Posts by Gerald Lewis7

Daniel Jackson55 said:So, basically, having an existing company doesn't really give us any kind of leg up... if we wanted to open a branch, we'd have to register it as a completely new entity and shell out the cash for all those fees... or, I guess, we could just try running the business under our current company's umbrella... which would save us from paying all that extra stuff right away.

In principle, yeah. You'd have to set up a whole new corporation and all three of you would need to be listed as authorized signers instead of handling it individually.

restlesstiger47 said:Hey there,
I’m looking to start a small business, but I feel like I've hit a massive dead end here.😢
I stopped by a local CNN office to get some guidance, but they basically just handed me a flyer listing ten steps I need to take. Apparently, step one is waiting on CNN to provide certain forms and specific data.🙄

Quick question: can I just grab a background check from the local police station, or am I going to have to trek all the way down to the county courthouse?
Also, can I launch a sole proprietorship without having my high school diploma in hand yet? I've only got about a month left of classes, but I really need to get this business off the ground ASAP.
The plan is to rent out toys for kids. From what I've gathered, I don't actually need any special permits or licenses for something like that, right?

If you're in New York City, you'll head to the misdemeanor court over on Kennedy Square for that background check. That covers the business and economic district area.

As for the business, if it's a general service setup, you can open it regardless of your schooling or degree.

Renting toys isn't a specialized trade, so I assume no extra permits are needed, but it wouldn't hurt to double-check with the local Chamber of Commerce first.

A founder can pull double duty as a director even if they have a day job elsewhere. As long as they’re clocked in full-time at that other firm, it doesn't matter.

So, I stumbled upon this site recently, www.alibaba.com which basically acts as a massive database for products coming out of China, Taiwan, Japan, the US, and a few other major exporters

It gives you a full rundown of what they have available. In 99% of cases, you'll see the minimum order quantity, the pricing, and the payment terms right there, so maybe try digging around and finding something

As for how the whole thing actually works or if it's totally legit, I haven't a clue. But hey, take a look. It doesn't cost anything to browse🙂

Raymond Martinez10 said:Right now, only executive board info is live—not the founders—but that’ll change soon once the ownership data is uploaded to the registry.

My bad. Raymond Martinez10 is right—it's just the board members for now.🙂

- You have to list the director right at the start. Without that, you aren't getting anywhere
- All the details on the founders and board members are public record on the Secretary of State's website
- In an LLC, there isn't really a distinction between founders and shareholders. If you had actual shareholders, you'd be looking at a corporation instead
- Here’s how changing a director works: if you have a standalone document from when you started specifically for the director role, you just update that. It’ll cost you a few hundred bucks plus some filing fees at the courthouse. But if everything is lumped together in one massive operating agreement—which is common with older LLCs—you have to amend the whole thing. That gets expensive. It’s almost like starting from scratch, plus those court fees all over again

Anyway, hope that helps 🙂

Richard Vaughn88 said:Looks like there are plenty of folks here who know their way around importing from China, so I wanted to pick your brains. Has anyone ever tried bringing in branded apparel—think Ralph Lauren stuff—straight from China in batches of maybe 50 to 200 pieces at once?
Does that even fly with US Customs or a shipping broker? Like, will they just flag it immediately?
I’ve actually got a solid supplier over in China, but the headache is figuring out how to get a shipment that size into the States without everything going sideways... anyone have any insight on this? 😕

Cheers and thanks

The import process is pretty much the same for everyone. Anything that isn't strictly for personal use goes through customs and a freight forwarder. (Technically, personal stuff goes through too, but you don't get hit with duties and taxes if it's just a small amount)
The duty rate depends on the material and what exactly you're bringing in, plus the standard tax.
Given the quantity you mentioned, this isn't personal use, so you'll be paying both customs duties and taxes. If you don't have a forwarder lined up, the postal service will handle the clearance if it comes via mail. If it arrives any other way, you'll get a call from customs telling you to sort out the forwarding side, which obviously means you'll need to hire a pro then. 🙂