Oregon Business Startup Guides
Opening a Business in La Grande, Oregon
Contemplating starting a business in La Grande, Oregon? We walk you through the process of opening a business in La Grande.
Will You Be a Good Entrepreneur?
Running your own business is hard work, much more challenging than working as an employee. Are you positive you have the stamina and skills to succeed on your own?
Because entrepreneurship is not for everyone, we recommend you do the following to help you assess whether you should move forward with starting a business:
- Grab a meal or cofee with other entrepreneurs in La Grande. They are usually very willing to share their insights on the ups and downs of being an entrepreneur.
- Take a look at The Entrepreneurial Personality. It's a short article but it's a good reality check for those are about to jump into the world of entrepreneurship.
- Reach out to a trusted acquaintance. Others sometimes know you better than you know yourself.
What Business Are You Starting?
An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. To stir your creative juices on what kind of business to start, take a look at Free Business Ideas.
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 Starting an Airline Business guide or our Opening a Laser Cutting Business guide.
Don't forget that your new startup will be located in La Grande. Some businesses will do better in La Grande than others. Study La Grande demographics and do a competitive analysis as part of your startup planning process.
La Grande, Oregon Demographic Information
La Grande has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for La Grande demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in La Grande.
Businesses
As a new La Grande entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in La Grande 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
Have You Considered Buying an Existing La Grande Business?
If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in Oregon. Follow that link and you might discover several good businesses for sale in La Grande.
Before buying a business, be sure to read this article: How to Buy a Business.
Naming the Company
A big decision when starting a company is choosing a company name. Believe it or not, choosing a good company name can be a big contributor to your business success.
We strongly advocate that you make sure the ".com" domain name is available for your company name. Every business needs a strong Web presence these days, and having a non ".com" domain means somebody else may outrank you in the search results for your own company name.
Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Branding Advice.
As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are starting a business in La Grande, it's critical that you ensure that no other Oregon company is using the business name you want to use.
Forming a Company in La Grande, Oregon
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.
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 Oregon, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in Oregon. 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 Incorporating Online. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in La Grande, Oregon, our information on Incorporating in Oregon may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Oregon.
Getting the Word Out About Your New Company
To grow your La Grande business, you need a great marketing plan.
We have some helpful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Telemarketing Service Costs is an article that will generate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. That's just one of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.
What's Next?
As an entrepreneur in La Grande, you won't be working for the boss anymore. You are the boss.
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 La Grande and throughout the United States . We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in La Grande, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in La Grande, Oregon
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in La Grande.
- Resources for La Grande, Oregon Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist La Grande entrepreneurs.
- Oregon Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Oregon.
- Oregon Small Business Development Center - Oregon Small Business Development Centers use a client-centered approach to deliver counseling, training, information and technical assistance in all aspects of small business management. There is no fee for their assistance.
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