Georgia Business Startup Guides

Open a Business in Gainesville, Georgia

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

What Type of Business Should You Start?

An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. If you are struggling with what type of business to start, 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 Nuclear Services Business guide or our How to Start a Service Station Builders Business guide.

Remember that Gainesville is the place where you are starting a business. Some businesses will do better in Gainesville than others. Only by spending some time analyzing Gainesville demographics can you decide if there will be strong demand for your business idea.

Gainesville, Georgia Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
33866
5-9 Employees
11158
10-19 Employees
7770
20-49 Employees
4851
50-99 Employees
1890
100-249 Employees
1239
250-499 Employees
252
500-999 Employees
84
1000+ Employees
63
All Gainesville Businesses
61173

As a new Gainesville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Gainesville 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
Aluminum Die-Casting Foundries
1
Aluminum Extruded Product Manufacturing
1
Amusement Arcades
1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
2
Architectural Services
7
Automobile Driving Schools
1
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
22
Automotive Transmission Repair
3
Baked Goods Stores
3
Ball and Roller Bearing Manufacturing
1
Barber Shops
1
Beauty Salons
26
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers
2
Blood and Organ Banks
1
Boat Building
1
Boat Dealers
6
Book Stores
5
Bowling Centers
1
Building Inspection Services
2
Business and Secretarial Schools
1
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Cafeterias
6
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
1
Car Washes
8
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
2
Caterers
3
Cemeteries and Crematories
1
Child and Youth Services
5
Child Day Care Services
16
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
1
Civic and Social Organizations
9
Claims Adjusting
2
Clothing Accessories Stores
2
Coffee and Tea Manufacturing
1
Collection Agencies
4
Commercial Gravure Printing
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
5
Commercial Photography
1
Commercial Screen Printing
3
Community Food Services
2
Computer and Software Stores
5
Concrete Block and Brick Manufacturing
1
Confectionery and Nut Stores
1
Consumer Lending
19
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
1
Convenience Stores
7
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
2
Convention and Visitors Bureaus
1
Court Reporting and Stenotype Services
3
Credit Unions
3
Custom Computer Programming Services
14
Dance Companies
1
Dental Laboratories
12
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
2
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
5
Direct Mail Advertising
2
Directory and Mailing List Publishers
2
Discount Department Stores
2
Display Advertising
1
Document Preparation Services
2
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
1
Educational Support Services
1
Electric Power Distribution
3
Electrical Contractors
42
Electronic Shopping
3
Elementary and Secondary Schools
7
Emergency and Other Relief Services
1
Employment Placement Agencies
3
Environmental Consulting Services
2
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
3
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
9
Family Clothing Stores
7
Family Planning Centers
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
6
Fine Arts Schools
4
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
8
Flight Training
1
Floor Covering Stores
4
Flooring Contractors
4
Florists
10
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
4
Food Service Contractors
11
Framing Contractors
5
Freight Transportation Arrangement
16
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
1
Full-Service Restaurants
77
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
4
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
4
General Automotive Repair
25
General Freight Trucking, Local
5
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
2
General Rental Centers
5
General Warehousing and Storage
2
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
8
Glass and Glazing Contractors
2
Graphic Design Services
3
Gypsum Product Manufacturing
1
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
4
Hardware Stores
7
Heating Oil Dealers
1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
1
Home Centers
2
Home Health Equipment Rental
2
Homes for the Elderly
3
Household Appliance Stores
1
Human Rights Organizations
2
Hunting and Trapping
1
Ice Manufacturing
1
Industrial Design Services
2
Industrial Mold Manufacturing
2
Institutional Furniture Manufacturing
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
59
Interior Design Services
5
Internet Service Providers
1
Investigation Services
3
Investment Advice
5
Janitorial Services
18
Jewelry Stores
8
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Land Subdivision
10
Landscape Architectural Services
2
Landscaping Services
41
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
3
Limited-Service Restaurants
62
Linen Supply
1
Logging
1
Machine Shops
7
Mail-Order Houses
1
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
1
Marinas
2
Masonry Contractors
8
Mattress Manufacturing
1
Meat Markets
2
Media Representatives
1
Medical Laboratories
1
Men's Clothing Stores
2
Metal Stamping
1
Mineral Wool Manufacturing
1
Miscellaneous Intermediation
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
13
Motor and Generator Manufacturing
1
Motor Vehicle Body Manufacturing
1
Motor Vehicle Metal Stamping
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
6
Museums
3
Musical Groups and Artists
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
2
Nail Salons
3
Natural Gas Distribution
1
New Car Dealers
12
New Housing Operative Builders
5
Nonwoven Fabric Mills
1
Nursing Care Facilities
6
Office Administrative Services
11
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
6
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
6
Offices of Bank Holding Companies
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
26
Offices of Dentists
50
Offices of Lawyers
58
Offices of Optometrists
6
Offices of Other Holding Companies
6
Offices of Podiatrists
5
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
8
One-Hour Photofinishing
2
Packaging and Labeling Services
1
Packing and Crating
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
4
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
9
Passenger Car Leasing
1
Periodical Publishers
5
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
7
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
17
Photography Studios, Portrait
4
Plastics Plumbing Fixture Manufacturing
1
Political Organizations
2
Polystyrene Foam Product Manufacturing
1
Portfolio Management
2
Power-Driven Handtool Manufacturing
1
Printing Ink Manufacturing
1
Private Mail Centers
2
Professional Organizations
3
Public Relations Agencies
1
Quick Printing
4
Radio Networks
1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
4
Real Estate Credit
11
Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage
3
Residential Property Managers
12
Residential Remodelers
11
Retail Bakeries
1
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
1
Sales Financing
2
Sanitary Paper Product Manufacturing
1
Securities Brokerage
8
Security Guards and Patrol Services
2
Septic Tank and Related Services
5
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
4
Shoe Stores
9
Sign Manufacturing
5
Site Preparation Contractors
26
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
13
Soap and Other Detergent Manufacturing
1
Soft Drink Manufacturing
1
Software Publishers
2
Solid Waste Collection
4
Soybean Processing
1
Spice and Extract Manufacturing
1
Sporting Goods Stores
9
Sports and Recreation Instruction
3
Storage Battery Manufacturing
1
Tax Preparation Services
8
Taxi Service
2
Temporary Help Services
25
Temporary Shelters
2
Testing Laboratories
1
Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters
1
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
4
Timber Tract Operations
1
Tire and Tube Merchant Wholesalers
2
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
1
Tobacco Stores
2
Toilet Preparation Manufacturing
1
Tortilla Manufacturing
1
Tour Operators
1
Translation and Interpretation Services
1
Travel Agencies
2
Used Car Dealers
21
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
3
Used Merchandise Stores
6
Vending Machine Operators
8
Veterinary Services
8
Video Tape and Disc Rental
3
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
3
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
2
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
43
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
2
Women's Clothing Stores
12
Wood Preservation
2
Wood Window and Door Manufacturing
1
Yarn Spinning Mills
2

Choosing a Business Name

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 Company.

On a final note, given that you are planning on starting a business in Gainesville, it's very important that you make sure your company name has not already been claimed by another Georgia business.

Company Formation in Gainesville, Georgia

It's essential that you choose the right legal structure for your new entity. Among other things, forming a legal entity for the business limits your liabilities.

When forming a company, you will pick from many company types, such as a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.

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. Just because you are starting a business in Georgia, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Georgia. In fact, 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's a lot to know about forming a company. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as ESOP Formation. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Gainesville, Georgia, our web page covering Incorporating in Georgia may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Georgia.

Marketing Your New Venture

To rise above the crowd in Gainesville and build your business, you need a solid marketing plan.

You can learn plenty about marketing on our site. Radio Ads 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.

Increase Your Entrepreneurial Knowledge

Good entrepreneurs know that they don't know everything.

As an entrepreneur who lives in Gainesville, Georgia, you should check out some of the learning programs at local Georgia educational institutions. You should also check if there are any networking organizations for Gainesville entrepreneurs.

Now It's Up To You

You have a dream -- starting a business in Gainesville. 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 Gainesville businesses to be successful. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Gainesville entrepreneur who is just getting started or you are already up and running with your new venture.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Gainesville, Georgia

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

Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in Georgia

Starting a Business in Franklin
Starting a Business in Glennville

Browse All Business Startup Guides for Georgia
Starting a Business Guides for Other States

 

 

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