Contacting the Company
Go inside and ask who the owner is if it’s a small business. There’s a better chance that the owner of the business may actually be working there if it’s a relatively small company. Go inside and politely ask any employee if you could speak to the owner. If the owner is not available when you go inside, ask the employee if you could have the owner’s name and contact information. If the business is small enough, the employee may even know the owner personally. Remember to be polite and upfront with your intentions. The employee may not immediately trust you with their boss’s contact information if you seem rude or aloof.
Call the company’s phone number, if you have it, and ask for the owner. The business may list its phone number online, in an advertisement, on a promotional flyer, or even simply in the phone book. When you call, be sure to state your name and your intentions for wanting to find out who the owner is. For example, you could say something like “Hello, my name is Samuel Chase, and I’m interested in having my grocery store do business with your company. May I please speak to the owner?”
Check out the company’s website to see if it lists who the owner is. Go to the website’s About Us page or Contact Us page to see if they include the name and contact information of the owner. You can also check out any testimonials that the company lists on its website to see if they mention the owner by name. For instance, one testimonial might read: “I’ve worked with Jerry Rosen for 7 years and his is the best restaurant supply store I’ve ever been to!” There’s a good chance that Jerry Rosen is the owner of this business.
Looking Online
Search on an industry search engine or social network for the company. There are certain search engines and social networks that specifically focus on businesses instead of ordinary users. Search for the name of the business in one of these websites and look to see if they include the name of the owner with whatever information they have about the company. Zoominfo and Ziggs are 2 of the most prominent search engines geared toward businesses. The most widely used social network for businesses and businesspeople is LinkedIn. Note that with some sites, like LinkedIn, you may have to use advanced search options in order to search for a specific business by name.
Check the Better Business Bureau to see if the company’s listed. The BBB is a private, non-profit organization that aims to provide consumers with as much information about a company’s reputation and quality as possible. If the company is listed on the BBB’s website, the listing will probably include at least the names of the senior executives and perhaps the owner of the business. Note, however, that whatever names and contact information are included in the listing may not be the owner’s.
Look on ordinary social media to see if the company has an account. Type the company’s name into Facebook, Twitter, or some other social media site. If they have a page devoted to the business, explore the page to see if the owner’s name is included. For example, if the business has a Facebook page, that page’s “About” section may include the name and contact information of the business owner. Look at any pictures that are included on the social media page for the business. There may be a picture of the owner, with their name included in the caption.
Search the business name and “owner” in a search engine. If you can’t find information about the business anywhere else, simply typing the business name into a search engine may take you to a website you hadn’t considered looking at. This is basically a shot in the dark, though, so only resort to this if all other methods have failed.
Using Government Resources
Search your state’s database of registered businesses. All states list some information about the companies registered to do business there. Go to your state government’s website and navigate to the business entity or corporations search page to see if the business is listed there. Note that the information that the state government includes about the business in question may not include the owner’s name and contact information. The included information varies from state to state.
Contact your state’s regulatory agency for the industry, if applicable. If it’s a type of business that requires a particular license or certificate to operate, there will be a state regulatory agency that maintains information about each business under its purview. Call the agency and ask for information about the owner of the business to see if they’re willing to give it out. For example, businesses that deal in tobacco, firearms, alcohol, food, or beauty products all require special licenses to operate. Note that there may be privacy rules that forbid the agency from giving out information about business owners. If the agency website includes a searchable database, you can also try searching for the business in question there.
Call the local agency responsible for licensing businesses in your area. At the local or city government level, there are a variety of agencies that may compile information about local businesses. One of these agencies may be able to give you information that the state government cannot. Examples of this type of local agency may include license inspection agencies, business permit agencies, or business occupancy agencies.
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