Oklahoma Business Startup Guides

Open a Business in Bristow, Oklahoma

Need help starting a business in Bristow, Oklahoma? We've got the information you need to open a business in Bristow.

Is Becoming a Business Owner Right for You?

Before you get too far along in the process, assess your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.

Here are three things we recommend you do before you fully commit to starting a new business of your own.

  • Talk to other entrepreneurs in Bristow. Get their take on what it's really like to be an entrepreneur.
  • 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. That's the best way to get a truly objective assessment as to whether others think you have what it takes.

Bristow, Oklahoma Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
1215
5-9 Employees
405
10-19 Employees
135
20-49 Employees
153
50-99 Employees
36
100-249 Employees
0
250-499 Employees
9
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
0
All Bristow Businesses
1953

As a new Bristow entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Bristow 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
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
2
Business Associations
1
Child and Youth Services
1
Civic and Social Organizations
2
Commercial Lithographic Printing
1
Computer and Software Stores
1
Computer Systems Design Services
1
Consumer Lending
2
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
1
Discount Department Stores
1
Electrical Contractors
2
Florists
2
Full-Service Restaurants
4
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
3
Furniture Stores
1
General Automotive Repair
5
General Freight Trucking, Local
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Grantmaking Foundations
2
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Manufacturing
1
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
1
Industrial Sand Mining
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
5
Limited-Service Restaurants
7
New Car Dealers
3
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
1
Offices of Bank Holding Companies
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
3
Offices of Lawyers
8
Offices of Optometrists
1
Petroleum Refineries
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
2
Radio Stations
1
Repossession Services
2
Residential Remodelers
3
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Securities Brokerage
1
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
1
Siding Contractors
1
Site Preparation Contractors
5
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
1
Solid Waste Collection
2
Tax Preparation Services
3
Temporary Help Services
1
Tire Dealers
1
Veterinary Services
1
Video Tape and Disc Rental
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
1

Forming a Company in Bristow, Oklahoma

It's very important 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.

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

Incorporating 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 Oklahoma, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Oklahoma. In fact, you can incorporate in the state of your choosing. 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. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Avoiding Personal Liability in Business. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Bristow, Oklahoma, our information on Incorporating in Oklahoma may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Oklahoma.

Don't Skip the Business Plan

A business plan is critical to the health of your new business. Simply put, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Starting a business without a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

Before you start writing a business plan, we suggest you skim Business Plan Contests. You can also get free business counselors available to you through your local SCORE chapter in Oklahoma.

Raising Money for Your New Venture

Getting your Bristow business the capital it needs to succeed is not an easy task. In fact, financing your new business may be the hardest challenge you ever face.

To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as 504 Loans.

For Bristow entrepreneurs who need startup capital, check out our List of Oklahoma Angel Investors and our List of Oklahoma Venture Capital Firms.

Getting the Word Out About Your New Business

To rise above the crowd in Bristow and grow your business, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your successs.

We have some helpful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Advertising Campaigns is a good read to get your marketing ideas flowing. That's just one of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

The Art of Selling

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

Why should customers buy from you instead of buying from competitors? Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.

Landing Big Customers 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.

Moving Forward

You have a dream -- starting a business in Bristow. 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 Bristow businesses to be successful. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Bristow, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Bristow, Oklahoma

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

More Business Startup Guides for Oklahoma

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