Indiana Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in Madison, Indiana

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

Madison, Indiana Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
22792
5-9 Employees
10890
10-19 Employees
5280
20-49 Employees
2706
50-99 Employees
858
100-249 Employees
924
250-499 Employees
330
500-999 Employees
198
1000+ Employees
0
All Madison Businesses
43978

As a new Madison entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Madison 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
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
5
Automotive Transmission Repair
1
Baked Goods Stores
2
Beauty Salons
5
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
5
Book Stores
1
Business Associations
1
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Cafeterias
2
Car Washes
3
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
2
Caterers
1
Cemeteries and Crematories
2
Child Day Care Services
9
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
1
Civic and Social Organizations
9
Clothing Accessories Stores
1
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
2
Commercial Bakeries
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
2
Computer and Software Stores
1
Computer Systems Design Services
2
Consumer Lending
2
Convention and Visitors Bureaus
1
Court Reporting and Stenotype Services
1
Credit Bureaus
1
Credit Unions
4
Custom Computer Programming Services
2
Document Preparation Services
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
5
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
1
Educational Support Services
1
Electric Power Distribution
2
Electrical Contractors
3
Employment Placement Agencies
1
Engineering Services
2
Environmental Consulting Services
1
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
2
Facilities Support Services
1
Family Clothing Stores
3
Family Planning Centers
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
3
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
2
Floor Covering Stores
2
Flooring Contractors
1
Florists
3
Food Service Contractors
1
Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation
1
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
1
Full-Service Restaurants
19
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
5
Furniture Stores
4
General Automotive Repair
5
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
4
Glass and Glazing Contractors
3
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Grantmaking Foundations
2
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Stores
1
Heating Oil Dealers
1
Historical Sites
1
Home Centers
1
Home Health Equipment Rental
1
Homes for the Elderly
2
Household Appliance Stores
3
Industrial Mold Manufacturing
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
15
Iron and Steel Mills
1
Jewelry Stores
3
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Land Subdivision
1
Landscaping Services
6
Leather and Hide Tanning and Finishing
1
Limited-Service Restaurants
23
Machine Shops
1
Marinas
1
Marketing Consulting Services
1
Masonry Contractors
3
Medical Laboratories
1
Men's Clothing Stores
1
Metal Stamping
1
Motor and Generator Manufacturing
1
Motor Vehicle Metal Stamping
1
Motorcycle Dealers
2
Museums
2
Natural Gas Distribution
1
New Car Dealers
3
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
2
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
4
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
3
Offices of Chiropractors
5
Offices of Dentists
13
Offices of Lawyers
13
Offices of Optometrists
3
Offices of Other Holding Companies
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
1
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
3
Periodical Publishers
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
2
Radio Stations
2
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
1
Real Estate Credit
1
Residential Property Managers
1
Residential Remodelers
8
Roofing Contractors
1
Sales Financing
1
Securities Brokerage
4
Sewage Treatment Facilities
1
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
1
Shoe Stores
2
Siding Contractors
2
Sign Manufacturing
1
Site Preparation Contractors
4
Soap and Other Detergent Manufacturing
1
Sporting Goods Stores
3
Steel Wire Drawing
1
Tax Preparation Services
4
Temporary Help Services
3
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
1
Tire Dealers
5
Travel Agencies
1
Truss Manufacturing
1
Used Car Dealers
4
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Used Merchandise Stores
4
Vending Machine Operators
1
Veterinary Services
5
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
5
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
1
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
3
Wineries
3
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
2
Women's Clothing Stores
3

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.

Before you decide on a company name, run it by some prospective customers and see what they think. If they don't like it, it's probably a good idea to go back to the drawing board.

For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Branding Advice.

As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are planning on starting a business in Madison, it's very important that you make sure no other Indiana company is using the business name you want to use.

Don't Skip the Business Plan

Writing a business plan is essential to the health of your new business. Indeed, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Not having a business plan will greatly reduce your chances of business success.

To learn more about business plans, read Business Plan Contests. You can also get face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in Indiana.

Where to Get Money to Start a Company

Getting your Madison business the capital it needs to succeed requires strong organization skills and perseverance. The reality is that there is very little funding available for new small businesses, and you have to explore every possible alternative.

Fortunately, this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled 504 Loans.

For Madison entrepreneurs with great ambition but a shortage of investment capital, we have assembled a List of Indiana Angel Investors and our List of Indiana Venture Capital Firms.

Building Up Your Sales

Being able to sell is essential to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Madison or are selling to customers throughout Indiana, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.

So what does it take to bring in more prospects and close more business? Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.

Compensating Sales People 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.

Learning More About Entrepreneurship

Good entrepreneurs recognize that they need to continually improve.

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

Never Give Up

You have a dream -- starting a business in Madison. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.

If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.

This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Madison and elsewhere to achieve real success. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Madison 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 Madison, Indiana

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

More Business Startup Guides for Indiana

Starting a Business in Lowell
Starting a Business in Marion

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

 

 

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