North Carolina Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Salisbury, North Carolina

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

Will You Be a Good Entrepreneur?

Before you get too far along in the process, take inventory of 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.

  • Grab a meal or cofee with other entrepreneurs in Salisbury. They are usually very willing to share their insights on the ups and downs of being an entrepreneur.
  • Take a look at The Entrepreneurial Personality. It's a short article but it's a good reality check for those are about to jump into the world of entrepreneurship.
  • Reach out to a trusted acquaintance. Others sometimes know you better than you know yourself.

Salisbury, North Carolina Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
14130
5-9 Employees
5988
10-19 Employees
3762
20-49 Employees
3150
50-99 Employees
1080
100-249 Employees
576
250-499 Employees
90
500-999 Employees
72
1000+ Employees
54
All Salisbury Businesses
28902

As a new Salisbury entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Salisbury 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
Ambulance Services
1
Architectural Services
3
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
10
Automotive Transmission Repair
3
Baked Goods Stores
1
Barber Shops
1
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers
2
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
4
Boat Dealers
1
Book Stores
5
Bowling Centers
1
Broadwoven Fabric Finishing Mills
1
Building Inspection Services
1
Cafeterias
2
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
1
Car Washes
1
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
3
Caterers
1
Cemeteries and Crematories
1
Child and Youth Services
5
Civic and Social Organizations
8
Clay Refractory Manufacturing
1
Clothing Accessories Stores
2
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
2
Collection Agencies
1
Commercial Bakeries
2
Commercial Lithographic Printing
2
Computer and Software Stores
1
Computer Systems Design Services
5
Concrete Pipe Manufacturing
1
Confectionery Merchant Wholesalers
2
Construction Machinery Manufacturing
3
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining
2
Consumer Lending
6
Convenience Stores
2
Convention and Visitors Bureaus
1
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Couriers
2
Credit Bureaus
1
Credit Unions
3
Curtain and Drapery Mills
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
3
Dental Laboratories
1
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
3
Digital Printing
1
Dimension Stone Mining and Quarrying
1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
2
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
2
Discount Department Stores
2
Document Preparation Services
2
Drafting Services
1
Drilling Oil and Gas Wells
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
3
Electric Power Distribution
2
Electrical Contractors
19
Elementary and Secondary Schools
5
Emergency and Other Relief Services
1
Engineering Services
6
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
4
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
3
Facilities Support Services
2
Family Clothing Stores
5
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fine Arts Schools
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
2
Fish and Seafood Markets
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
7
Floor Covering Stores
2
Flooring Contractors
1
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
3
Food Service Contractors
7
Formal Wear and Costume Rental
1
Framing Contractors
2
Freight Transportation Arrangement
2
Full-Service Restaurants
56
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
4
General Automotive Repair
17
General Freight Trucking, Local
9
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
2
General Warehousing and Storage
4
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
6
Glass and Glazing Contractors
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
6
Graphic Design Services
2
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
3
Hardware Stores
2
Heating Oil Dealers
2
Home Centers
1
Home Health Care Services
5
Home Health Equipment Rental
1
Household Appliance Stores
2
Human Rights Organizations
1
Industrial Gas Manufacturing
1
Industrial Launderers
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
28
Interior Design Services
1
Internet Service Providers
1
Investment Advice
1
Janitorial Services
6
Jewelry Stores
11
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Land Subdivision
5
Landscape Architectural Services
2
Landscaping Services
18
Limited-Service Restaurants
44
Linen Supply
1
Locksmiths
2
Logging
3
Machine Shops
7
Manifold Business Forms Printing
2
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
3
Marketing Consulting Services
3
Marking Device Manufacturing
1
Masonry Contractors
6
Materials Recovery Facilities
1
Meat Markets
1
Meat Processed from Carcasses
1
Medical Laboratories
1
Metal Tank (Heavy Gauge) Manufacturing
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
4
Motor Vehicle Towing
6
Motorcycle Dealers
3
Museums
2
Musical Groups and Artists
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
2
Natural Gas Distribution
2
New Car Dealers
7
New Housing Operative Builders
4
News Syndicates
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
9
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
2
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
4
Offices of Bank Holding Companies
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
14
Offices of Chiropractors
6
Offices of Dentists
26
Offices of Lawyers
41
Offices of Podiatrists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
1
Optical Goods Stores
3
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Outerwear Knitting Mills
1
Paint and Coating Manufacturing
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
3
Payroll Services
2
Periodical Publishers
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
12
Photography Studios, Portrait
2
Plastics Plumbing Fixture Manufacturing
1
Prepress Services
1
Professional Employer Organizations
3
Public Relations Agencies
2
Quick Printing
1
Radio Stations
2
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
2
Real Estate Credit
9
Residential Property Managers
5
Residential Remodelers
6
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
1
Roofing Contractors
3
Securities Brokerage
11
Security Guards and Patrol Services
2
Shoe Stores
7
Sign Manufacturing
3
Site Preparation Contractors
5
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
7
Solid Waste Collection
4
Sporting Goods Stores
5
Sports and Recreation Instruction
2
Tax Preparation Services
7
Telemarketing Bureaus
2
Temporary Help Services
5
Temporary Shelters
4
Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters
1
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
3
Tire Dealers
6
Tire Retreading
2
Travel Agencies
1
Used Car Dealers
7
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Used Merchandise Stores
5
Vending Machine Operators
3
Veterinary Services
6
Video Tape and Disc Rental
5
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
13
Window Treatment Stores
1
Wineries
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
3
Women's Clothing Stores
7
Yarn Spinning Mills
1

Have You Considered Franchising?

Visit the business district of Salisbury and you'll notice that many local entrepreneurs have gone the franchising route. Evidently, there must be some significant advantages to purchasing a franchise.

We advise the entrepreneurs we work with to investigate buying a franchise. We have many articles on franchises, such as Franchise Due Diligence. Gain a solid understanding of franchising by scanning all of our Articles on Franchising.

A comprehensive list of franchisors is available via our List of Franchise Opportunities.

Representative franchise opportunities include A Shade Better and Nursefinders. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Wedding Franchises and Food and Drink Franchises.

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

Is Buying an Existing Salisbury Business a Good Strategy?

We've created a useful website page for those who want to Buy a Business in North Carolina. Follow that link and you can review several good businesses for sale in Salisbury.

For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: Hold Harmless Agreements When Buying Businesses.

Marketing Your New Company

To rise above the crowd in Salisbury and grow your business, you need a solid marketing plan.

We have some useful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Direct Mail Costs is a good read to get your marketing ideas flowing. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.

Bring in Revenues

Being able to sell is fundamental to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Salisbury or are selling to customers throughout North Carolina, 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. The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.

Landing Big Customers 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.

Increase Your Entrepreneurial Knowledge

Good entrepreneurs recognize that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.

As an entrepreneur who lives in Salisbury, North Carolina, you will want to take advantage of the learning programs at local North Carolina educational institutions. It's also beneficial to see if there are any Salisbury networking organizations.

What's Next?

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

Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.

We are here to help Salisbury businesses to be successful. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Salisbury, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Salisbury, North Carolina

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

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