Welcome to the Memphis Smart Start web portal, your single source for starting a business in Memphis and Shelby County.

We know how vital small businesses are to our economy, and we believe an entrepreneur’s time is best spent creating jobs and developing innovative products and services – not navigating red tape. While fair zoning rules, licenses, and permits are important to ensuring public safety and fair competition, our goal is to shorten the time it takes for you to identify and apply for the licenses and permits you need in order to responsibly launch a business.

With assistance from the Small Business Administration’s “Startup in a Day Challenge,” we’ve taken the first step in a larger effort to streamline, simplify, and bring online those regulatory requirements that have traditionally been managed across multiple agencies and through a paper-based process. Our ultimate goal is for small business owners to be able to complete most of their regulatory obligations within a single easy-to-use online system – making it easier for our citizens to start a business.

Finally, your feedback is critical to making this effort a success. If you have comments or suggestions, please submit them here

Thank you again, and we look forward to supporting your new business.

Mark Luttrell, Mayor, Shelby County

Jim Strickland, Mayor, City of Memphis