd not want to shorten it as far as going to something like "Chop Shop" though, either. And, if you go into Cantonese or Mandarin for the name, unless you are in an area of town where such is a living and sort of present language, nobody would know what you are talking about, either.

This is proving harder than I originally thought.


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## Danny T

The Martial Arts Academy
The Academy of Martial Arts
Chinese Martial Arts
Chinese Boxing Academy
The School of Martial Arts
Savannah Martial Arts
School of Martial Arts
Martial Arts Plus


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## dancingalone

Andrew Green said:


> Simple, easy to remember, something people will actually use in conversation.
> 
> I'd vote against "savanah school of Chinese martial arts" because no one is going to say that in casual conversation.



I'd actually argue that how it flows in conversation is also unimportant.  I bet half my students have no idea what the name of the school is.

What is important in my opinion is how intuitive the name is when searching through a search engine such as Google.  If you are in Savannah and you are looking for lessons in MA, you likely would be using terms like "Savannah" and "martial arts" and maybe other terms like "self defense", etc.

A catchy name that might roll off the tongue well does not necessarily equate to best for business.


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## Yuen Kay Jun

Thanks to everyone for the input, suggestions and talking points!

I'm leaning to using Kung Fu in the name, this way it is Martial Art Type specific, and it will lend the public to at least having an Idea of what it is.

i can specify the type in the marketing and website.

i'm thinking that having Martial Art(s) in the name may be too generic, which i can use to tag the web traffic and funnel to me - perhaps....


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## Jenna

Yuen Kay Jun said:


> Thanks to everyone for the input, suggestions and talking points!
> 
> I'm leaning to using Kung Fu in the name, this way it is Martial Art Type specific, and it will lend the public to at least having an Idea of what it is.
> 
> i can specify the type in the marketing and website.
> 
> i'm thinking that having Martial Art(s) in the name may be too generic, which i can use to tag the web traffic and funnel to me - perhaps....


Cannot be of much help, just want to wish you well with starting up  x


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## JowGaWolf

Yuen Kay Jun said:


> Hello,
> 
> I am considering reopening my commercial kwoon after many years, to spawn off of my private teaching.    i wanted to ask my fellow brethren about naming my school, how to name it and what to consider.
> 
> I teach Wing Chun and will be opening in the Savannah, GA area.  There is already one Wing Chun school here named "Savannah Ving Tsun".   So although i can name mine Savannah Wing Chun, i do not feel that would be professional or show much Wu De/Mo Duk.  Your opinion and advise is appreciated.
> 
> I have been involved in CMA for a long time, so i am unable to view naming from a novice mind or a public/non-cma mind... LOL (shallow i know).
> 
> Since the school name is the first point of impression and marketing (from a public standpoint), would anyone be willing to share their method of thought or suggestions?


When you think of a name for your school also think of the name of your website as well.  The name for your physical school is going to be more flexible than the name for your website.  For me personally I would never recommend not putting the location as part of the physical business name.  If you build up a good brand and then find it more profitable to move to the next city over, then you won't be able to take the naming brand with you. 

Do not include location as part of your website domain name because you may move locations, which means you would need to purchase a new domain if you decide to continue the school at a different location.  Also make sure that the name fits well on a business card.   Do a couple of markup designs on one of the sites that let you design your own business cards. 

Make sure your name is something easy to remember and easy to spell.  The name that you come up with may not be all that exciting but if it's easy to remember then it will be easier to market and talk about.  I would drive around some of the larger martial arts schools and take note of how they use their name.  The 4 common words used in martial arts school names are probably Academy, School, Institute, Center.   So one of those would probably be good to include as part of your name.


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## JR 137

CB Jones said:


> Wait. I've got it:
> 
> Chinese Boxing Academy of Savanah---CBAS
> 
> Y'all battle cry:
> 
> Kick his a** CBAS



I love that movie.


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## WaterGal

Yuen Kay Jun said:


> Thanks to everyone for the input, suggestions and talking points!
> 
> I'm leaning to using Kung Fu in the name, this way it is Martial Art Type specific, and it will lend the public to at least having an Idea of what it is.
> 
> i can specify the type in the marketing and website.
> 
> i'm thinking that having Martial Art(s) in the name may be too generic, which i can use to tag the web traffic and funnel to me - perhaps....



I think that's a good choice. I think people often use "martial arts" in their business name because either 1) they teach multiple styles, or 2) they teach a style that's not very famous or has a complex "foreign" name.  If you put "Joe's Goju-ryu and Iaido" on your sign, most people aren't going to know what the heck your business even is - but if they see "Joe's Kung Fu", they'll immediate think of Bruce Lee kicking some dude in the face.

Now you have to think about the other part of the name.  People often call their school "[town name] [martial arts style]" or "[owner name][martial arts style]", but you have other options.  

For example, you could use a word associated with a positive character trait or value, in order to evoke the idea that training at your school will help you to do or be that, or that your school has that value or philosophy. Or an animal or thing that evokes those traits. Or, you could use a word associated with local landmarks or cultural things in your area, or themes that are associated with Wing Chun.


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## DanT

You should call it Super Secret Wving Tschun and trade mark it and call yourself a 32nd degree black belt and great grandmaster of the Jedi order. Oh and don't forget about uploading a curriculum to your website with the secret fourth form being included in the list of forms. Just kidding. I think "Savanah Academy of Gong Fu" sounds cool.


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## Kung Fu Wang

Nobody has suggested to use the word "combat" yet. I like

- International Combat WC Academy
- America Combat WC Academy
- GA Combat WC Academy
- Savannah Combat WC Academy

You use the term WC. When people ask you what WC is, you can then explain to them. If they don't, it can be treated as a key word.


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## CB Jones

Society of Wingchun Gungfu Arts of Savannah.

Or

SWingGAS  for short.


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## Tony Dismukes

WaterGal said:


> Or, you could use a word associated with local landmarks or cultural things in your area, or *themes that are associated with Wing Chun*.


The Savannah Institute of Lineage Arguments?

*ducks*


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## Gerry Seymour

dancingalone said:


> The name from the start should explain what you are offering.  Most lay people have no idea what Wing Chun is, so I don't view it as important at all for inclusion.  Perhaps something like Savannah School of Chinese Martial Arts?  You might even switch out Savannah for the street name you are located at if it is a large commercial one.


I'd be cautious using the street name. If you ever move the school a few blocks, the name ceases to have meaning.

I agree wholeheartedly with the rest of your post. 

To the OP: what will people come there looking for? (The right people - the ones you serve best.) For instance, if you have a self-defense focus, then something about that could be built into the name. If part of what you focus on is the traditions (as a means of building discipline and presence), then it might be helpful to have "traditional" in the name or tag line. Given that WC is not widely known (a bit more so, since the Yip Man film), many schools use "kung fu" in their school names, though I undertstand that's a horribly generic term that doesn't even mean as much as the term "martial art".


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## Gerry Seymour

JowGaWolf said:


> When you think of a name for your school also think of the name of your website as well.  The name for your physical school is going to be more flexible than the name for your website.  For me personally I would never recommend not putting the location as part of the physical business name.  If you build up a good brand and then find it more profitable to move to the next city over, then you won't be able to take the naming brand with you.
> 
> Do not include location as part of your website domain name because you may move locations, which means you would need to purchase a new domain if you decide to continue the school at a different location.  Also make sure that the name fits well on a business card.   Do a couple of markup designs on one of the sites that let you design your own business cards.
> 
> Make sure your name is something easy to remember and easy to spell.  The name that you come up with may not be all that exciting but if it's easy to remember then it will be easier to market and talk about.  I would drive around some of the larger martial arts schools and take note of how they use their name.  The 4 common words used in martial arts school names are probably Academy, School, Institute, Center.   So one of those would probably be good to include as part of your name.


To reinforce a point JGW is making, when you look at naming your school, search for available domain names that will work with the school name. My preference is to have the exact school name. If that name is long, I also like the idea of having an abbreviated version. So, if the school was Savannah Academy of Chinese Martial Arts (not a great name, but it makes the point), I'd want both SavannahAcademyOfChineseMartialArts.com and some shorter version like SavannahCMA.com, SavannahAcademy.com, or some such. There's also some reasonable argument to be made for picking up a domain that is marketing only, not related to the school name, like SavannahSelfDefense.com. Domains are inexpensive.


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## Gerry Seymour

Tony Dismukes said:


> The Savannah Institute of Lineage Arguments?
> 
> *ducks*


Debates, Tony. Debates.


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## Gerry Seymour

WaterGal said:


> I think that's a good choice. I think people often use "martial arts" in their business name because either 1) they teach multiple styles, or 2) they teach a style that's not very famous or has a complex "foreign" name.  If you put "Joe's Goju-ryu and Iaido" on your sign, most people aren't going to know what the heck your business even is - but if they see "Joe's Kung Fu", they'll immediate think of Bruce Lee kicking some dude in the face.
> 
> Now you have to think about the other part of the name.  People often call their school "[town name] [martial arts style]" or "[owner name][martial arts style]", but you have other options.
> 
> For example, you could use a word associated with a positive character trait or value, in order to evoke the idea that training at your school will help you to do or be that, or that your school has that value or philosophy. Or an animal or thing that evokes those traits. Or, you could use a word associated with local landmarks or cultural things in your area, or themes that are associated with Wing Chun.


"Joe's Goju-ryu and Iaido" would sound like an obscure sushi and sake shop to most folks.


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## Tony Dismukes

gpseymour said:


> Debates, Tony. Debates.


I considered "Lineage Wars" and "Lineage Bickering" as well.


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## WaterGal

Tony Dismukes said:


> The Savannah Institute of Lineage Arguments?
> 
> *ducks*



LOL.  I was thinking more like how like every 3rd KKW Taekwondo school has "Tiger" in the name.


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## JR 137

Back in my 20s, a dojo-mate and I were contemplating some names for the style we were going to create.  Perhaps I can pass them on to you.  I know you're teaching a Chinese style, and my suggestions are Japanese, but so what; it's not like people off the street will know the difference...

Broken Bones do-kan
Blood and Teeth on the Ground Ryu
Subdural Hematoma Kai-Kan

And the one we thought would be best, but decided it would be way too long to put on a patch on a gi -

I'll walk into your house at 3 am after a night of drinking, sit at your dinner table and tell your wife to cook me breakfast, and there isn't a damn thing you can do about it Do-Kan

That was a Ravishing Rick Rude quote.  I toned down the language a little for proper forum decorum's sake.  And I added the Do-Kan.  Figured it would reflect the badassness of my prospective students.

You're welcome to use any of those if you wish


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## Yuen Kay Jun

DanT said:


> You should call it Super Secret Wving Tschun and trade mark it and call yourself a 32nd degree black belt and great grandmaster of the Jedi order. Oh and don't forget about uploading a curriculum to your website with the secret fourth form being included in the list of forms. Just kidding. I think "Savanah Academy of Gong Fu" sounds cool.




YESSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  LMAO


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## Yuen Kay Jun

WaterGal said:


> I think that's a good choice. I think people often use "martial arts" in their business name because either 1) they teach multiple styles, or 2) they teach a style that's not very famous or has a complex "foreign" name.  If you put "Joe's Goju-ryu and Iaido" on your sign, most people aren't going to know what the heck your business even is - but if they see "Joe's Kung Fu", they'll immediate think of Bruce Lee kicking some dude in the face.
> 
> Now you have to think about the other part of the name.  People often call their school "[town name] [martial arts style]" or "[owner name][martial arts style]", but you have other options.
> 
> For example, you could use a word associated with a positive character trait or value, in order to evoke the idea that training at your school will help you to do or be that, or that your school has that value or philosophy. Or an animal or thing that evokes those traits. Or, you could use a word associated with local landmarks or cultural things in your area, or themes that are associated with Wing Chun.




Thanks WaterGal!   Good Feedback!


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## Yuen Kay Jun

Kung Fu Wang said:


> Nobody has suggested to use the word "combat" yet. I like
> 
> - International Combat WC Academy
> - America Combat WC Academy
> - GA Combat WC Academy
> - Savannah Combat WC Academy
> 
> You use the term WC. When people ask you what WC is, you can then explain to them. If they don't, it can be treated as a key word.




I like the idea of using "Combat", it fits the mentality of what I teach.  I always tell my students:  "if you want to do forms and one-steps, go somewhere else; if you want to learn how to persevere and fight, then stay - WE ARE A FIGHT SCHOOL!"


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## Yuen Kay Jun

gpseymour said:


> To reinforce a point JGW is making, when you look at naming your school, search for available domain names that will work with the school name. My preference is to have the exact school name. If that name is long, I also like the idea of having an abbreviated version. So, if the school was Savannah Academy of Chinese Martial Arts (not a great name, but it makes the point), I'd want both SavannahAcademyOfChineseMartialArts.com and some shorter version like SavannahCMA.com, SavannahAcademy.com, or some such. There's also some reasonable argument to be made for picking up a domain that is marketing only, not related to the school name, like SavannahSelfDefense.com. Domains are inexpensive.




Great Points everyone!!   I've already reserved the domain names for a few, not knowing which I would use yet:

wingchunsavannah.com
savannahwingchun.com
kungfusavannah.com


Although we are NOT in Savannah city limits (a suburb) still applies.   Will I use them all - who knows.... LOL

Probably will reserve another while I think of it.


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## Yuen Kay Jun

Combat Kung Fu Academy sounds Hokey.......  Almost liked it....


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## Yuen Kay Jun

I really wanted to use Chinese Boxing Academy....   BUT, people would think its  a boxing gym for Chinese descendants....


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## hoshin1600

one thought on using the word Academy,  if there is a private or public K-12 school called Savannah Academy you could be sued to change the name.  it happened to someone i know in my city.  he was New England Academy of self defense. the private elementary school New England Academy felt it could be confusing to people and the karate school had to change their name.

from my experience i would want my school name to reflect what the school is about, but be careful. how you see your school name may not be how others see it and to use the words like "combat" might turn people off, parents will not want to send their kids there.


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## Yuen Kay Jun

hoshin1600 said:


> one thought on using the word Academy,  if there is a private or public K-12 school called Savannah Academy you could be sued to change the name.  it happened to someone i know in my city.  he was New England Academy of self defense. the private elementary school New England Academy felt it could be confusing to people and the karate school had to change their name.
> 
> from my experience i would want my school name to reflect what the school is about, but be careful. how you see your school name may not be how others see it and to use the words like "combat" might turn people off, parents will not want to send their kids there.




Thanks for the input!

I'm in an Army Community, near a base, the clientele may be gentler on me for  it, but I'm not going to take that chance...


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## Kung Fu Wang

hoshin1600 said:


> use the words like "combat" might turn people off, parents will not want to send their kids there.


In one MA tournament, I had seen 3 workshops were offered in the same hall.

- The 1st workshop teacher was teaching, "combat ..." with 4 students.
- The 2nd workshop teacher was teaching a "fan form" with 15 students.
- The 3rd workshop teacher was teaching "Taiji for health" with 20 students.

If money is all you care about, the term "combat" may not meet your business need.


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## Tony Dismukes

Kung Fu Wang said:


> In one MA tournament, I had seen 3 workshops were offered in the same hall.
> 
> - The 1st workshop teacher was teaching, "combat ..." with 4 students.
> - The 2nd workshop teacher was teaching a "fan form" with 15 students.
> - The 3rd workshop teacher was teaching "Taiji for health" with 20 students.
> 
> If money is all you care about, the term "combat" may not meet your business need.


Why not cover all the bases?

*Deathmaster's Spiritual Institute of Combat Krav Maga for Health and Fitness
*
It's got a ring to it, don't you think?


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## Gerry Seymour

Yuen Kay Jun said:


> Combat Kung Fu Academy sounds Hokey.......  Almost liked it....


I'd be inclined to drop the "academy" on that one. Somehow, "combat" and "academy" have opposing feels to me - they just clash.


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## Gerry Seymour

hoshin1600 said:


> one thought on using the word Academy,  if there is a private or public K-12 school called Savannah Academy you could be sued to change the name.  it happened to someone i know in my city.  he was New England Academy of self defense. the private elementary school New England Academy felt it could be confusing to people and the karate school had to change their name.
> 
> from my experience i would want my school name to reflect what the school is about, but be careful. how you see your school name may not be how others see it and to use the words like "combat" might turn people off, parents will not want to send their kids there.


Kung Fu Academy of Savannah is more adaptable, anyway. If the OP were to somehow end up starting a second school in another town not too far away (say, Augusta), he could call it Kung Fu Academy of Augusta. And neither name would likely run afoul of a private school.


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