Wisconsin Business Startup Guides
Opening a Business in Ashland, Wisconsin
Contemplating starting a business in Ashland, Wisconsin? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Ashland.
Do You Have Entrepreneurial Drive and Passion?
Before you get too far along in the process, assess 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 Ashland. Get their candid feedback on what it takes to start a successful business.
- We recommend reading Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
- Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. A support network of family and friends can be a great sounding board for good advice before you decide for sure to go into business.
Choosing the Right Company to Start
An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. To stir your creative juices on what kind of business to start, take a look at Good Business Ideas.
For step-by-step instructions on starting a variety of business types, visit the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Opening a Mailing Machines & Equipment Wholesales & Manufacturers Business guide or our Starting a Window Shades Retail & Custom Business guide.
Remember that starting a business in Ashland has some implications. Some businesses will do better in Ashland than others. Only by spending some time analyzing Ashland demographics can you decide if there will be strong demand for your business idea.
Ashland, Wisconsin Demographic Information
Ashland has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Ashland demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Ashland.
Businesses
As a new Ashland entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Ashland 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 Ashland, Wisconsin
A critical step is ensuring that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Without a legal structure for the business, you can be held personally liable for the actions, debts and obligations of your company.
When forming a company, you will decide among 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 Wisconsin, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Wisconsin. In fact, you are allowed to incorporate in any state you would like to. 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 Incorporating Online. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Ashland, Wisconsin, our web page covering Incorporating in Wisconsin may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Wisconsin.
Raising Capital for Your Business
Raising money to fund your new Ashland business 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.
Fortunately, this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled Getting a Small Business Loan.
For Ashland entrepreneurs who need startup capital, check out our List of Wisconsin Angel Investors and our List of Wisconsin Venture Capital Firms.
The Art of Selling
Being able to sell is essential to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Ashland or are selling to customers throughout Wisconsin, 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. Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.
Closing Sales is worth reading, as it may give you some good ideas on how to sell your products or services. We have many more good articles on selling that you may enjoy reading.
Now It's Up To You
You have a dream -- starting a business in Ashland. 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 Ashland businesses to be successful. We have a wealth of experience in business start-ups, financing, marketing, sales and more...and we've made all of our knowledge available to you.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Ashland, Wisconsin
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Ashland.
- Resources for Ashland, Wisconsin Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Ashland entrepreneurs.
- Wisconsin Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Wisconsin.
- Wisconsin Small Business Development Center - Wisconsin Small Business Development Centers offer a variety of educational services to small-businesses. The low-cost courses, seminars, and workshops cover both basic and complex topics, from marketing to management techniques to business plan development.
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