Duckies?

What’s up with the Duckies??

We get asked that a LOT. What on earth do rubber duckies have to do with law? Well, not much. But they do have something to do with Patrick. Here’s the story:

Years ago, as a joke, Patrick and Vallerie decorated part of their first apartment together with some rubber duckies. There was no real reason for it, it was just an empty space and rubber duckie decorations were on sale, so it happened. Well, everyone loved it. So, the decorations moved from apartment to apartment, with occasional additions and replacements.

When it came time to plan their wedding, Patrick and Vallerie wanted to do something fun, and settled on bride and groom rubber duckies as the cake toppers and party favors. It was a huge hit, and one of the guests ended up giving Patrick a set of rubber ducky cuff links as a present.

Fast forward to the re-launch of the office, and Patrick was at work wearing those rubber ducky cuff links when a client walked in. Seeing the duckies, the client laughed, and the following exchange (roughly paraphrased) happened:

Client: That’s a great joke, Patrick!

Patrick:  Thanks, but I don’t get it. What joke? I just like the cuff links.

C: Oh! I thought you did it on purpose, because it’s a funny joke in Spanish.

P: It is?

C: Yes! See, your name, Patrick, is Patricio in Spanish.

P: Ok….

C: And just like you shorten Patrick to “Pat” in English, Patricio gets shortened to “Pato” in Spanish.

P: Ok, I still don’t get it.

C: I thought you spoke Spanish. “Pato” means “duck”!

P: Oh, cool!

C: Yeah, so I thought you were wearing your name on your sleeve on purpose.

P: I wasn’t, but I am now!

And that was it. As luck would have it, Patrick was looking for a way to make the practice seem fun and memorable. Our old branding was stale, and he wanted something fun. So, duckies. Or, more accurately, Patos.