Looking to Start Your Own LLC? Here’s How Some of the Giants Did It

Some of the most well-known companies today are LLCs, also known as limited liability companies. There are several reasons why an LLC can be a prosperous way of running a business. In order to understand why many companies choose to run an LLC, it’s a good idea to know how they started. In this article, we will go through some of the more famous companies and how to get started on your own.

What is an LLC?

Firstly, a definition of an LLC is needed. A limited liability company essentially means that you as an owner are protected from personal responsibility for the repayment of any debts or liability – hence the name. Not every business can be an LLC, such as a bank. This also means the following:

• An LLC doesn’t pay taxes on its profits directly
• An individual can be a member of an LLC
• Regulation varies from state to state

Creating your own LLC

When you have heard some of the following stories, you might think of how to create an LLC yourself. You will probably need some help to start out in the beginning, but there are services on the internet that can help you start up your company. Business Name Generator is a good place to start, as you can check out their reviews of the best LLC services on the market. From there you can get help with paperwork, taxes, and legal precautions.

Nike

We see Nike everywhere. From basketball players wearing Nike jerseys to musicians and actors rocking their sneakers. In 1964, Bill Bowerman was a track-and-field coach at the University of Oregon. With his former student, Bowerman created Nike and opened their first retail outlet two years later.

Part of their success is due to the endorsements by several athletes such as Michael Jordan. The sportswear and sneakers with the iconic logo in the form of a checkmark is what makes Nike so recognizable and beloved all around the world.

eBay

Before eBay was known as what it is today, the founder Pierre Omidyar called it AuctionWeb, which was created in 1995. At the time, the purpose was “bringing together buyers and sellers in an honest and open marketplace”. The first item, a broken laser pointer, was then sold to a Canadian in 1995. Just a year later, AuctionWeb sold merchandise worth $7.2 million, and the year after it was renamed eBay, as we know it today.

Alongside the growth of the internet, eBay became a global success, as the purpose of the website is simple and usable – an online marketplace.

IBM

An older LLC is IBM, which was founded in 1911 under the name of The Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company. When Thomas Watson took over, the company changed its name to IBM. In the early years, the company focused on standard office products like calculating machines. It was in 1943, that the company first developed the electronic computing machine, what we know as a computer today.

In the decades after, IBM almost had a monopoly on the computer market, as they made up 70% of all business computers worldwide. IBM might not have the same reputation as it used to, since other tech companies are also stepping up. But the company has been a pioneer in the industry.