Kansas Business Startup Guides
Starting a Business in Fort Scott, Kansas
Thinking about starting a business in Fort Scott, Kansas? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Fort Scott.
Fort Scott, Kansas Demographic Information
Fort Scott has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Fort Scott demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Fort Scott.
Businesses
As a new Fort Scott entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Fort Scott 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
What About Buying an Existing Fort Scott Business?
We've created a helpful website page for those who want to Buy a Business in Kansas. Follow that link and you can assess several good businesses for sale in Fort Scott.
For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: How to Buy a Business.
Naming the Business
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.
Even if the name doesn't do it by itself, many naming experts believe there should be a story behind the name that ties into your company mission.
For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Naming a Business.
There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are opening a business in Fort Scott, it's very important that you make sure no other Kansas company is using the business name you want to use.
Forming a Company in Fort Scott, Kansas
A critical step is ensuring that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Doing so will shield 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.
Incorporation 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. If you are starting a business in Kansas, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Kansas. As it turns out, you are allowed to incorporate wherever you want. 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 LLC Advantages. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Fort Scott, Kansas, our information on Incorporating in Kansas may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Kansas.
Don't Forget to Create a Business Plan
Writing a business plan is essential in maximizing the prospects of your new company. In effect, a business plan is a written description of the future you envision for your business. Not having a business plan will greatly reduce your chances of business success.
If writing a business plan is on your to-do list, be sure to read Business Plan Contests. You can also get free business counselors available to you through your local SCORE chapter in Kansas.
Where to Get Money to Start a Company
Getting your Fort Scott business the capital it needs to succeed will be harder than you might expect. To obtain business financing, you will need to hear a lot of rejections before you finally find a funding solution that works for you.
Take advantage of our many articles on securing funding, such as Getting a Small Business Loan.
For Fort Scott entrepreneurs on the hunt for startup funding, browse our List of Kansas Angel Investors and our List of Kansas Venture Capital Firms.
Selling Tips
Being able to sell is a key enabler to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Fort Scott or are selling to customers throughout Kansas, 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. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.
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.
Moving Forward
You have a dream -- starting a business in Fort Scott. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.
From this point on, you control your own destiny.
This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Fort Scott and elsewhere to achieve real success. 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 Fort Scott, Kansas
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Fort Scott.
- Resources for Fort Scott, Kansas Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Fort Scott entrepreneurs.
- Kansas Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Kansas.
- Kansas Small Business Development Center - The KSBDC Network provides Kansas entrepreneurs and small business owners with knowledge, tools and resources to enhance their success. Contact them and they will help you identify your business needs and guide you toward opportunities and solutions.
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