Mississippi Business Startup Guides
Opening a Business in Cleveland, Mississippi
Contemplating starting a business in Cleveland, Mississippi? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Cleveland.
What Business Are You Starting?
Choosing a business that is right for you is very important. To help you decide on a business type, we encourage you to read Business Ideas That Don't Make Sense.
For in-depth how-to guides on how to start specific businesses, browse our Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Opening a Continental Cuisine Restaurant guide or our Starting a Public Speaking School guide.
Remember that your new business will be in Cleveland. Some businesses will do better in Cleveland than others. Don't forget to review Cleveland demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.
Cleveland, Mississippi Demographic Information
Cleveland has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Cleveland demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Cleveland.
Businesses
As a new Cleveland entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Cleveland 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
Should You Franchise?
Examine a list of Cleveland businesses and you'll notice that many local entrepreneurs have gone the franchising route. Is there a franchise opportunity out there that makes sense for you?
Most business experts recommend that you consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as Common Franchisee Mistakes. Gain a solid understanding of franchising by scanning all of our Articles on Franchising.
To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.
Sample franchise opportunities include The Athlete's Foot and Maid Brigade. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Home Inspection Franchises and Print and Sign Franchises.
Note on Cleveland Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Cleveland.
Have You Considered Buying an Existing Cleveland Business?
An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Mississippi. Follow that link and you might discover several good businesses for sale in Cleveland.
If you are intent on buying a business, you may want to read this article: How to Buy a Business.
Forming a Company in Cleveland, Mississippi
A critical step is ensuring that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. The primary 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 common way to legally create a business entity. Of course, you have to decide which type of corporation to form and where to incorporate. If you are starting a business in Mississippi, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Mississippi. In fact, you can incorporate in any state you would like to. 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 basics of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as Piercing the Corporate Veil. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Cleveland, Mississippi, our information on Incorporating in Mississippi may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Mississippi.
The Role of the Business Plan
Creating a business plan is vital to the health of your new business. Simply put, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Not having a business plan
To learn more about business plans, read Business Plan Contests. You can also get face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in Mississippi.
Marketing Your New Business
Whether your goal is to attract Cleveland customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you'll need to have a good marketing plan.
We have some useful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Responsible Marketing is a good read to get your marketing juices flowing. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.
Now It's Up To You
You have a dream -- starting a business in Cleveland. 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 Cleveland businesses to be successful. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Cleveland, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Cleveland, Mississippi
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Cleveland.
- Resources for Cleveland, Mississippi Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Cleveland entrepreneurs.
- Mississippi Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Mississippi.
- Mississippi Small Business Development Center - The Mississippi Small Business Development Centers (MSBDC) is dedicated to helping build and grow businesses in Mississippi. For new entrepreneurs, this is an excellent resource.
More Startup Articles for Mississippi Cities
Starting a Business in Clarksdale
Starting a Business in Clinton
Browse All Business Startup Guides for Mississippi
Starting a Business Guides for Other States
Share this article
Additional Resources for Entrepreneurs