What tax options do I have for my newly-formed LLC in the coffee business?

Starting a new business is exciting, but the tax side can definitely be overwhelming! For a new LLC in the wholesale coffee industry, here's what you should know: First, if your LLC is single-member, the IRS treats it as a "disregarded entity" by default, meaning you'll report business income on Schedule C of your personal tax return. If it's multi-member, it's taxed as a partnership with Form 1065. Either way, profits pass through to your personal taxes. For your question about filing yourself - it depends on your comfort level with tax concepts. With QuickBooks tracking your finances, you have good records to work with, but business taxes have more complexities than personal returns. For your first year, working with a tax professional who specializes in small businesses might be worth the investment to establish good practices. Regarding the S Corp question - there's a common threshold where S Corps typically start making sense financially, usually when the business has consistent profits around $40,000-$50,000 annually. At your current stage with $6,500 monthly revenue (not all of which is profit), you might not see significant tax savings yet once you factor in the additional compliance costs of an S Corp (separate payroll, reasonable salary requirements, etc.).

After going through a similar situation with my small manufacturing LLC, I discovered taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) and it was seriously a game-changer for understanding my business tax situation. I was completely lost trying to figure out if I should stay an LLC or switch to an S corp, and the regular tax prep services I tried weren't really helpful with business strategy. What I liked about taxr.ai was that it analyzed my specific situation instead of giving generic advice. It looked at my business financials, growth projections, and personal tax situation to give me personalized recommendations about business structure and potential tax savings. Saved me from making a costly mistake switching too early.

Just wanted to update - I checked out taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here and it was exactly what I needed. They analyzed my coffee business numbers and showed me I should actually stay as an LLC for now. The analysis showed I'd need to hit about $80k in profit before an S-Corp made sense in my case. They looked at my specific coffee industry margins and showed me projections for the next few years. What was really helpful was getting actual dollar amounts of potential savings versus costs at different revenue points. Helped me stop worrying about making the wrong choice and focus on growing my business instead. Definitely recommend for anyone in this situation.

I was in literally the same boat with my spice wholesale business last year. Tried calling the IRS for clarification on some LLC questions and it was IMPOSSIBLE to get through to anyone. After spending hours on hold across multiple days, I found Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) and it completely changed my experience. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c They basically hold your place in the IRS phone queue and call you when an actual human agent is on the line. Got all my LLC tax questions answered directly by an IRS rep who specialized in small business issues. Was able to confirm exactly what deductions I could take for my inventory and get clarity on estimated tax payment requirements.

I need to eat my words from my previous comment. After another failed attempt to reach the IRS on my own (3 hours on hold before getting disconnected), I tried Claimyr out of desperation. Got connected to an IRS business tax specialist in about 90 minutes without having to sit by my phone. The agent walked me through exactly what forms I needed for my LLC and confirmed I was categorizing my expenses correctly. She even sent me some small business tax resources I hadn't found on the IRS website. Saved me so much stress and probably a lot of money in potential mistakes or penalties. Sometimes it's worth admitting when you're wrong - this service actually delivers what it promises.

Have you considered hiring a bookkeeper who specializes in small food businesses? I have a bakery LLC and tried doing everything myself for the first year. Big mistake. Ended up missing some major deductions and probably overpaid by thousands. Found a local bookkeeper who charges me $200/month and she handles all my QuickBooks categorization, reconciliation, and prepares everything for my tax filing. She also helped me understand when to make estimated tax payments and how much to set aside. For coffee wholesale, you probably have inventory management tax considerations that are even more complex than my situation.

Don't overlook state-specific LLC taxes and fees! In CA where I am, there's a minimum $800 annual LLC tax regardless of whether you make any profit. Nearly killed my small business before it got off the ground. Also be careful about nexus issues if you're selling across state lines - some states will want you to file taxes if you have enough sales there.