Indiana Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in Mishawaka, Indiana

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

Is Becoming an Entrepreneur Right for You?

Before you get too far along in the process, assess your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.

Here are three things we recommend you do before you fully commit to starting a new business of your own.

  • Talk to other entrepreneurs in Mishawaka. Get their take on what it's really like to be an entrepreneur.
  • We recommend reading Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
  • Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. That's the best way to get a truly objective assessment as to whether others think you have what it takes.

Which Business to Choose?

An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. To help you decide on a business type, we encourage you to read Free Business Ideas.

For step-by-step instructions on starting a variety of business types, visit the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Starting an Insurance Consultants & Advisors Business guide or our Starting a Platemaking Services Business guide.

Remember that your new business will be in Mishawaka. Some businesses will do better in Mishawaka than others. Don't forget to review Mishawaka demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.

Mishawaka, Indiana Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
2103
5-9 Employees
1278
10-19 Employees
882
20-49 Employees
630
50-99 Employees
273
100-249 Employees
102
250-499 Employees
27
500-999 Employees
18
1000+ Employees
0
All Mishawaka Businesses
5313

As a new Mishawaka entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Mishawaka 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
Advertising Agencies
4
Air and Gas Compressor Manufacturing
1
Aluminum Extruded Product Manufacturing
2
Aluminum Foundries (except Die-Casting)
1
Amusement Arcades
1
Architectural Services
4
Automobile Driving Schools
2
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
2
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
8
Automotive Transmission Repair
4
Baked Goods Stores
2
Beauty Salons
27
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
3
Boat Dealers
1
Bowling Centers
2
Building Inspection Services
2
Business and Secretarial Schools
1
Business Associations
2
Cable and Other Program Distribution
2
Cafeterias
2
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
2
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
3
Caterers
2
Cemeteries and Crematories
1
Child Day Care Services
11
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
5
Civic and Social Organizations
11
Claims Adjusting
2
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
5
Collection Agencies
2
Commercial Bakeries
2
Commercial Lithographic Printing
2
Commercial Screen Printing
3
Computer and Software Stores
4
Computer Systems Design Services
6
Concrete Pipe Manufacturing
1
Confectionery and Nut Stores
1
Confectionery Merchant Wholesalers
2
Construction Machinery Manufacturing
1
Consumer Lending
7
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
1
Convenience Stores
4
Copper Rolling, Drawing, and Extruding
1
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
2
Couriers
5
Court Reporting and Stenotype Services
1
Credit Unions
8
Curtain and Drapery Mills
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
3
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
2
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
2
Direct Mail Advertising
1
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
2
Directory and Mailing List Publishers
3
Discount Department Stores
4
Display Advertising
1
Dog and Cat Food Manufacturing
1
Drafting Services
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
15
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
5
Electrical Contractors
23
Elementary and Secondary Schools
3
Employment Placement Agencies
1
Environmental Consulting Services
3
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
1
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
1
Fabric Coating Mills
1
Facilities Support Services
1
Family Clothing Stores
16
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
7
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
14
Floor Covering Stores
6
Flooring Contractors
5
Florists
3
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
8
Food Service Contractors
6
Framing Contractors
2
Frozen Specialty Food Manufacturing
1
Full-Service Restaurants
67
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
3
Furniture Stores
18
General Automotive Repair
25
General Freight Trucking, Local
5
General Rental Centers
2
General Warehousing and Storage
3
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
14
Grantmaking Foundations
1
Graphic Design Services
5
Hand and Edge Tool Manufacturing
1
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
9
Home Centers
2
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
3
Home Health Care Services
3
Home Health Equipment Rental
1
Homes for the Elderly
4
Household Appliance Stores
5
Industrial Mold Manufacturing
9
Industrial Valve Manufacturing
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
39
Interior Design Services
1
Internet Service Providers
1
Investment Advice
13
Iron and Steel Mills
1
Janitorial Services
11
Jewelry Stores
18
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Landscape Architectural Services
2
Landscaping Services
16
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
2
Limited-Service Restaurants
57
Luggage and Leather Goods Stores
1
Machine Shops
13
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
2
Masonry Contractors
5
Materials Recovery Facilities
2
Medical Laboratories
3
Men's Clothing Stores
5
Mobile Food Services
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
3
Motion Picture and Video Production
1
Motor Vehicle Body Manufacturing
1
Motor Vehicle Metal Stamping
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
1
Motorcycle Dealers
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
2
Nail Salons
1
New Car Dealers
12
New Housing Operative Builders
4
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
3
Nursing Care Facilities
5
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
3
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
3
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
5
Offices of Chiropractors
8
Offices of Dentists
22
Offices of Lawyers
17
Offices of Optometrists
5
Offices of Podiatrists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
3
Optical Goods Stores
7
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Paint and Coating Manufacturing
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
2
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
6
Periodical Publishers
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
4
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
7
Photography Studios, Portrait
12
Plastics Plumbing Fixture Manufacturing
1
Plate Work Manufacturing
1
Prepress Services
1
Private Mail Centers
1
Public Relations Agencies
1
Quick Printing
3
Radio Stations
1
Real Estate Credit
5
Remediation Services
1
Residential Remodelers
15
Retail Bakeries
4
Roofing Contractors
5
Sales Financing
3
Savings Institutions
2
Securities Brokerage
14
Security Guards and Patrol Services
2
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
1
Shoe Stores
18
Siding Contractors
6
Sign Manufacturing
4
Site Preparation Contractors
4
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
8
Soap and Other Detergent Manufacturing
1
Solid Waste Collection
1
Sporting Goods Stores
10
Sports and Recreation Instruction
5
Tax Preparation Services
9
Telecommunications Resellers
1
Temporary Help Services
3
Testing Laboratories
3
Tire Dealers
7
Tire Retreading
1
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
2
Tobacco Stores
2
Travel Agencies
5
Travel Trailer and Camper Manufacturing
2
Used Car Dealers
14
Used Merchandise Stores
4
Vending Machine Operators
1
Veterinary Services
4
Video Tape and Disc Rental
5
Voluntary Health Organizations
1
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
4
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
6
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
2
Women's Clothing Stores
18
Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing
2
Wood Office Furniture Manufacturing
1

Is Buying an Existing Mishawaka Business a Good Strategy?

If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in Indiana. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Mishawaka.

If you are headed down the path of buying a business, you may want to read this article: Buying a Business.

Forming a Company in Mishawaka, Indiana

A critical step is ensuring that you are forming a legal entity that operates independently from you. The principal advantage of forming your new business as a legal entity is that it separates your business liabilities from your personal liabilities.

When forming a company, you will pick from many company types, such as 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 Indiana, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Indiana. In fact, you are allowed to 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. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Pre-Incorporation Agreements. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Mishawaka, Indiana, our web page covering Incorporating in Indiana may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Indiana.

Marketing Your New Venture

Whether your goal is to attract Mishawaka customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you need a solid marketing plan.

You can learn quite a bit about marketing on our site. Buying 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.

Moving Forward

You have a dream -- starting a business in Mishawaka. 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 Mishawaka businesses to be successful. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Mishawaka 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 Mishawaka, Indiana

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

More Startup Articles for Indiana Cities

Starting a Business in Milford
Starting a Business in Monon

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

 

 

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