A “professional baby-namer” based out of San Francisco is going viral for charging parents an eye-watering $30,000 to name their babies.
Going through a list of baby names can be one of the most fun (and stressful) parts of getting ready to welcome a new family member — but if parents simply can’t agree on what to name their new bundle of joy, they can always ask a professional for help.
Baby name consultants help parents find the perfect names for their kiddos. The profession began to boom in the mid-2010s – early 2020s, but it’s possible that it could have been around far longer than that.
One baby name consultant is taking social media by storm not for her unique methods, but for the eye-popping amount she charges couples who are willing to shell out the big bucks to get their baby named by a pro.
Professional baby name consultant charges parents thousands
Meet Taylor A. Humphrey, a childbirth doula, TikTok star, and professional baby name consultant who charges her clients up to $30,000 to figure out what name will be printed on their kiddo’s birth certificate.
However, she wasn’t always pricing her services so steeply. She first started out on TikTok about a decade ago, where followers would ask for help naming their babies due to her popular videos on the topic.
She didn’t officially start her business as we know it until February 2022, when she was attending a dinner with a guest list full of high-profile venture capitalists. A friend encouraged her to advertise a $1,500 baby-naming package to them — and two months later, the New Yorker published a profile on Humphrey’s pricey new hustle.
Since then, she’s become somewhat of a marvel online, but her services are highly-sought after by those who can afford them.
“There’s a lot more to this job than people realize,” Humphrey said in an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle. “Sometimes, I get calls from clients that are so urgent that I need to drop everything and help them right away.”
For instance, one couple phoned Humphrey as they sat in the hospital, unable to leave until they filled out their child’s birth certificate. They couldn’t decide on a middle name, but after brainstorming with Humphrey, they finally came up with a name mere minutes before the mother was scheduled to be discharged.
Humphrey’s baby-naming services aren’t just giving out a list of possible names. She gives clients an “exhaustive” questionnaire asking them about their personalities, hobbies, and other information to help inform her suggestions.
She offers a few different tiers depending on what parents are looking for and tailors packages for them based on their specific needs. For instance, Humphrey charges a couple hundred dollars to curate a list of prospective names, which includes each name’s meanings, origins, different spellings, and even how popular they’ve been over the years.
Her $30K naming service is the most involved tier that she offers. This package includes insights from professional genealogists and even brand managers. It lasts several months and necessitates many consultations over the phone.
“If your services cost a lot, people often assume you must be worth it,” she told the San Francisco Chronicle.
Humphrey is well-aware that her business is a target for mockery online — but despite the backlash, she carries on, believing in the importance of her profession.
“I had to come to terms with the fact that people often find me through content that pokes fun at me,” she admitted. “I accept it because I believe the work I’m doing is really important.”
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