Illinois Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Nashville, Illinois

Thinking about starting a business in Nashville, Illinois? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Nashville.

Nashville, Illinois Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
3330
5-9 Employees
1539
10-19 Employees
837
20-49 Employees
405
50-99 Employees
108
100-249 Employees
54
250-499 Employees
27
500-999 Employees
27
1000+ Employees
27
All Nashville Businesses
6354

As a new Nashville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Nashville 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 Parts and Accessories Stores
1
Beauty Salons
1
Bed-and-Breakfast Inns
1
Boat Dealers
1
Business Associations
2
Car Washes
1
Child Day Care Services
3
Claims Adjusting
2
Convenience Stores
1
Cut Stock, Resawing Lumber, and Planing
1
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
1
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
1
Drilling Oil and Gas Wells
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
4
Electrical Contractors
1
Elementary and Secondary Schools
1
Engineering Services
3
Environmental Consulting Services
1
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
1
Folding Paperboard Box Manufacturing
1
Full-Service Restaurants
6
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
2
Furniture Stores
1
General Automotive Repair
4
General Freight Trucking, Local
1
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
Hardware Stores
3
Household Appliance Stores
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
7
Investigation Services
1
Janitorial Services
3
Jewelry Stores
1
Landscaping Services
4
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
1
Masonry Contractors
2
New Car Dealers
4
New Housing Operative Builders
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Office Administrative Services
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
2
Offices of Dentists
3
Offices of Lawyers
3
Offices of Optometrists
2
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
2
Photography Studios, Portrait
1
Radio Stations
1
Real Estate Credit
1
Residential Remodelers
4
Savings Institutions
1
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Securities Brokerage
1
Shoe Stores
2
Site Preparation Contractors
1
Sporting Goods Stores
1
Tax Preparation Services
2
Temporary Help Services
1
Tire Dealers
1
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
1
Used Car Dealers
1
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Video Tape and Disc Rental
1
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
1
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
1
Wineries
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
2
Women's Clothing Stores
2

Have You Considered Franchising?

Examine a list of Nashville businesses and you'll conclude that many business owners have opted to buy a franchise, rather than starting a business on their own. Is there a franchise opportunity out there that makes sense for you?

Most business experts recommend that you evaluate the possibility of your buying a franchise opportunity. We have many articles on franchises, such as Opportunities in International Franchising. Get a thorough education on franchising by browsing all of our Articles on Franchising.

To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.

Sample franchise opportunities include Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and MagnetSigns Advertising. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Employment and Staffing Franchises and Auto Repair Franchises.

Note on Nashville Franchise Opportunities: To find out if a franchise you are interested in is available in Nashville, you will need to get in direct contact with the franchisor.

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.

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.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are planning on starting a business in Nashville, it's very important that you make sure your company name has not already been claimed by another Illinois business.

Raising Money for Your New Venture

Raising money to fund your new Nashville business is very difficult due to the ongoing business credit crunch. In fact, financing your new business may be the hardest challenge you ever face.

To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as SBIR Funding.

For Nashville entrepreneurs who want to raise money for a new venture, browse our List of Illinois Angel Investors and our List of Illinois Venture Capital Firms.

Promoting Your New Business

Whether your goal is to attract Nashville customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your successs.

You can learn quite a bit about marketing on our site. Local Search is a good read to get your marketing juices flowing. That's just a taste of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

Increase Your Entrepreneurial Knowledge

Successful entrepreneurs recognize that they don't know everything.

Given that you are starting a business in Nashville, Illinois, you should get information on some of the many programs available at nearby Illinois universities, colleges and community colleges. You should also check if there are any Nashville networking organizations.

What's Next?

You have a dream -- starting a business in Nashville. 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.

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Nashville 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 Nashville, Illinois

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

More Startup Articles for Illinois Cities

Starting a Business in Naperville
Starting a Business in Nauvoo

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

 

 

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