Business license?

[KigerKat]

I've only been making soaps for about 6 weeks, and I have only done melt and pour. I've given away a lot of my soaps for people to try out, and I have gotten a lot of great feedback from them.

Our neighborhood activities director and my husband both think that I should have a booth at our neighborhood fall festival in 5 weeks and try selling them. I did agree to donate a basket of soaps for the silent auction, but with all of my great feedback I am starting to seriously consider this thought.

I know I can't accept money for my soaps unless I have a business license and charge sales tax for them. What is going to make my decision on weather or not I give this a go is how difficult it will be to do this. If there are any Georgia soapers out there, I would love your advice! Everyone else is welcome to chime in as well, I need all the help I can get!

I haven't named my soaps (I do have a couple of ideas), I don't know how much it costs to get a business license, I don't know if I have to get a sales tax i.d. on top of the license, or how long any of this takes - remember, this festival is 5 weeks away. And then there is the question of insurance - how much would I need and where would I go to get it? We have our home and cars insured through State Farm - would it be ideal for me to check with them?

I want to do this properly and not cut any corners. If it doesn't seem feasible to do what needs to be done in 5 weeks, then I'm more than fine waiting until next year.

Thank you for your help!!

 

[donniej]

I don't have a specific answer for you.... but if you go to your chamber of commerce or city hall, they should be able to tell you exactly what you need to do. I have never heard of this costing "much" money. I have a friend here in Philly who had some website do all the work for him and mail him his tax ID, etc.... he said it was $300 for everything together, including company seal. I'm guessing for a proprietarship, especially away from a big city, it will be much, much less... especially if you do it yourself...

 

[Bigmoose]

I live in MI so things could be very different by you but here is what I have. Goto city hall to register your business, cost is little, $10 or $15 if I remember right. You can check with state farm for insurance. Some will cover you and some won't. Around here they want about $600 a year for 1 mill. coverage. RLI is a good place to get a starter policy. They are $210 for a year but you can not sell over 5K in product. Here is a link for them. https://www.insuremyhomebiz.com/index.asp
As for sales tax go to your states website to register. Here it is free, just a little bit of a headache.

Bruce

 

[kwahlne]

In VA (Loudoun County, anyway), they don't even let you get a business license until you've sold $4001 or more in a calendar year. At that point, it's about $35 and goes higher the higher your sales. But you do need to register your business and apply for sales tax ID.

HSMG is a great place to get the insurance you need. http://www.soapguild.org

 

[Bnky]

State Farm would not cover me for home based business but I contacted RLI also, and it is just as Bruce said. I myself would definitely get insurance and an LLC before selling anything, this will protect your personal property (home, cars, etc.). I think to get an LLC is around $50.00 (check the secretary of state website in your area) and the insurance was $217 a year. If you name your soap you may need to file for a ficticious name also with the secretary of state (should be just a small fee). Check your municipality/county/city for home based business licensing to see if they require one and they will let you know about a tax ID number and anything else you may need (or they will direct you to someone else). If you have an economic development center or a university extension where you live, they sometimes offer counceling for startup companies. Good luck and congratulations!

 

[donniej]

I just posted this also in the business forum...

http://www.soapmakingforum.com/forum/vi ... 100#123100

I shelled out the cash to have a company file all the paperwork for me. It was $300 for them to do everything. They also list on there website that they'll send you all the paperwork for ~$100. Keep an eye on the post I linked above if you're interested in knowing how they do.

 

[Bnky]

DonnieJ: That sounds easy enough. I might have to look into that. Will you get a tax ID number also?

 

[donniej]

DonnieJ: That sounds easy enough. I might have to look into that. Will you get a tax ID number also?

Yes, State and Federal 8)