Friday, January 22, 2010

Fancy French Cologne, LLC

Dorkily, we roll along....

Last night we decided that we needed to ONCE AND FOR ALL, decide on our business structure. We have been hemming and hawing for weeks as we gathered plenty of conflicting advice from friends, family and colleagues.In the end, we finally settled on creating an LLC, as opposed to just a partnership.
When you are trying to make this decision, it is important to consider what you think your business will look like a year from now and further into the future, not to mention how much money you think you will need to get started and maintain your business. A partnership is great because they are super easy to create - all you need is a written agreement between you and your partner. The only trouble is, that not only will you be personally liable for any debts your business racks up, but you also be liable for any debt your business PARTNER racks up! If you know that crazy Christine, you know that is a chance I cannot well take. But seriously folks, this decision is one that is made without any emotional influences, it is about protecting yourself while you attempt your venture. It doesn't matter if we are the best of friends and trust each other deeply, it still makes sense to protect our precious personal credit while we take this plunge together.
If you are thinking about creating a business entity, this is a great resource for reading about the pros and cons of each:

Small Business Planner

Another thing that initially made us hesitant to form an LLC was the minimum $800 tax you have to pay annually to maintain it. It seems like a lot of money to throw down when you are just starting out and not sure how things are going to play out. However, a friend pointed out that this is not the place to try and save money. You want to make sure you do this right. And, in the grand scheme of things, with all other business expenses considered, it is really a small price to pay to protect yourself.
Well, now that we have that out of the way, it's time to start the fun stuff. Stay tuned. Tally Ho!!!!

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