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CASE STUDIES · 24 DOCUMENTED SETUPS

How 24 businesses set up with File.Business

Twenty-four documented setups: the entity they chose, the state, the reasoning at the time, and what they would repeat. Composites drawn from real customer patterns, kept honest about tradeoffs.

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Composite customer story This narrative is an illustrative composite drawn from typical outcomes across our 220,000+ formed customers. Names, companies, and specific dollar amounts are representative, not impersonations of identified individuals. Real customer interviews are being collected via our customer stories program; verified stories will replace composites as they are published.
20 composite case studies
Case study · Index

Representative founder stories across 24 industries: tech, real estate, restaurants, e-commerce, nonprofits, healthcare, professional services, international founders, and more. Each case study is composite based on patterns we see across many similar customers.

Linden Apothecary case studyFeatured · DTC consumer goodsFrom craft fair to Brand Registry in seven months.Linden ApothecaryRead the story →Marsh Properties case studyFeatured · Real estate12 LLCs in 3 states. All operating agreements one click away.Marsh PropertiesRead the story →Halftide AI case studyFeatured · AI startupFrom London to a Delaware C-Corp to a $2.1M seed round. In 9 weeks.Halftide AIRead the story →Pinecrest Goods case studyFeatured · E-commerce14 states. 11 registrations. Pinecrest sleeps again.Pinecrest GoodsRead the story →
Bria Studios LLC case studyBria Studios LLCBeauty / Salon · Illinois LLCThree booth-renters operating as independent contractors.Read the setup →Marshall Law PLLC case studyMarshall Law PLLCLegal Services · Texas PLLCPLLC formation compliant with Texas Bar requirements.Read the setup →Riverside Youth Initiative case studyRiverside Youth InitiativeNonprofit (501(c)(3)) · Massachusetts501(c)(3) status approved on first pass in 7 months.Read the setup →Whittaker General Contracting case studyWhittaker General ContractingConstruction · Floridan LLCPersonal liability separated from business.Read the setup →Park Strategic Advisors case studyPark Strategic AdvisorsStrategy Consulting · Texas LLC + S-Corp electionS-Corp election saved approximately $9,800 in self-employment tax.Read the setup →Yu Learning LLC case studyYu Learning LLCOnline Education · Floridan LLC + S-Corp electionS-Corp election saving approximately $4,200/year in SE tax.Read the setup →Hudson Provisions case studyHudson ProvisionsE-commerce / DTC · Wyoming LLC + foreign-qualified to NYWyoming + NY structure preserved owner privacy from public records.Read the setup →Tanaka Ceramics LLC case studyTanaka Ceramics LLCArtisan / E-commerce · Washington LLCPersonal assets separated from artisan business.Read the setup →Atta Boy Food Truck LLC case studyAtta Boy Food Truck LLCFood Service · Georgian LLCTruck operating 5 days/week with 2 employees.Read the setup →Olsen Strategy LLC case studyOlsen Strategy LLCManagement Consulting · Minnesotan LLC + S-Corp election2024 tax bill reduced by approximately $7,200 versus the prior sole-proprietor year.Read the setup →Bharat Tech LLC case studyBharat Tech LLCSoftware Development · Delaware LLCFull operating stack in 18 days.Read the setup →Garcia Insurance Brokerage LLC case studyGarcia Insurance Brokerage LLCInsurance · Arizonan LLCAgency licensed in 14 days from filing.Read the setup →Voss Medical Aesthetics PLLC case studyVoss Medical Aesthetics PLLCHealthcare · California PLLCPLLC structure satisfies California licensing requirements.Read the setup →Robertson Fitness LLC case studyRobertson Fitness LLCFitness / Wellness · Colorado LLCYear 1 revenue: $110K.Read the setup →Rosenberg Studio LLC case studyRosenberg Studio LLCPhotography · New York LLCNY publication completed in 7 weeks (faster than the typical 8-10 weeks).Read the setup →Brooks Property Solutions case studyBrooks Property SolutionsReal Estate Flipping · Texas LLC14 properties flipped in 18 months.Read the setup →PW Holdings case studyPW HoldingsReal Estate Investment · Wyoming Series LLCAnnual filing cost dropped from $720 (8 LLCs at $90 each) to $60 (1 Series LLC).Read the setup →Mariposa Cantina case studyMariposa CantinaRestaurant · Texas LLC (multi-member)27 W-2 employees on Gusto payroll.Read the setup →Tinkertree SaaS LLC case studyTinkertree SaaS LLCB2B SaaS · Wyoming LLCTotal formation + first-year compliance cost: $260 (Wyoming fees + payroll setup).Read the setup →Lattice Compute case studyLattice ComputeTech / SaaS · Delaware (C-Corp)Seed round closed 3 weeks after formation with no diligence delays.Read the setup →

About these case studies

These case studies are composite stories based on patterns we see across many similar customers. Names, companies, and identifying details have been changed. The structures, services, and outcomes described are typical of customers in each segment.

For verified real-customer testimonials and quotes (with permission), see our testimonials page.

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How real businesses run on File.Business. Case studies with measurable outcomes. Encrypted at rest & in transit, 51.
How to read these

Patterns worth stealing.

Each study documents the same four decisions: the entity chosen, the state, the compliance setup, and what the owner would repeat or change. Read three studies from businesses unlike yours and the patterns surface fast: nearly everyone forms at home unless investors or privacy said otherwise; the owners who separated money on day one never regretted it; and the painful stories share one root, a season boundary crossed without its paperwork, like hiring before payroll setup or a second state entered unregistered.

These are composite studies, built from real customer patterns with details merged and identities protected, and they say so plainly. Use them the way you would use a colleague's honest recap: not as instructions, but as a preview of the decisions heading your way. When one maps to your situation, the linked guides underneath it carry the how.

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