Alaska Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in Elmendorf AFB, Alaska

Are you starting a business in Elmendorf AFB, Alaska? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Elmendorf AFB.

Elmendorf AFB, Alaska Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
63
5-9 Employees
39
10-19 Employees
27
20-49 Employees
18
50-99 Employees
3
100-249 Employees
3
250-499 Employees
0
500-999 Employees
3
1000+ Employees
0
All Elmendorf AFB Businesses
156

As a new Elmendorf AFB entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Elmendorf AFB 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
Barber Shops
2
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Civic and Social Organizations
1
Computer Systems Design Services
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
1
Engineering Services
5
Facilities Support Services
4
Flight Training
1
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
1
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
Museums
1
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
1
Offices of Optometrists
1
Optical Goods Stores
1
Residential Remodelers
1
Security Guards and Patrol Services
1
Sports and Recreation Instruction
1
Travel Agencies
2
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
1

Is Franchising a Better Option?

As you drive around Elmendorf AFB, you may be surprised to see how many franchises there are in the area. But is franchising the right option for you?

We advise the entrepreneurs we work with to look into purchasing a franchise. To help you learn more about franchising, we've gathered a ton of articles on franchising, including Franchising and Veterans. 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.

Representative franchise opportunities include Subway Franchises and Starbucks Franchises. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Accounting Franchises and Moving Franchises.

Note on Elmendorf AFB Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Elmendorf AFB.

Forming a Company in Elmendorf AFB, Alaska

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

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 Alaska, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Alaska. 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. 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 Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, our information on Incorporating in Alaska may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Alaska.

Startup Financing Basics

Getting your Elmendorf AFB business the capital it needs to succeed is very difficult due to the ongoing business credit crunch. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.

Take advantage of our many articles on securing funding, such as 504 Loans.

For Elmendorf AFB entrepreneurs on the hunt for startup funding, we have assembled a List of Alaska Angel Investors and our List of Alaska Venture Capital Firms.

Getting the Word Out About Your New Company

Whether your goal is to attract Elmendorf AFB customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you'll need to have a good marketing plan.

We have some helpful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Pros and Cons of Advertising discusses marketing strategy and tactical marketing in a way that should get you thinking about how to creatively promote your business. That's just a sampling of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

Improving Your Entrepreneurial Skillset

The best entrepreneurs recognize that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.

Given that you are starting a business in Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Alaska universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also smart to see if there are any Elmendorf AFB networking organizations.

Moving Forward

Most new Elmendorf AFB businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

We are here to help Elmendorf AFB businesses to be successful. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Elmendorf AFB, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Elmendorf AFB, Alaska

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

  • Resources for Elmendorf AFB, Alaska Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Elmendorf AFB 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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