Business Development

For any members looking for helpful information about potential business opportunities and exciting business possibilities.

Resources to Help You Strengthen and Grow Your Business

Exporting help from Maine Port Authority

Business Answers

Business Answers, a program of the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development, exists to assist new and existing businesses with start-up and expansion. In conjunction with the online service, we also operate a toll-free 800-line which you can call and get answers to all of your questions, including:

• Starting and operating a business
• State licensing requirements
• Your business name
• Becoming an employer
• Being self-employed
• …. And much more!

Business answers can be accessed from the maine.gov website at: https://www.maine.gov/cgi-bin/online/businessanswers/index.pl

CONVERSION TO EMPLOYEE OWNERSHIP (CO-OPS)

Cooperative Development Institute (CDI) is the source for cooperative business development in the Northeast. Their mission is to work with people in the Northeast to create cooperative businesses and networks that grow a prosperous, equitable economy.

Many business owners have not prepared adequately for a smooth transition to the next generation of ownership, leaving the future of the jobs, products and services they provide in question.  CDI’s Business Ownership Solutions program works with business owners to think through whether conversion to a cooperative could meet their needs, and with employees or community members to execute the co-op conversion.

More Information:  http://cdi.coop/our-work/programs/business-ownership-solutions/