diff --git a/frontend/.env.development b/frontend/.env.development
index eea1831..bb4d8a1 100644
--- a/frontend/.env.development
+++ b/frontend/.env.development
@@ -1,4 +1,6 @@
 VITE_API_URL=https://localhost:5001/
+VITE_APP_BASE_URL=http://localhost:5173
+VITE_APP_API_URL=http://localhost:5173/api
 VITE_STRIPE_API_KEY=pk_test_51OoveVDrRyqXtNdB2st1NgA8WQA9rhgGaf3q7bCpAOoQyyRS30HMCzGeHba7meVGCSPfb1BVWmOTmFOcr9MkKf5H00bLu5MqsS
 VITE_GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=213344094492-9dbaet2gaschju3hj1sgv1umk0qpd833.apps.googleusercontent.com
 VITE_FACEBOOK_APP_ID
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/frontend/.env.production b/frontend/.env.production
index 3eabb32..888b727 100644
--- a/frontend/.env.production
+++ b/frontend/.env.production
@@ -1,4 +1,6 @@
 VITE_API_URL=https://hutopy-backend-api.azurewebsites.net
+VITE_APP_BASE_URL=https://hutopy.ca
+VITE_APP_API_URL=https://hutopy.ca/api
 VITE_STRIPE_API_KEY=51OoveVDrRyqXtNdBAxIo183PujtqFyU0xUMK9YNtIijcHeDlcLN6pqkZWHbgaBA0FHrwLMSoy3yVLN33NX8ExOxL00MSZwgJN7
 VITE_GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=213344094492-7c83lqoh7mnjgadpeqo2lcs1krhbsnnd.apps.googleusercontent.com
 AZURE_SUBSCRIPTION_ID=46feb20f-3ae1-495a-830b-a31f7b76483d
diff --git a/frontend/src/config.js b/frontend/src/config.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..934032b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/config.js
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+// Environment-specific configuration
+const config = {
+  baseUrl: import.meta.env.VITE_APP_BASE_URL || 'https://hutopy.ca',
+  apiUrl: import.meta.env.VITE_APP_API_URL || 'https://hutopy.ca/api',
+};
+
+export default config; 
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/frontend/src/views/creators/NameEditor.vue b/frontend/src/views/creators/NameEditor.vue
index 74d2d25..95bb84b 100644
--- a/frontend/src/views/creators/NameEditor.vue
+++ b/frontend/src/views/creators/NameEditor.vue
@@ -2,7 +2,8 @@
 import {ref, onMounted, onUnmounted, computed} from "vue";
 import {v7} from "uuid";
 import {useClient} from "@/plugins/api.js";
-import { useI18n } from 'vue-i18n';
+import {useI18n} from 'vue-i18n';
+import config from '@/config';
 
 const props = defineProps({
   name: {
@@ -23,10 +24,11 @@ const emits = defineEmits([
 ]);
 
 const name = ref(props.name);
-const { t } = useI18n();
+const {t} = useI18n();
 
 const isOperationPending = ref(false);
 const reservationState = ref(null);
+const validationError = ref('');
 
 // Use the reservationId from props if provided, otherwise generate a new one
 const reservationId = ref(props.creatorNameReservationId || v7());
@@ -36,12 +38,33 @@ const isCurrentSlug = computed(() => {
   return props.originalSlug && name.value === props.originalSlug;
 });
 
+// Base URL for display
+const baseUrl = computed(() => `${config.baseUrl}/@`);
+
+// Validation function for the slug
+const validateSlug = (slug) => {
+  if (!slug) {
+    validationError.value = t('creator.name.errors.required');
+    return false;
+  }
+
+  // Only allow letters, numbers, and hyphens
+  const validSlugRegex = /^[a-zA-Z0-9-]+$/;
+  if (!validSlugRegex.test(slug)) {
+    validationError.value = t('creator.name.errors.invalid');
+    return false;
+  }
+
+  validationError.value = '';
+  return true;
+};
+
 // Ensure we emit the reservationId on mount if we generated a new one
 onMounted(() => {
   if (!props.creatorNameReservationId) {
     emits('update:creatorNameReservationId', reservationId.value);
   }
-  
+
   // If the name is the same as the original slug, set reservation state to "reserved"
   if (isCurrentSlug.value) {
     reservationState.value = "reserved";
@@ -67,7 +90,13 @@ const handleInput = () => {
     if (currentName === lastProcessedName) {
       return; // Skip if we've already processed this exact name
     }
-    
+
+    // Validate the slug
+    if (!validateSlug(currentName)) {
+      reservationState.value = "unavailable";
+      return;
+    }
+
     // If the name is the same as the original slug, set reservation state to "reserved"
     if (props.originalSlug && currentName === props.originalSlug) {
       reservationState.value = "reserved";
@@ -75,7 +104,7 @@ const handleInput = () => {
       emits('update:name', currentName);
       return;
     }
-    
+
     checkNameAvailability(currentName);
   }, 200);
 };
@@ -100,9 +129,9 @@ const checkNameAvailability = async (nameToCheck) => {
     currentController = controller;
 
     await client.post(
-      `/api/creators/@${encodeURIComponent(nameToCheck)}/reserve`,
-      { reservationId: reservationId.value },
-      { signal: controller.signal }
+        `/api/creators/@${encodeURIComponent(nameToCheck)}/reserve`,
+        {reservationId: reservationId.value},
+        {signal: controller.signal}
     );
 
     // Only process the response if this is still the current request
@@ -137,9 +166,13 @@ onUnmounted(() => {
       variant="outlined"
       :label="t('creator.name.label')"
       v-model="name"
-      outlined
       @input="handleInput"
+      :error-messages="validationError"
   >
+    <template #prepend-inner>
+      <span class="text-gray-400 font-sans">{{ baseUrl }}</span>
+    </template>
+
     <template #append-inner>
       <v-progress-circular
           v-if="reservationState === 'loading'"
@@ -164,21 +197,33 @@ onUnmounted(() => {
   "en": {
     "creator": {
       "name": {
-        "label": "Your creator handle"
+        "label": "Your creator handle",
+        "errors": {
+          "required": "Creator handle is required",
+          "invalid": "Only letters, numbers, and hyphens are allowed"
+        }
       }
     }
   },
   "fr": {
     "creator": {
       "name": {
-        "label": "Votre identifiant de créateur"
+        "label": "Votre identifiant de créateur",
+        "errors": {
+          "required": "L'identifiant est requis",
+          "invalid": "Seules les lettres, chiffres et tirets sont autorisés"
+        }
       }
     }
   },
   "es": {
     "creator": {
       "name": {
-        "label": "Tu identificador de creador"
+        "label": "Tu identificador de creador",
+        "errors": {
+          "required": "El identificador es obligatorio",
+          "invalid": "Solo se permiten letras, números y guiones"
+        }
       }
     }
   }