MENTOR in entrepreneur skills, taxes, and accounting

Been looking for some Information to start my own business so I can work for my self and go to school
2019-10-08
Hello,
My name Is Abe I’ve been a member for a year and have been struggling with starting my own business, I have a TAX ID number but I want to turn it into a LLC., to do something in research and development on the tech side of things and possibly something in Jewelry design and also something to bring social awareness to poverty and the struggles of people like me ( I am also a Kansas Certified Peer Mentor ) with less and find resources readily available to help the community and citizens with whatever resources that can be generated. I look forward to any information that can be shared on these subjects especially Grant Writing. Thanks

The fundraising committee is looking for more volunteers. We work on grants, it would be a good learning experience. Our next meeting is Wednesday October 16 6-7 pm. The Create Campaign is a good local source.

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Thanks @Malissa

If you come to a meeting, I can help you with incorporating an LLC afterwards - I occasionally teach a class at Make about how to start a business.

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Just tell me when and ill be there

October 16th at 6 pm

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To form a corporation you need to file articles of incorporation with the secretary of state. There are a lot of websites that claim to do this for you for like $500 but you can do it for like $100 (or close) at the Kansas department of revenue website. You might get a new ein number for the corporation.

Also the state is actually extremely helpful with tax info. Just call and ask if you have questions. Starting you’ll have sales and compensating use tax that are required quarterly. So be organized! Turns out the state is serious about you filing these correctly and on time. They will charge a penalty and interest on late filings.

They make free tax classes available at WSU. I would highly recommend those. Super helpful.

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One suggestions… Define your business problem and your solution in a sentence that an 8th grader can understand.
These have helped me:
Check out monthly mastermind in meetup
1 million cups on facebook or the web and
Startup grind - Start up grind is a paid event and is the last I plan on attending
The second floor of the Devlin building at WSU is all about entrepreneurs. So is small business SCORE in the Garvey building.

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Thanks for the info…

Thanks for the info

Really? :heart_eyes:
When is this? Is there a registration or class fee? Is it all covered in one class, or covered in more detail over several sessions?

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Here a link to download the 2019 schedule.
https://www.ksrevenue.org/prsmbusworkshops.html

I know there was a link that listed the classes and had online enrollment but I can’t find it now.

My class covered sales and compensating use tax and also went over what is and isn’t taxable. What tax schedule to use for various things. The tax schedule looks complex, and it is, but just focus on the stuff that pertains to you and its not bad. A big trucking company and gas station business had sent like 5 girls from their accounting department to the class I was in. I wouldn’t want to have to deal with their taxes! Mine are pretty easy.

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Thanks for the info and the link, @Erik. Just to clarify, when you say “my class” you meant a class you attended, not one you taught, correct?

Does this class help attendees identify which things apply to them? I would like to make arts/craft items to sell, and maybe even some baked goods, or offer lessons in topics like sewing and needleworks, but I don’t know the first thing about the business side of it. I need all the basics spelled out and room to ask questions.

I followed the link and saw that these classes were only offered through local small business development centers (SBDC), and that the Wichita location is the Hughes Metroplex… Would I go straight through that venue, or is there a MakeICT group that’s going all together?

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I don’t teach the classes. Business is interesting in that it’s wide open. You can do anything and there’s no set in stone best way to do it. These classes are only regarding taxes. The guy that teaches them, I think his last name was York, can answer literally any tax question and even gave me his email. Super cool nerdy tax guy.

If you’re selling crafts and that type of thing you really just need a tax number and you’ll have to file compensating use and sales tax every 3 months. You have 25 days after the quarter ends to file and you must file on the ks revenue website. (Even if you don’t have sales) You also have compensating use tax, which is when you buy something and didn’t pay taxes (such as used equipment or out of state purchases). All tangible goods are taxed. If you can hold it and touch it, it gets sales tax. Digital products are not taxed.
Write offs are any money you spend on the business. If you buy materials for your crafts, they can be written off as expenses. A write off simply means that it’s not counted as income. If you have to spend $50 to make a $100 sale then you didn’t make $100… you only made $50 and therefore you’re only taxed on the $50. At the end of the year you pay taxes on that income depending on the bracket you land in.

There’s more, but that’s a good overview. There’s tax exemptions and a surprising law that makes you as a business owner responsible for ensuring that tax exempt companies not only provide their exempt status but also that they pay directly fron a registered tax exempt bank account. :thinking:

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WSU SBDC 2019 Nov/Dec Events

In addition to our Meeting the Three Ms workshops and Quick Start workshops we are offering the following

November 22 – Social Media Starter Kit

November 26 – Quick Start Business Planning

December 3 – KDOL: Understanding Regulations

December 3 – What Does the New Federal Overtime Rule Mean for Your Business

December 4 - State Tax and Contractor Tax Workshops

December 5 – HUBZone

December 5 – Federal Contracting and WOSB Set-Asides

December 5 – Is the 8(a) Program Right for You?

December 5 – All Small Mentor-Protégé Program for Federal Contracting

December 11 – Telling Your Story to Build Your Business

December 18 – Quick Start Business Planning

All workshops are held at the WSU Hughes Metropolitan Complex on the southeast corner of Oliver and 29th Street North. Park on the north side of the building and enter through Door B.

To register or for a complete listing of our workshops, please visit our website at www.wichita.edu/ksbdcworkshops .

Please call or write if you have any questions.

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If I understand correctly, these are all free… right?

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Im pretty sure, yes.

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