Are You a Startup?
If you’ve assessed your options for structuring your business (e.g. LLC v. Corporation) and the corporate form is right for you, or you’re thinking about raising capital, registering as a benefit corporation at the start can help you achieve your long-term goals as a mission driven business.
Structuring your business as a benefit corporation from the beginning can provide many advantages:
It’s easy to become a benefit corporation at inception:
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Incorporating as a benefit corporation at the start means you don’t have to undertake elections to achieve the 2/3 shareholder vote requirement, or the impact of dissenters rights.
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There’s no potential of a name change requirement or reprinting of stock certificates.
It’s good for your businesses:
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You create clarity by baking your mission into the very DNA of your company from the beginning.
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Workers, suppliers, and consumers know from the start that you are a different type of company, and can begin creating this distinction when messaging is easiest.
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Investors know your mission and know you’re legally required to consider your stakeholders. There is no risk of mission loss due to a shareholder lawsuit.
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Fulfilling the reporting requirement reduces the time required for investor due diligence and allows investors to easily find your company in a confusing marketplace.
It connects you to other businesses:
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You are halfway to qualifying as a Pending B Corporation, plugging you into the network of over 3,500 Certified B Corporations.
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You stand alongside leaders like Patagonia in choosing the legal form with the highest standards of accountability & transparency.