South Dakota Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in De Smet, South Dakota

Thinking about starting a business in De Smet, South Dakota? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in De Smet.

De Smet, South Dakota Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
152
5-9 Employees
15
10-19 Employees
36
20-49 Employees
15
50-99 Employees
9
100-249 Employees
0
250-499 Employees
0
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
0
All De Smet Businesses
227

As a new De Smet entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in De Smet 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
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
2
Electric Power Distribution
2
Electrical Contractors
2
Family Clothing Stores
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
1
Full-Service Restaurants
3
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
1
Furniture Stores
1
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
Hardware Stores
1
Historical Sites
2
Household Appliance Stores
1
Landscaping Services
1
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
1
Marketing Consulting Services
2
Medicinal and Botanical Manufacturing
1
Metal Window and Door Manufacturing
2
New Car Dealers
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Offices of Chiropractors
1
Offices of Lawyers
2
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
1
Sign Manufacturing
1
Solid Waste Collection
2
Tire Dealers
1

Should You Franchise?

Visit the business district of De Smet and you'll notice that many local entrepreneurs have gone the franchising route. But is franchising the right option for you?

We advise the entrepreneurs we work with to investigate buying a franchise. We have many articles on franchises, such as Growth Trends in Franchising. Get a thorough education on franchising by browsing all of our Articles on Franchising.

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

Sample franchise opportunities include Villa Pizza and Caffino. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Sports Restaurant Franchises and Children Arts Programs Franchises.

Note on De Smet Franchise Opportunities: To find out if a franchise you are interested in is available in De Smet, you will need to get in direct contact with the franchisor.

What About Buying an Existing De Smet Business?

If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in South Dakota. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in De Smet.

Before buying a business, be sure to read this article: Buying a Business.

Naming the Company

Making the right decision when choosing a company name is very important. There are many decisions you'll make now that you can change later, but changing a company name years down the road is not very easy. So, choose a good company name at the outset.

Company names should be fun to say, and they should help people to understand what you do and how you differentiate yourself in the market.

Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Branding Advice.

On a final note, given that you are starting a business in De Smet, it's very important that you make sure your company name has not already been claimed by another South Dakota business.

Forming a Company in De Smet, South Dakota

It's very important that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Doing so will separate you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.

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 common way to legally create a business entity. 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 South Dakota, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in South Dakota. As it turns out, you are allowed to 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 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 Offshore Company Formation. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in De Smet, South Dakota, our web page covering Incorporating in South Dakota may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in South Dakota.

Getting Money to Start a Business

Raising money to fund your new De Smet business is a difficult chore. The reality is that there is very little funding available for new small businesses, and you have to explore every possible alternative.

Fortunately, this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled Getting a Small Business Loan.

For De Smet entrepreneurs who need startup capital, check out our List of South Dakota Angel Investors and our List of South Dakota 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 De Smet or are selling to customers throughout South Dakota, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.

The key to selling is to set sales goals goals and monitor your progress towards those goals. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.

Selling on the Phone is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.

Now It's Up To You

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

If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in De Smet and throughout the United States . We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in De Smet, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in De Smet, South Dakota

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

More Business Startup Guides for South Dakota

Starting a Business in Custer
Starting a Business in Deadwood

Browse All Business Startup Guides for South Dakota
Starting a Business Guides for Other States

 

 

Share this article


Additional Resources for Entrepreneurs

Lists of Venture Capital and Private Equity Firms

Franchise Opportunities

Contributors

Business Glossary