Pennsylvania Business Startup Guides
Open a Business in Reading, Pennsylvania
Need help starting a business in Reading, Pennsylvania? We've got the information you need to open a business in Reading.
Will You Be a Good Entrepreneur?
Running your own business is difficult, much harder than working as an employee. Are you positive you have the stamina and skills to succeed on your own?
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 Reading. They are usually very willing to share their insights on the ups and downs of being an entrepreneur.
- We recommend reading Should You Become an Entrepreneur?. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
- Have a candid conversation with friends and family. Others sometimes know you better than you know yourself.
Which Business to Choose?
An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. You might get some good ideas about what kind of business to start by reading Business Ideas That Don't Make Sense.
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 How to Start a Computer Telephony Business guide or our Starting a Hematology Physicians & Surgeons Business guide.
Don't forget that starting a business in Reading has some implications. Think about what needs are currently being underserved in Reading. Study Reading demographics and do a competitive analysis as part of your startup planning process.
Reading, Pennsylvania Demographic Information
Reading has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Reading demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Reading.
Businesses
As a new Reading entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Reading 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
Is Franchising a Better Option?
As you drive around Reading, it's apparent that franchising has become a very popular way to start a business. But is franchising the right option for you?
We highly recommend you consider franchising as an option. To help you learn more about franchising, we've gathered a ton of articles on franchising, including Before Buying a Franchise. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.
To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.
Representative franchise opportunities include Pro-Sight Property Inspections and Jody Maroni's Sausage Kingdom. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Home Décor Franchises and Mexican Restaurant Franchises.
Note on Reading Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Reading.
Naming the Company
A good company name can give a big boost to a new startup. It might seem like an easy thing to do, but there are many things to consider when naming a business.
Pick a company name that isn't too generic. If you do a search engine search for your proposed name and a billion results come up, you may want to reconsider the name. It's much easier to come up in the search engines when your name is fairly unique.
Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Branding Advice.
On a final note, given that you are planning on starting a business in Reading, it's critical that you ensure that your company name has not already been claimed by another Pennsylvania business.
Don't Skip the Business Plan
A business plan is vital in laying a solid foundation for your business success. Indeed, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Failure to write a business plan is a recipe for disaster.
To learn more about business plans, read The Art of the Executive Summary. You should also take advantage of free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Pennsylvania.
What's Next?
As an entrepreneur in Reading, 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.
We are here to help Reading businesses to be successful. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Reading 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 Reading, Pennsylvania
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Reading.
- Resources for Reading, Pennsylvania Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Reading entrepreneurs.
- Pennsylvania Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Pennsylvania.
- Pennsylvania Small Business Development Center - Pennsylvania SBDCs help aspiring entrepreneurs turn ideas into businesses, help small firms expand, and provide the information every business person needs to make critical decisions. There is no charge for their assistance and their free help can make the difference between business success and failure.
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