Alabama Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in Auburn, Alabama

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

Is Becoming an Entrepreneur Right for You?

Most new ventures do not succeed, in part because the founder did not have the tenacity and/or the skills to succeed. So, before jumping into the world of entrepreneurship, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.

While entrepreneurship has become a popular career choice, we recommend you do the following before you take the plunge:

  • Talk to other entrepreneurs in Auburn. Get their take on what it's really like to be 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. That's the best way to get a truly objective assessment as to whether others think you have what it takes.

Auburn, Alabama Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
23952
5-9 Employees
11376
10-19 Employees
8448
20-49 Employees
6336
50-99 Employees
2208
100-249 Employees
816
250-499 Employees
144
500-999 Employees
48
1000+ Employees
0
All Auburn Businesses
53328

As a new Auburn entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Auburn 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
1
Aluminum Die-Casting Foundries
1
Aluminum Foundries (except Die-Casting)
1
Amusement and Theme Parks
1
Amusement Arcades
1
Architectural Services
1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
6
Automotive Transmission Repair
1
Ball and Roller Bearing Manufacturing
2
Beauty Salons
13
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
3
Book Stores
8
Broadwoven Fabric Finishing Mills
1
Business Associations
4
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Cafeterias
2
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
1
Car Washes
2
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
3
Child and Youth Services
2
Child Day Care Services
19
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
1
Civic and Social Organizations
8
Claims Adjusting
1
Clothing Accessories Stores
2
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
6
Commercial Screen Printing
4
Community Food Services
1
Computer and Software Stores
2
Computer Systems Design Services
3
Consumer Lending
1
Convenience Stores
3
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Curtain and Drapery Mills
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
5
Digital Printing
1
Discount Department Stores
1
Document Preparation Services
2
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
4
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
2
Electric Power Distribution
2
Electrical Contractors
11
Electronic Shopping
1
Elementary and Secondary Schools
3
Emergency and Other Relief Services
1
Engineering Services
12
Environmental Consulting Services
3
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
4
Family Clothing Stores
8
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
2
Fine Arts Schools
2
Finish Carpentry Contractors
7
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
5
Floor Covering Stores
2
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
3
Formal Wear and Costume Rental
2
Freight Transportation Arrangement
1
Full-Service Restaurants
56
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
1
Furniture Stores
6
General Automotive Repair
9
General Rental Centers
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
9
Glass and Glazing Contractors
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
2
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Hardware Stores
1
Homes for the Elderly
2
Industrial Design Services
1
Industrial Mold Manufacturing
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
16
Interior Design Services
2
Investigation Services
1
Investment Advice
4
Jewelry (except Costume) Manufacturing
1
Jewelry Stores
10
Land Subdivision
6
Landscape Architectural Services
1
Landscaping Services
17
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
6
Limited-Service Restaurants
57
Mail-Order Houses
1
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
1
Marketing Consulting Services
3
Media Representatives
1
Men's Clothing Stores
2
Miscellaneous Intermediation
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
1
Motor Vehicle Metal Stamping
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
1
Motorcycle Dealers
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
1
New Car Dealers
6
New Housing Operative Builders
5
Newspaper Publishers
1
Office Administrative Services
4
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
1
Offices of Bank Holding Companies
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
4
Offices of Chiropractors
4
Offices of Dentists
12
Offices of Optometrists
3
Offices of Other Holding Companies
1
Offices of Podiatrists
1
Optical Goods Stores
5
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
2
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
1
Periodical Publishers
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
2
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
5
Photography Studios, Portrait
8
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas
1
Plastics Bottle Manufacturing
1
Political Organizations
1
Private Mail Centers
1
Professional Employer Organizations
3
Radio Networks
1
Radio Stations
1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
2
Real Estate Credit
2
Residential Property Managers
11
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
2
Rooming and Boarding Houses
10
Sales Financing
2
Savings Institutions
3
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Securities Brokerage
6
Security Guards and Patrol Services
3
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
1
Shoe Stores
8
Siding Contractors
1
Sign Manufacturing
2
Site Preparation Contractors
4
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
8
Software Publishers
1
Sporting Goods Stores
5
Sports and Recreation Instruction
1
Steel Investment Foundries
1
Synthetic Rubber Manufacturing
1
Tax Preparation Services
2
Temporary Help Services
1
Testing Laboratories
1
Tire Dealers
3
Travel Agencies
2
Used Car Dealers
1
Used Merchandise Stores
1
Veterinary Services
10
Video Tape and Disc Rental
6
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
5
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
3
Women's Clothing Stores
10

Is Buying an Existing Auburn Business a Good Strategy?

An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Alabama. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Auburn.

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

Do You Need a Business Plan?

A business plan is vital to the health of your new business. Indeed, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

To learn more about business plans, read Business Plan Contests. A great resource for business planning assistance is the free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Alabama.

The Art of Selling

Mastering the art of selling is priority one if you want your new Auburn business to do well.

So what does it take to bring in more prospects and close more business? Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.

Landing Big Customers offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

Improving Your Entrepreneurial Skillset

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

With your business being located in Auburn, Alabama, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Alabama universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also worthwhile to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Auburn entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.

Moving Forward

Most new Auburn businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

We are here to help Auburn businesses to be successful. 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 Auburn, Alabama

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

  • Resources for Auburn, Alabama Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Auburn entrepreneurs.
  • Alabama Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Alabama.
  • Alabama Small Business Development Center - Alabama's Small Business Development Center (SBDC) counsels and trains business people in a wide variety of business topics and provides comprehensive information services and access to experts in many fields. Counseling is provided free of charge to all Alabama small business owners.

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