I’m sure you’ve heard “to assume means to make an ass out of u and me”, but in this case, I’ve been required to make an assumption. I’m talking about getting an assumed business name, and where I live, it’s something I must do to make my business legit.

The next step in officially selling things under “My Aesthetic Escape” as a sole proprietor is to register the business name with the county. I’m operating out of Cook County, Illinois, so your jurisdiction may be different. (Note that there may be a time where I do not want to be a sole proprietor. If I start selling with others, or if I need to take on debt, I’ll change my business structure. Be sure to read up on business structure types before deciding what works best for you; this SBA article is helpful.)

Back to the business registration. This step in the process is like being transported back into the 1990s, where you get the bonus of printing and mailing paper through the ol’ USPS. Cook County makes it seem easy (it’s not that bad), but it’s not fast. It’s not efficient. You need a FEIN (federal employee identification number, which really is fast and easy to get) to complete the application, as well as answers to basic questions like “what type of business are you operating?”. Once you fill out the application online, you then have to print it and get it notarized. You then mail it to Cook County. And you pay $50 for the privilege to do this – they accept your money first, online, and process your application second. Like bowling at a shady alley on a weekend – it’s pre-pay and hope for the best.

Out of fear of making this post as long and boring as the process I’m describing, here are the highlights:

• After the application was accepted, Cook County gave me a copy of a public notice I needed to have published in a local newspaper.
• I called the newspaper offices (of which I have a few to chose) to see how much they would charge. This cannot be done online (here, anyway – I tried!). Again, you can’t place a public notice in a newspaper by submitting it online. I wonder why print is dying.
• I had to leave voicemails with the newspaper people because, of course, why not make this a game of phone tag, too.
• I got a return call from the smallest paper, and it was $100 to publish the notice. A bargain, in my mind. It needed to be published once a week for three weeks in a row. Many notices charge by the word, and that can be expensive. So I was overall not too upset over this $100 fee.
• After all the publications have occurred, the newspaper will send you real, actual clippings from the paper proving it was published. This is all that Cook County will accept, they made this very clear – no photo copies or scans.
• I now get to mail the clippings and “proof of publication” to Cook County to complete the registration. OR, I can drop it off, in person. I think I’m going to walk it in for the nostalgia of it all. And to save a couple of days.

What is the takeaway here? Two points: A. Follow instructions carefully. B. Be super patient.

This whole process was started on February 7, and I hope to be done by April 1. With my part, anyway… how long the County will take is anyone’s guess!