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: Social Explorer
Social Explorer
Visualization and data-mapping tool with hundreds of thousands of data indicators and across demography, economy, health, education, religion, crime 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
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.
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.
"Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) Pride Month is currently celebrated each year in the month of June to honor the 1969 Stonewall Uprising in Manhattan. The Stonewall Uprising was a tipping point for the Gay Liberation Movement in the United States. In the United States the last Sunday in June was initially celebrated as "Gay Pride Day," but the actual day was flexible. In major cities across the nation the "day" soon grew to encompass a month-long series of events. Today, celebrations include pride parades, picnics, parties, workshops, symposia and concerts, and LGBTQ Pride Month events attract millions of participants around the world."
LGBTQ+ Resources in Business and the Workplace - "A guide to sources of information for those researching the issues that affect the economic circumstances of the LGBTQ+ community."
Image: Visual design for the “Pride in the Library” pop-up display. 2017. Library of Congress.
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."