Opening a Shop in Henderson Under a Name That Isn't Yours

Say you're hanging a sign on a storefront on the Henderson square that reads something other than your own legal name, "Main Street Coffee" instead of "Jane Smith." That's a DBA, an assumed name, and for a sole proprietorship or a general partnership it gets filed right here with the Rusk County Clerk, in every county where you keep a business office. The clerk has the form.

Where it goes depends on what kind of business you are. Sole props and general partnerships file at the county. But if you've set the business up as a corporation, an LLC, or a limited partnership, the assumed-name certificate goes to the Texas Secretary of State instead, and you skip the county filing. People mix these two routes up constantly and file in the wrong place.

A DBA is just a name on record. It isn't a business license, and it doesn't settle anything else. Sales tax permits, a health permit for a kitchen, a TABC permit for alcohol, zoning if you're inside a city, a contractor or trade license: those are all separate, and you sort them out on their own track before you unlock the door.