"how much did the company you owned gross each year?"

TarponMonoxide

Bet yo haven't heard that one.

Eons ago, I ran a small company -- it was me myself and I -- and I have that information on a resume since it was my means of employment. I was the sole employee.

The company didn't last long; maybe 2 very weak years.

Do prospective employers have a right to ask you how much your company earned? And what exactly do you tell them it earned? The sum that was earned was a mere pittance. The company struggled along and I pulled the plug.

I am wondering if the sum I disclose would even be a belieavable amount.

Dr.Loretta

I don't see why they wouldn't have the right to ask such a question, and I could see why they might. They may want to know if you actually tracked such things (you'd be surprised how many people may not know) to see if you were paying attention to detail. It may be a way to open up the conversation--it didn't do well, but from that experience you learned X, Y, and Z about business, marketing, management, etc. To me the answer wouldn't just be a number and then moving on to other topics.

ArcadianDreams

I suppose they could in the same sense that they could reasonably ask what your current or previous salary was. However I've sat in on a few interviews with prior business owners and that questions never came up.