Business in the Sunshine State

Florida prides itself on being a business friendly state, and the Department of State intersects with the world of business on a couple of fronts. One is through the aforementioned Division of Corporations, which is the State's central location for filing business entities; serves as an informational resource for statewide business activities, registrations and certificates; and provides sole proprietors and companies with the legal right to do business in the state of Florida. As of October 2025, there were over three and a half million businesses registered with the Division of Corporations. The Department also houses the Florida Main Street Program, which is a technical assistance program with the goal of revitalizing historic downtowns and encouraging economic development within the context of historic preservation.   In this episode, we chat with Katherine Beck, the Director of Florida Main Street, about how that program benefits small businesses. We also sat down with Division of Corporations Director Sean Toner to find out what is involved in keeping up with Florida's millions of businesses.