Archive for January, 2012
Business 101 for the Immigrant
If you have come to the United States by way of immigration as an immigrant then you likely have followed much immigration news about business and employment. When work is scarce more people make attempts to run their own businesses because their survival depends on it regardless of place of birth. If you happen to have a skill or idea for offering a service, then running your own business might be one way to reach out to the community you are in.
One can start a business in several ways. They might want to be the sole owner of a business. They might rather start a business with partners where each person holds a percent of the business but is liable for all debts the business has. They may wish to incorporate their business to limit their liability, particularly if there are many owners. They might rather form a cooperative that in turn is owned by an expanding number of those who receive services or goods from it. Different types of businesses often prefer different ownerships methods as a standard.
Sole ownership allows the professional or skilled worker to offer services directly to the public. This can range from accounting or paperwork types of services to repair or mechanical services. Sometimes groceries or laundry services might be owned by a single person, particularly in a historical setting. Small farms may also be run by a single owner. Many Internet businesses are done this way also.
Many “mom and pop” businesses are done on a partnership model however. This includes such things as family owned restaurants, farms, ranches, stores, or even service related businesses. Partnerships come in three forms, general, limited, and limited liability.
Corporations are perhaps the widest known type of business model. Just about any and all “big” business is done as corporations. This model gives the business a legal personality apart from the stock holders or members with vested interest in it. A corporation can be owned by a government, a private group or a public one. Shareholders of a corporation elect a board to handle the daily function and make hires of staffing to handle other tasks.
Cooperatives or “co-op” is formed as a limited liability business. Unlike a corporation it is members of the cooperative that own it. Members elect the board that makes the business hires. Some co-ops are owned by the consumers who use it and others are owned by the workers who work there.
For someone who has come to the United States by way of immigration as an immigrant and followed the immigration news in hopes of finding the American Dream the idea of starting a business might be daunting. However, remember that generations previously flourished by creating their own niches and offering goods and services on their own. Choosing to get the required licensing to start a service business can be one way to offer skills you have learned to the community. Offering to share family recipes, in the case of a bakery or a restaurant can be another way to support yourself.