Business Services
Your Library understands that the key to successful business management and healthy growth is convenient and swift access to the best resources. We provide reference services and library resources to help Charlotte-Mecklenburg area businesses succeed.
Local Business Resources
Library Resource Spotlight: Entrepreneurship Database (ProQuest)
Entrepreneurship Database (ProQuest)
Information for entrepreneurs and researchers that includes business start-up plans, video clips, journals, business cases, and more.
Upcoming Business Services Events
Does your business need:
- Lists of companies in your target market?
- Lists of competitors in your geographic area?
- Names of executives to contact?
- Demographic statistics, trends, and maps?
- Industry data from nearby and from around the world?
- Content for your webpage, tweets, or newsletter?
- Classes on using technology to increase productivity?
Your library has all this and more. Find more information in the Business Resources: Starting a Business LibGuide
Additionally, your library has spaces to meet and work. Meet informally at one of the 20 locations across the county or rent a room for a larger meeting. Your local branch has all the basics - free wifi, Internet and computer access, and Microsoft Office products.
You can find informatation about non-profits by visiting the Non-Profit Services page.
Not sure where to start? Ask to speak with a Librarian at one of our 20 libraries around Mecklenburg County.
Government Documents Resources
Federal Government Shutdown
As of midnight, Tuesday, September 30, 2025, the necessary funding to continue Federal Government operations has not been approved by the Congress and the President. The U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) has shut down until funding is approved.
Under a shutdown, GPO employees may only work on activities directly related to the legislative process and on activities for an orderly shutdown and to protect property and assets.
- GovInfo will continue to process and post congressional materials; existing content will continue to be available.
- The Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP) will be available for searching but will not be updated until the Government reopens. GPO cannot ensure that all PURLs pointing to other Federal agency resources will work during this time, nor can GPO staff fix broken PURLs during this time.
- DiscoverGov will be available for searching, but the Federal Government databases it searches may not be updated until the Government reopens.
- GPO.gov, FDLP.gov, Ben’s Guide to the U.S. Government, FDLP Resource Guides, and the LSCM GitHub Repositories will be available but will not be updated until the Government reopens.
- Federal Register services on GovInfo will be limited to documents that protect life and property.
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Statistics, reports, and other information published by the government, which can be found through through various websites, can be used to support your business research. GovInfo is a one-stop shop for accessing published, official U.S. Government information online. The Census Bureau provides demographic information to tell you more about potential customers and competitors. The Bureau of Labor Statistics provides information on employment, labor, and trends in over 100 industries. Below, we've highlighted some resources related to upcoming events.
U.S. Government Information: Shutdown
In the event of a government shutdown due to a lapse in appropriations, agency contingency plans will indicate which of the agency's activities will continue and which will cease, which staff will be furloughed and which are "excepted" from furlough, and other details.
Unlike in previous years, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is not maintaining a list of agency contingency plans. Instead, the OMB website notes that plans "are hosted solely on each agency’s website."
The list included in the University of California San Diego's (UCSD) libguide is adapted from the Biden administration's OMB website.This is an evolving situation and additional new plans may be published.
In the event of a government shutdown, certain federal websites may be unavailable. The UCSD Library provides access to several resources that may meet some research needs; see the Alternate Access Points box in the libguide.
What is DiscoverGov?
DiscoverGov provides simple, one-stop searching across multiple U.S. Federal government databases including GPO's Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP) and GovInfo.
It will retrieve reports, articles, and citations while providing direct links to selected resources and publications available online.
On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence, announcing the colonies’ separation from Great Britain. The Constitution provides the legal and governmental framework for the United States. However, the Declaration, with its eloquent assertion “all Men are created equal,” is equally beloved by the American people.
Image: July 4th Fireworks, Washington, D.C. Carol M Highsmith, photographer, July 4, 2008. Highsmith (Carol M.) Archive. Prints & Photographs Division
August is Black Business Month!
Mecklenburg County is committed to providing minorities, women, and small businesses equal opportunity to participate in construction and professional services contracts. Through the BDI program, the County works to help minorities, women and small businesses grow and be competitive for governmental purchasing.
Image: https://oed.mecknc.gov/BDI
Labor Day is a federal holiday celebrating the achievements of American workers. The first Labor Day celebration in the United States was held on September 5, 1882, in New York City. It was proposed and sponsored by the Central Labor Union Party as a "workingmen's holiday." With the growth of labor organizations throughout the United States, the celebration of Labor Day spread to many industrial centers. Between 1882 and 1894, municipalities and states adopted and enacted ordinances and laws to make Labor Day a holiday.
"Labor Day Speech Resources: Fact Sheet." Congress.gov, Library of Congress, 28 August 2025, https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/R44152.
Image: https://www.loc.gov/static/collections/american-federation-of-labor-records/155_155.jpg#h=155&w=155
"National Hispanic Heritage Month celebrates the contributions of Americans tracing their roots to Spain, Mexico, Central America, South America and the Spanish-speaking nations of the Caribbean. In 1968, Congress set aside a week for this observance and two decades later expanded it to a month stretching from September 15 to October 15.
The facts found at National Hispanic Heritage Month: 2025 are possible thanks to the invaluable responses to U.S. Census Bureau surveys. We appreciate the public’s cooperation as we measure America’s people and economy."
"Native Peoples, students, and allies are responsible for official celebrations of Indigenous Peoples' Day in such states as Maine, Oregon, Louisiana, New Mexico, Iowa, and Washington, DC. Indigenous Peoples' Day is celebrated on the second Monday of October and recognizes the resilience and diversity of Indigenous Peoples in the United States."
Source: https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/informational/columbus-day-myths; Poster Image: https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/resources/Qeswachaka-A-Living-Legacy-of-Inka-Engineering