The Small Business Blueprint for Wedding Pros (step-by-step how to form your llc and s corp)

Most wedding professionals start their business backwards. They get clients first, figure out the legal and tax stuff later, and somewhere along the way realize they've been operating as a sole proprietorship without knowing what that means. Or they form an LLC but skip half the steps that actually make it work. This post is the antidote to that. It's the order of operations for setting up your business correctly so you're not discovering gaps after something goes wrong.

Before we get into the steps, a quick note on entities. If you earn self-employment income and haven't filed any paperwork with your state, you're a sole proprietor by default. A sole proprietorship is easy and flexible, but it offers zero liability protection. There's no separation between you and your business. If someone sues your business, they can come after your personal assets. An LLC creates that separation. Think of it like a bubble around your business — if something explodes inside the bubble, everything you own outside of it is protected.

The goal isn't to scare you into action, but to help you understand what you actually have versus what you think you have. Most wedding pros who haven't gone through this process are missing at least a few steps.

In the Aisle Advisory Academy, I teach a full 14-step blueprint along with tutorial videos on how to form your LLC or S Corp (or how to make sure your Sole Prop is at least done right). Here's the full blueprint.

Step 1: Get a Registered Agent.

Your registered agent is the person or entity designated to receive legal paperwork if you're ever sued. Every LLC is required to have one with an address in the state where you formed. You can be your own registered agent using your business or home address, or you can hire a corporate registered agent for around $50 a year. If you don't want your home address publicly searchable, the latter is worth it.

Step 2: Choose your business name and check availability.

Before you file, search your state's LLC database to make sure the name you want isn't already taken. Most states have a free search tool through the secretary of state's website. Just Google "[your state] LLC search." Also remember that your LLC name does not protect your trademark — those are two entirely separate things. Your LLC name is your trade name. Your trademark is your brand. You need both, and they do different jobs.

Step 3: File your articles of organization.

Almost every state allows online LLC filing through the secretary of state's website. File directly there. Do not use a third-party online service that charges extra fees on top of the state filing fee — they provide no added value and just cost you more money. Your state will send a confirmation when your LLC is approved.

Step 4: Get your Employer Identification Number.

An EIN is essentially a social security number for your business. You need one to open a business bank account, pay employees or contractors, and file business taxes. You can get it completely free through the IRS website. Do not use a third-party service that charges for this. It takes about ten minutes and costs nothing.

Step 5: Determine whether you need a seller's permit.

A seller's permit is required when you have sales subject to sales tax. Whether your services are taxable depends on your state and the type of services you provide. Check your state's requirements before you apply — once you're in the system, they'll expect regular sales tax returns, so don't get one before you need it.

Step 6: Get your fictitious business name license.

If you're operating under any name other than your full legal name or your exact LLC name, you need a fictitious business name license, sometimes called a DBA. This is what links your brand name to your legal entity. File this through your county. If you have multiple brand names under one LLC, you can often list them all on one application.

Step 7: Get your business license.

Most cities require a business license for anyone operating a business within city limits. These are typically $50 to $100 a year and filed through your city's website. Check your city's specific requirements — some have different rules for home-based businesses versus physical locations.

Step 8: Draft your operating agreement.

Even if you're the only owner of your LLC, you need an operating agreement. It documents how your business is run, how you pay yourself, and what happens in various scenarios. It's also one of the corporate formalities that keeps your liability protection intact. If you commingle personal and business finances, skip your operating agreement, or otherwise fail to treat your business as separate from yourself, you risk what's called "piercing the corporate veil" — meaning a court could decide your LLC doesn't actually protect your personal assets. We have operating agreement templates in the Contract Club at theaisleadvisory.com/club.

Step 9: Draft your initial meeting minutes.

Meeting minutes are another corporate formality. You don't need to document every small decision, but major ones — opening bank accounts, changing your salary, bringing on a partner, buying significant assets — should be recorded. Annual minutes at minimum are required to maintain your LLC's legitimacy.

Step 10: Decide on your S Corp election.

An S Corp is not a separate business entity — it's a tax election you make on your LLC by filing IRS Form 2553. It can save you significant money in self-employment taxes at the right income level, but it also adds complexity and cost. For a full breakdown of when it makes sense and when it doesn't, read our post on S Corp vs. LLC for wedding pros.

Step 11: Pay your annual franchise tax.

Most states charge an annual fee to maintain your LLC. In California it's $800 a year. Other states range from $100 to $300. Miss it and your LLC can be dissolved. Add it to your calendar the day you form your LLC so you never forget.

Step 12: File your statement of information.

Some states require an annual or biannual report updating your business address, owner information, and registered agent. In California it's due within 60 days of forming your LLC and every two years after that. Check your state's requirements and file directly through the state's website.

Step 13: Open your business bank account.

Once your LLC is formed and you have your operating agreement and EIN, open a dedicated business bank account. This is non-negotiable for maintaining your liability protection. Commingling personal and business funds is one of the fastest ways to invalidate your LLC's protection. Every dollar that comes in and goes out of your business should flow through a business account.

Step 14: Set up payroll if you're electing S Corp status.

When your LLC is taxed as an S Corp, you're an employee of your own business, which means you pay yourself through payroll. You'll need a payroll service — Gusto is what we recommend — and you'll need to determine your reasonable salary, which is one of the trickier parts of the S Corp setup.

Make sure it’s all maintained

One more thing worth building once you've gone through these steps: a compliance calendar. Write down every renewal deadline, tax deadline, and recurring filing requirement for your business. Annual franchise tax due dates, FBL renewals, statement of information filings, quarterly tax due dates. Put them somewhere you'll actually see them. The number of business owners who have gone through the trouble of forming an LLC and then let it lapse because they forgot to pay a $150 annual fee is genuinely depressing.

The Aisle Advisory Academy has state-by-state Blueprint resources with direct links to each filing agency so you're not hunting through government websites trying to figure out where to go.