Ohio Business Startup Guides

Open a Business in Urbana, Ohio

Need help starting a business in Urbana, Ohio? We've got the information you need to open a business in Urbana.

Urbana, Ohio Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
2792
5-9 Employees
1032
10-19 Employees
708
20-49 Employees
480
50-99 Employees
168
100-249 Employees
96
250-499 Employees
60
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
12
All Urbana Businesses
5348

As a new Urbana entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Urbana 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
Architectural Services
1
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
3
Beauty Salons
8
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
4
Book Stores
2
Bowling Centers
1
Cafeterias
1
Car Washes
2
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Child Day Care Services
4
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
1
Civic and Social Organizations
5
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
1
Computer and Software Stores
2
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
1
Convenience Stores
2
Credit Unions
1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
1
Discount Department Stores
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
2
Electrical Contractors
3
Emergency and Other Relief Services
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fine Arts Schools
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
1
Floor Covering Stores
1
Florists
4
Food Product Machinery Manufacturing
1
Food Service Contractors
3
Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
1
Full-Service Restaurants
11
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
2
Furniture Stores
2
General Freight Trucking, Local
4
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
3
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
1
Glass and Glazing Contractors
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Stores
1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
1
Home Centers
1
Home Health Care Services
1
Homes for the Elderly
2
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
11
Internet Service Providers
1
Jewelry Stores
2
Landscaping Services
1
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
3
Limited-Service Restaurants
17
Machine Shops
3
Mail-Order Houses
2
Marketing Consulting Services
1
Meat Markets
1
Media Representatives
1
Men's Clothing Stores
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
1
Motorcycle Dealers
2
Nail Salons
2
New Car Dealers
4
Nursing Care Facilities
1
Office Administrative Services
2
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
2
Offices of Chiropractors
3
Offices of Dentists
4
Offices of Lawyers
8
Offices of Other Holding Companies
1
Offices of Podiatrists
1
One-Hour Photofinishing
1
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
2
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
2
Paper (except Newsprint) Mills
1
Photography Studios, Portrait
1
Residential Remodelers
2
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
1
Savings Institutions
3
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Securities Brokerage
2
Siding Contractors
2
Site Preparation Contractors
8
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
3
Solid Waste Collection
1
Tax Preparation Services
1
Temporary Help Services
1
Temporary Shelters
2
Tire Dealers
2
Tobacco Stores
2
Used Car Dealers
2
Used Merchandise Stores
2
Veterinary Services
2
Video Tape and Disc Rental
1
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
1
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
1
Women's Clothing Stores
1

What About Buying an Existing Urbana Business?

We've created a useful website page for those who want to Buy a Business in Ohio. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Urbana.

For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: Buying a Business.

Forming a Company in Urbana, Ohio

A critical step is ensuring that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Doing so will shield you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.

The entity you form can be a traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.

Incorporation is a very popular way to form a business. A key decision is whether to form and S-Corp or a C-Corp, and you also must decide in which state you will incorporate. If you are starting a business in Ohio, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Ohio. As it turns out, you can incorporate wherever you want. 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. To learn the fundamentals of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as Nevada Incorporation. You may also want to seek the advice of an lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Urbana, Ohio, our information on Incorporating in Ohio may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Ohio.

Do You Need a Business Plan?

A business plan is critical to the health of your new business. Indeed, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

To learn more about business plans, read Business Plan Contests. You can also get free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Ohio.

Startup Financing Basics

Getting your Urbana business the capital it needs to succeed is very difficult due to the ongoing business credit crunch. To obtain business financing, you will need to hear a lot of rejections before you finally find a funding solution that works for you.

Take advantage of our many articles on raising capital, such as Realistic Debt Financing Options.

For Urbana entrepreneurs who need startup capital, browse our List of Ohio Angel Investors and our List of Ohio Venture Capital Firms.

Getting the Word Out About Your New Company

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

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

Learning More About Entrepreneurship

The best entrepreneurs recognize that they don't know everything.

As an entrepreneur who lives in Urbana, Ohio, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Ohio universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also worthwhile to see if there are any networking organizations for Urbana entrepreneurs.

Now It's Up To You

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Urbana 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 Urbana, Ohio

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

  • Resources for Urbana, Ohio Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Urbana entrepreneurs.
  • Ohio Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Ohio.
  • Ohio Small Business Development Center - Whether you're starting your business, expanding your business, or just looking to stay in business, the Small Business Development Centers of Ohio (SBDCs of Ohio) can help with professional guidance by connecting you with research, financing sources, and training opportunities.

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