Ten tiny enterprises, including a pop-up curry stall, are vying for the title of greatest pun-filled company name.
There is a lot of competition, from unisex salons in Clerkenwell, London, to a locksmith company in Hastings, East Sussex.
The ten businesses have been selected by the self-labelled ‘punslinger’ comedian Darren Walsh, with a cash prize of £2,500 on offer from insurance firm Simply Business for the winner.
Up until Monday, May 13, users of the Simply Business website can cast their votes for the winner.
Explaining its decision behind the contest, the insurance company said: ‘From Spandau Valet to Wok This Way, there’s no shortage of creative names out there.’
Hastings-based locksmith Surelock Homes, Manchester-based Indian street food vendor Tikka Chance On Me, and Clerkenwell hair expert Barber Streisand are among the competitors.
They are joined by Elly Knott’s online retail store, Thready or Knott, and Prints Charming, a printing firm with its headquarters in Fife.
Other restaurants that did not make the shortlist were Get Stuffed in Shadwell, east London, and Pane in the Glass, a Norfolk Glazier.
Mr Walsh stated: ‘Puns and wordplay seem to have a special place in British culture, so it’s heartening to see that type of humour is central to the names of so many small businesses,’ according to The Sun.
‘It’s been a tough job to whittle down the thousands of entries to a shortlist of ten, but I’m sure these business names will trigger a few involuntary laughs from the public.
‘Whether you’re partial to an Easy Lay or Barber Streisand, it’s up to you to crown Britain’s Best Small Business Name 2024.’
Babbel, a language learning platform, conducted a social media search to uncover UK stores with creative or humorous names. Then, it placed 120 store names up for public voting to determine which one best captured the essence of British humour.
Overall, Southport-based removal business Jean Claude Van Man and Harlech-based apparel store Damsel In This Dress came in second and third, respectively.
The best of the East Midlands shop names was Ashbourne’s On a Wick and a Prayer- a sparky name for a candle shop.
Likewise, a burger restaurant named Burger In Law in Gravesend, Kent caused a comical divide over titles via marriage.
Aficionados of heavy metal who want to wash their laundry can visit Iron Maiden’s laundry service, while comedy aficionados in need of new spectacles would be enticed to visit London’s Specks In The City.
There are loads around that I’ve seen over the years, one being on the side of a van for a TV installation company, “Satisfaction with every erection”. A DIY shop called “Fork Handles”, and a restaurant called “Thai-tanic”, but “Surelock Homes” is my favourite.
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