Alaska Business Startup Guides
Opening a Business in Anchorage, Alaska
Contemplating starting a business in Anchorage, Alaska? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Anchorage.
Are You Sure You Want to Do This?
Before announcing to the world that you are going to start your own business, take inventory of your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.
Before you move forward with starting a business, be sure to do these three things:
- Talk to other entrepreneurs in Anchorage. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
- We recommend reading Should You Become an Entrepreneur?. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
- Have a candid conversation with friends and family. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.
Anchorage, Alaska Demographic Information
Anchorage has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Anchorage demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Anchorage.
Businesses
As a new Anchorage entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Anchorage 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.
Businesses
Company Formation in Anchorage, Alaska
It's very important that you form your business as a legal structure. Among other things, forming a legal entity for the business limits your liabilities.
When forming a company, you will pick from many company types, such as a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.
Incorporating is a very popular way to form a business. Of course, you have to decide which type of corporation to form and where to incorporate. Just because you are starting a business in Alaska, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Alaska. As it turns out, you can incorporate wherever you want. For example, it's very popular to incorporate in Delaware, and incorporating in Nevada has become very trendy as well. Don't forget, though, that you will have to register as a foreign entity in all states that you do business in.
There's a lot to know about forming a company. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Piercing the Corporate Veil. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Anchorage, Alaska, our web page covering Incorporating in Alaska may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Alaska.
Startup Financing Basics
Raising money to fund your new Anchorage business will be harder than you might expect. If you don't have a rich uncle to fund you, you'll need to be creative in how you approach your fundraising efforts.
Take advantage of our many articles on finding startup capital, such as Business Credit Evaluation.
For Anchorage entrepreneurs in need of startup financing, check out our List of Alaska Angel Investors and our List of Alaska Venture Capital Firms.
The Art of Selling
Being able to sell is critical to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Anchorage or are selling to customers throughout Alaska, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.
Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.
Selling Stuff on the Web offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.
How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Abilities
Good entrepreneurs know that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.
Given that you are starting a business in Anchorage, Alaska, you should check out some of the learning programs at local Alaska educational institutions. You should also check if there are any Anchorage networking organizations.
Next Steps
You have a dream -- starting a business in Anchorage. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.
Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.
We are here to help Anchorage businesses to be successful. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Anchorage entrepreneur who is just getting started or you are already up and running with your new venture.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Anchorage, Alaska
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Anchorage.
- Resources for Anchorage, Alaska Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Anchorage entrepreneurs.
- Alaska Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Alaska.
- Alaska Small Business Development Center - The Alaska Small Business Development Center, which is hosted by the University of Alaska and funded in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration, has assisted businesses by providing free, confidential technical business assistance and low-cost business training in Alaska for twenty years.
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