One of the first personal challenges when setting up the business was not the business plan, the feasibility study or concerns about where my first customer would come from… it was “what should the company be called?”
Pat O’Hare, a friend of mine and a creative designer, helped me through the process. I wanted a name that meant something, although I was not sure what I was looking for, a name linked to coaching, individual development, or personal growth. We “name-stormed” looked through books and talked to friends and came up with some options but they did not really click, my sister, Zoe, then suggested Cateran.
Cateran was the name of my father’s boat, not a big expensive yacht or motor cruiser but a 20-foot sailboat in Sierra Leone. My dad loved Cateran and when he wasn’t on the water sailing for fun with a fishing rod off the back, he would be tinkering with it in the yard, cleaning, varnishing or mending things. On Cateran, my father was always relaxed and at peace with himself and his surroundings; he had sailed since he was a young boy and it felt very natural to him.
Researching the name, I found some additional facts which paint an interesting picture – a Clan of warriors stealing cattle, listening to punk rock whilst on a stroll around the Scottish Highlands!
- The term Cateran, from the gaelic ceathairne, historically referred to a band of fighting men of a Scotland Highland clan who were known marauders and cattle-lifters.
- The Cateran, or simply Cateran, were a Scottish Punk Rock band from Edinburgh active in the mid-to-late 1980s.
- The “Cateran Trail” is a circular 115km route in the Highlands of Scotland that straddles the border between Perthshire and Angus.
Pat then worked his magic with the logo, creating several different designs, getting my input, to-ing and fro-ing through Zoom & WhatsApp. Over a two-week period, the Cateran Logo, brand colours and the social media “A” icon were born.
The Brand Story – Pat O’Hare
As the name Cateran has been reincarnated (from father to son), we begin a brand-new chapter in a family’s history. The simplicity of a life spent on the water is very much alive in the Cateran brand today. Simple clean lines, equilibrium of form, and subtlety are all paramount for the Cateran brand.
The muted grey palette keeps the brand grounded, neutral and balanced, while the accents of red denote passion and prosperity. This combination speaks to the brand’s drive for expertise while keeping itself honest and disciplined. Traits often seen at sea and traits which Cateran’s lineage would have embodied.