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...does anybody know , if I want to start a small business, like selling bottled water and soda, around the parks of New York city, Do i need any kind of license ?
Thank you.
You need all kinds of things, depending on the kind of company. You're going to need papers for incorporation or formation of an LLC, or SOME business entity. These can be found on the New York State website (it's www.NYS.gov, I think) and there are further requirements for NYC.
I know for an LLC you have to have a charter, publish the formation of the LLC and, in NYC, arrange for a commercial trash service to take away any associated garbage (yes, really).
I was thinking about selling water from a big ice cooler, walking aroung . I need all these pappers? I mean, i dont want to have like a location, more like a mobile water selling agent.
I don't think those people who sell bottled water at intersections or on the side of the road have permits. Buy cases of bottled water wholesale, sell them for a dollar or so a bottle. Now inside a park, that is a different story.
Anyway this isn't a good business for NYC, it would only be seasonal.
Here is a story of a blogger who tried doing what you want to do.
The kind of business you are looking it - walking around with a cooler - is almost certainly illegal, and in park you'd probably get caught pretty quickly. Also, if you go ahead and do it, be prepared for some trouble from the legal food cart vendors in the vicinity. I once saw a guy with a cooler hanging around trying to sell some water near a group of cart vendors at City Hall Park. They yelled at him and pushed him around until he left.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Viralmd
You need all kinds of things, depending on the kind of company. You're going to need papers for incorporation or formation of an LLC, or SOME business entity. <snip> and there are further requirements for NYC.
I know for an LLC you have to have a charter, publish the formation of the LLC and, in NYC, arrange for a commercial trash service to take away any associated garbage (yes, really).
Just for the record... You don't need to form an official business entity like a corporation or an LLC in order to work for yourself. As long as you report your income and expenses on your annual tax return with a Schedule C and pay your taxes, the state and city are perfectly happy.
Forming a business entity is a good idea for liability protection, but it is absolutely not required. If you want to do business using a clever name, you can obtain a business certificate from the city, but this does not change your legal status. You are still a sole proprietor as if you were operating under your own name.
You DO need to obtain a Certificate of Authority from NYS, which obligates you to collect sales tax on behalf of the state and city and forward the money to them every three months.
Of course, as a mobile food/beverage vendor, there are all kinds of city regulations and permits, but just the simple process of starting a legal business is remarkably easy. Making it successful is the hard part!
Also don't get anyone to sell anything for you without the proper insurances like the guy in the blog. If the person that assisted him got injured while selling his bottled water, he would have had huge problems.
...i dont want its having problems with the local authorities ( like police). The rest of the possible problems, like other people that are doing the same thing like me, can be avoided. So, i need to get that merchant license or vendor license, or only report the taxes every 3 months?
As I posted before, I'm certain that selling beverages or anything else in the parks is illegal without a permit. Also, there are only certain types of businesses allowed in the parks (such as food carts) and they need permits, equipment inspections and other requirements.
The link provided by SeventhFloor in post #5 is very useful. You can also call the city.
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Thank you
