Wisconsin Business Startup Guides
Opening a Business in Lodi, Wisconsin
Contemplating starting a business in Lodi, Wisconsin? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Lodi.
Choosing the Right Company to Start
There are many businesses that you can start. How do you know which type of business is right for you? We recommend that you read 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 a Bath Scales Business guide or our How to Start a Tractor Equipment & Parts Dealers Business guide.
Remember that you are opening your new business in Lodi. The business you want to start may already be well-represented in Lodi. Don't forget to review Lodi demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.
Lodi, Wisconsin Demographic Information
Lodi has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Lodi demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Lodi.
Businesses
As a new Lodi entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Lodi 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 Lodi Business?
We've created a useful website page for those who want to Buy a Business in Wisconsin. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Lodi.
For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: Hold Harmless Agreements When Buying Businesses.
Forming a Company in Lodi, Wisconsin
A critical step is ensuring that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. The principal advantage of forming your new business as a legal entity is that it separates your business liabilities from your personal liabilities.
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. Of course, you have to decide which type of corporation to form and where to incorporate. If you are starting a business in Wisconsin, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in Wisconsin. In fact, you are allowed to incorporate in the state of your choosing. 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 C Corp Versus S Corp. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Lodi, Wisconsin, our information on Incorporating in Wisconsin may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Wisconsin.
The Role of the Business Plan
A business plan is essential to the health of your new business. Simply put, a business plan is a written description of the future you envision for your business. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.
If you want more information on writing business plans, we recommend reading Find Sample Business Plans Online. You can also get free business counselors available to you through your local SCORE chapter in Wisconsin.
Startup Financing Basics
Finding the funds to fuel the growth of your Lodi business is a difficult chore. If you don't have a rich uncle to fund you, you'll need to be creative in how you approach your fundraising efforts.
To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as Getting a Small Business Loan.
For Lodi entrepreneurs who want to raise money for a new venture, check out our List of Wisconsin Angel Investors and our List of Wisconsin Venture Capital Firms.
Building Up Your Sales
Being able to sell is critical to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Lodi or are selling to customers throughout Wisconsin, 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.
Sales Prospecting is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.
What's Next?
You have a dream -- starting a business in Lodi. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.
From this point on, you control your own destiny.
Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Lodi and throughout the United States . 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 Lodi, Wisconsin
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Lodi.
- Resources for Lodi, Wisconsin Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Lodi entrepreneurs.
- Wisconsin Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Wisconsin.
- Wisconsin Small Business Development Center - Wisconsin Small Business Development Centers offer a variety of educational services to small-businesses. The low-cost courses, seminars, and workshops cover both basic and complex topics, from marketing to management techniques to business plan development.
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