So my bakery is called "Dough Re Mi" but the legal entity is just "Riverside Baked Goods LLC." The catchier name is what customers know, but the LLC is what's on invoices and bank stuff. Should I just change the LLC to match, or does it not matter? Feels weird having two names.
Branding
The brand name is catchy but the LLC name is boring
Are you doing business as Dough Re Mi on the bank account? If you are, you might need a DBA filing. If not, you probably should.
Honestly who cares. Nobody sees the LLC except the bank and the IRS. Keep the boring one, it's cheaper than refiling.
I changed my LLC to match my brand and it cost me like $150 plus an afternoon of paperwork. Worth it for my sanity but not for the wallet. Depends on your state though.
Wait, Riverside Baked Goods LLC is actually kind of nice in a plain way. Dough Re Mi is the joke name and Riverside is the one that shows up on a loan application. Not the worst arrangement.
That's a weird take, a bank will lend to whatever the paperwork says. Nobody is judging your LLC name except you, OP.
Just make sure your DBA is filed under the LLC and you're fine. I ran a shop for three years with a boring LLC and a fun sign out front and never had a single issue. The only time it mattered was when a vendor's accounting department got confused. Actually one time a supplier made the check out to the DBA name and my bank rejected it, so there's that. Small annoyance
lol the check thing. been there.
Am i the only one who thinks changing the legal name is a trap? Now every contract, license, and tax form has to be updated. DBA is one form. Do the DBA.
spindle_and_ash is right but have you considered that Dough Re Mi LLC just sounds better when you say it out loud to a lender? I have no evidence for that.
There's also the option of keeping both and treating the catchy one as the brand. Nobody outside your bank will ever know or care, and your customers already know the fun name.
OK so the DBA thing keeps coming up. I think I filed one when I started but I honestly don't remember. Is there a way to check without calling the county office and waiting on hold for an hour?
Your state's business portal usually has a name search. Or just call, sometimes the hold isn't that bad in the morning
My gut says keep the boring LLC and file the DBA. But I've been wrong before, so.