Kentucky Business Startup Guides

Opening a Business in Winchester, Kentucky

Contemplating starting a business in Winchester, Kentucky? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Winchester.

Winchester, Kentucky Demographic Information

Winchester has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.

To give you a better feel for Winchester demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Winchester.

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
19328
5-9 Employees
7440
10-19 Employees
5376
20-49 Employees
3456
50-99 Employees
912
100-249 Employees
720
250-499 Employees
432
500-999 Employees
48
1000+ Employees
0
All Winchester Businesses
37712

As a new Winchester entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Winchester for each business category. By looking at this chart, you can get a general sense for how much competition there is in the business niche that you are pursuing.

Business Type
# of
Businesses
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
2
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
6
Automotive Transmission Repair
2
Baked Goods Stores
1
Ball and Roller Bearing Manufacturing
1
Barber Shops
1
Beauty Salons
8
Book Stores
1
Bowling Centers
1
Broadwoven Fabric Finishing Mills
1
Business Associations
1
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Cafeterias
2
Car Washes
2
Cemeteries and Crematories
1
Child and Youth Services
1
Child Day Care Services
12
Civic and Social Organizations
1
Claims Adjusting
1
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
2
Commercial Flexographic Printing
1
Computer and Software Stores
1
Computer Systems Design Services
3
Consumer Lending
3
Convenience Stores
4
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Custom Roll Forming
1
Dental Laboratories
1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
1
Discount Department Stores
1
Document Preparation Services
2
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
1
Electric Power Distribution
5
Electrical Contractors
10
Electronic Shopping
4
Engineering Services
5
Environmental Consulting Services
1
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
2
Family Clothing Stores
4
Family Planning Centers
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
6
Finish Carpentry Contractors
2
Floor Covering Stores
2
Florists
1
Fluid Milk Manufacturing
1
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
1
Food Service Contractors
1
Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation
1
Framing Contractors
2
Full-Service Restaurants
13
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
2
Furniture Stores
2
General Automotive Repair
8
General Freight Trucking, Local
4
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
2
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
2
Glass and Glazing Contractors
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
3
Hardware Manufacturing
1
Hardware Stores
2
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
1
Home Centers
2
Homes for the Elderly
1
Household Appliance Stores
3
Industrial Launderers
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
14
Interior Design Services
1
Internet Service Providers
1
Janitorial Services
3
Land Subdivision
1
Landscaping Services
8
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
3
Limited-Service Restaurants
25
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
1
Machine Shops
1
Mail-Order Houses
2
Masonry Contractors
3
Mattress Manufacturing
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
1
Museums
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
1
Nail Salons
1
New Car Dealers
8
New Housing Operative Builders
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
1
Office Administrative Services
4
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
6
Offices of Dentists
13
Offices of Lawyers
15
Offices of Optometrists
3
Offices of Podiatrists
1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
2
Optical Goods Stores
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
1
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
3
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
6
Photography Studios, Portrait
3
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas
1
Professional Employer Organizations
1
Quick Printing
1
Residential Property Managers
2
Residential Remodelers
6
Roofing Contractors
1
Sales Financing
1
Savings Institutions
2
Securities Brokerage
2
Sewage Treatment Facilities
1
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
1
Shoe Stores
3
Site Preparation Contractors
2
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
1
Soft Drink Manufacturing
1
Solid Waste Landfill
1
Sports and Recreation Instruction
1
Spring (Light Gauge) Manufacturing
1
Support Activities for Forestry
2
Tax Preparation Services
2
Taxi Service
1
Temporary Help Services
5
Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters
1
Tire and Tube Merchant Wholesalers
2
Tire Dealers
2
Tire Retreading
2
Tobacco Stores
3
Travel Agencies
1
Used Car Dealers
5
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
3
Vending Machine Operators
1
Veterinary Services
4
Video Tape and Disc Rental
3
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
2
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
3
Women's Clothing Stores
4

Should You Franchise?

As you drive around Winchester, you'll notice that many local entrepreneurs have gone the franchising route. Is there a franchise opportunity out there that makes sense for you?

We highly recommend you investigate buying a franchise. We have many articles on franchises, such as Common Franchisee Mistakes. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.

You can review hundreds of franchise opportunities by browing our Franchise Directory.

Sample franchise opportunities include 1st Propane Franchising, Inc. and Case In Point. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Training and Education Franchises and IT Franchises.

Note on Winchester Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Winchester.

Forming a Company in Winchester, Kentucky

It's very important that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. The principal advantage of forming your new business as a legal entity is that it separates your business liabilities from your personal liabilities.

The entity you form can be a traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.

Incorporation is a very popular way to form a business. A key decision is whether to form and S-Corp or a C-Corp, and you also must decide in which state you will incorporate. If you are starting a business in Kentucky, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Kentucky. As it turns out, you are allowed to incorporate wherever you want. However, if you do incorporate in another state, you'll have to register as a foreign corporation in your home state.

There are many nuances to forming a company. To learn the fundamentals of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as Offshore Company Formation. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Winchester, Kentucky, our information on Incorporating in Kentucky may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Kentucky.

Getting Money to Start a Business

Getting your Winchester business the capital it needs to succeed is not an easy task. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.

The good news is this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled SBIR Funding.

For Winchester entrepreneurs who need startup capital, browse our List of Kentucky Angel Investors and our List of Kentucky Venture Capital Firms.

Getting the Word Out About Your New Startup

To rise above the crowd in Winchester and accelerate your business, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your succeeding.

You can learn quite a bit about marketing on our site. Media Kits is a good read to get your marketing thoughts flowing. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.

Ramping Up Sales

Being able to sell is fundamental to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Winchester or are selling to customers throughout Kentucky, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.

So what does it take to bring in more prospects and close more business? Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.

Compensating Sales People is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.

How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Abilities

Successful entrepreneurs recognize that they need to continually improve.

As an entrepreneur who lives in Winchester, Kentucky, you will want to take advantage of the learning programs at local Kentucky educational institutions. It's also worthwhile to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Winchester entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.

What's Next?

You have a dream -- starting a business in Winchester. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

We are here to help Winchester businesses to be successful. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Winchester, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Winchester, Kentucky

Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Winchester.

  • Resources for Winchester, Kentucky Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Winchester entrepreneurs.
  • Kentucky Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Kentucky.
  • Kentucky Small Business Development Center - The Kentucky Small Business Development Center (KSBDC) has been assisting Kentucky small business community for more than 25 years. KSBDC is co-sponsored by the U.S. Small Business Administration and is administered by the University of Kentucky in partnership with regional universities, community and private colleges, and the private sector.

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