The question
I'm starting a small handmade earring business in Pennsylvania and hoping to avoid registering as a fictitious business name to avoid the $70 fee as this is a low-budget startup. Pretend my name is Jonathon James Doe. I would like to call my small business a variation of my name (John James Designs), but not my full legal name (Jonathon James Doe). Does this require filing for a fictitious business name in Pennsylvania? Could I legally call my business my first and last name (Jonathan Doe) and use this name for any finances, taxes, contracts, legal, etc. but market and brand it using an unregistered fictitious business name (John James Designs)?