How to List a Business You Founded or Closed on Your Resume

List your own business like any job: title (Founder or Owner), business name, dates, and bullets with results. If it closed, say so briefly and plainly, then focus on what you built, ran and learned. A closed business is real experience, and it is better shown than left as a gap.

Use a title that is accurate and searchable

"Founder", "Owner" or "Co-founder" are fine. Add what the business did if the name is unclear. Example: "Founder, Greenleaf Candles (handmade home goods shop), 2021 to 2024." If you ran a business on a platform, say which one, because the name tells the reader the scale. Do not inflate. A one-person shop is not a "CEO of a growing enterprise". Hiring managers read such claims sceptically, and honest titles with strong results read as more credible. If a platform or registration helps explain the size of the business, mention it briefly, such as "online shop on Etsy" or "registered limited company". Keep the description to a clause. The aim is to give context in the first line without turning the heading into a paragraph. Put the dates in the same format as your other roles, and make sure they match any public record, such as a business registration, in case an employer checks. The key is to treat your business as real work that deserves the same detail as any employer. Avoid vague wording like "self-employed" on its own, which tells a reader nothing about what you did.

Write bullets in the language of the job you want

Owning a business means doing many jobs at once. Pick the parts that match your target role. For a marketing job, lead with campaigns and audience growth. For an operations role, lead with suppliers, stock and process. Example before: "Ran my own online store." Example after: "Sourced from 6 suppliers, managed stock across 120 products and fulfilled orders within two days on average." The second names scale and speed. Use your own real numbers, and use honest estimates where records are thin. When a skill was used in a very specific way, name the tool. "Set up and ran paid ads on Instagram with a monthly budget of about 300 dollars" is more convincing than "did marketing", and it lets a recruiter match the experience to a requirement. Another tip is to keep the bullet focused on your own action. Words like "we" hide your part. Write "I negotiated" or use an action verb such as "negotiated", and name any partner or contractor only where it helps the reader understand scale. Example: "Managed two freelance packers during the holiday season and scheduled their shifts around order peaks." That sentence shows supervision and planning in a single line.

How to talk about a business that closed

Do not hide it or apologise. Put an end date and, if it helps, one short fact. Example: "Founder, Greenleaf Candles, 2021 to 2024. Closed after rising material costs; wound down stock and paid all suppliers." The second sentence is optional, but a clear and calm statement answers the question before it is asked. Avoid blame, and never write "failed" on the page. The interview is the place for the longer version. If the closure was caused by something outside your control, such as a landlord change, a supplier problem or a market shift, a neutral clause is fine. If it was a deliberate choice to take a job or study, you can say "closed to pursue a full-time role".

Pick the results that prove skill

Look for numbers that show what you managed: revenue range if you are comfortable sharing it, customers served, orders per month, products launched, email list size, hours saved by a new process, or costs cut. Example: "Grew the mailing list from 0 to 1,800 subscribers through weekly posts and a referral offer." These are formatting examples. Do not include figures you cannot support. If revenue is private, use volume or growth rates instead. Estimates are acceptable if you label them. Phrases like "about", "roughly" and "an average of" are honest and expected from people who ran small businesses without formal reports. Keep a note of how you arrived at each number in case you are asked. If you served clients, such as a freelance consultant or a service business, say what kind and how many. Example: "Served 25 small-business clients over three years, with about half returning for repeat work." Repeat business is a convincing result, and it needs no financial figure. Again, use only numbers that are true.

Show the skills a founder builds

Founders learn quickly across many areas: budgeting, negotiation, sales, customer support, basic tools and tax or compliance. Group these in your bullets rather than listing them alone. Example: "Negotiated terms with two suppliers, saving about 12 percent on materials." Mention tools you used, such as accounting software, e-commerce platforms or design tools, since many postings screen on them. If you worked alone, say that you handled the full cycle yourself. Ask yourself which hat you wore most often and put that skill first. A founder who mostly sold should lead with sales and customer bullets, while one who mostly built should lead with product and process work. Being honest about gaps in your experience matters too. If you never ran payroll or never managed more than one person, do not suggest that you did. Employers prefer a candidate who knows where the edges of their experience are, and who is clear about what they want to learn next.

If you are moving to a salaried job

Employers sometimes worry that a former founder will leave soon or struggle with a manager. Your summary can answer this. Example: "Former small-business owner moving into customer success, bringing three years of direct client work and a preference for a team environment." Then show team behaviour in the interview with examples of working with contractors, partners or clients. Be specific about what you want from a salaried role, such as depth in one area or a larger team. Another option is to use your cover letter to explain the move in more detail. Describe what the business taught you about customers, money and responsibility, and say what you are looking forward to in a larger team. Keep it positive and specific.

Part-time and side businesses

If the business ran alongside another job, list it as its own entry or under a heading such as "Independent projects" with dates and the same kind of bullets. Keep it relevant. A weekend business that used marketing or analytics skills belongs on a marketing resume. One that did not relate to the target job can be a single line. Make clear that it did not conflict with your main role if the question could come up. Always check your employment terms regarding outside work. Example for a side business: "Independent photographer (part-time), 2020 to present. Shoot about 15 events a year for local clients, handle bookings and editing, and deliver galleries within a week." This shows reliability without suggesting that the side work takes time from a full-time job. Keep your online presence consistent with the resume. If your business website or social accounts are still live, make sure they look professional and agree with the dates and claims on your resume, since employers often check. If the business is closed, consider adding a short note on the site or taking it down.

Example: before and after for a small online shop

Example before: "Owner, online store. Did marketing, packing and customer service." Example after: "Founder, Greenleaf Candles (online shop), 2021 to 2024. Designed and launched 14 products, managed stock across 3 suppliers and shipped orders within two days on average. Built an email list of about 1,800 subscribers through weekly posts. Handled all customer messages and refunds. Closed in 2024 due to rising material costs; settled all supplier accounts." Every figure here is invented to show the format, so use only your real numbers. The after version reads like a real job because it names products, suppliers, speed and audience, and it states the closure without drama.