Contemplating starting a business in Bardstown, Kentucky? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Bardstown.
Are You Ready for the Challenges of Being an Entrepreneur?
Most startup ventures don't make it, in part because the entrepreneur did not have the tenacity and/or the skills to succeed. So, before you start your business, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.
With so much at stake when you start a business, we strongly recommend you do the following before you proceed:
- Talk to other entrepreneurs in Bardstown. Listen closely to their experiences and see if you think you too can be successful.
- 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. Ask them directly: Do I have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Listen carefully to their answer, as they presumably know your strengths and weaknesses.
Bardstown, Kentucky Demographic Information
Bardstown has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Bardstown demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Bardstown.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
936 |
| 5-9 Employees |
456 |
| 10-19 Employees |
324 |
| 20-49 Employees |
180 |
| 50-99 Employees |
42 |
| 100-249 Employees |
24 |
| 250-499 Employees |
27 |
| 500-999 Employees |
3 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Bardstown Businesses |
1992 |
As a new Bardstown entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Bardstown 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 |
| Appliance Repair and Maintenance |
1 |
| Automotive Exhaust System Repair |
1 |
| Automotive Glass Replacement Shops |
2 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
5 |
| Beauty Salons |
5 |
| Bed-and-Breakfast Inns |
2 |
| Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers |
2 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
5 |
| Book Stores |
1 |
| Business Associations |
1 |
| Cafeterias |
1 |
| Car Washes |
3 |
| Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services |
1 |
| Child Day Care Services |
5 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
1 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
3 |
| Community Food Services |
1 |
| Concrete Block and Brick Manufacturing |
1 |
| Consumer Lending |
5 |
| Convenience Stores |
2 |
| Convention and Trade Show Organizers |
1 |
| Couriers |
1 |
| Court Reporting and Stenotype Services |
1 |
| Credit Unions |
2 |
| Custom Compounding of Purchased Resins |
1 |
| Dental Laboratories |
1 |
| Direct Life Insurance Carriers |
1 |
| Discount Department Stores |
1 |
| Distilleries |
3 |
| Document Preparation Services |
1 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
2 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
1 |
| Educational Support Services |
1 |
| Electric Power Distribution |
4 |
| Electrical Contractors |
8 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
3 |
| Emergency and Other Relief Services |
1 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
3 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
4 |
| Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers |
2 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
1 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
4 |
| Floor Covering Stores |
4 |
| Flooring Contractors |
1 |
| Florists |
5 |
| Framing Contractors |
3 |
| Freight Transportation Arrangement |
2 |
| Fruit and Vegetable Canning |
1 |
| Fruit and Vegetable Markets |
2 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
17 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
2 |
| Furniture Stores |
4 |
| General Automotive Repair |
4 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
1 |
| General Rental Centers |
2 |
| General Warehousing and Storage |
1 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
3 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
3 |
| Greeting Card Publishers |
1 |
| Hardware Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
1 |
| Home Health Equipment Rental |
1 |
| Homes for the Elderly |
2 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
3 |
| Industrial Mold Manufacturing |
2 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
19 |
| Interior Design Services |
1 |
| Internet Service Providers |
1 |
| Investment Advice |
1 |
| Janitorial Services |
4 |
| Jewelry Stores |
3 |
| Land Subdivision |
2 |
| Landscaping Services |
5 |
| Lessors of Other Real Estate Property |
2 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
21 |
| Machine Shops |
3 |
| Masonry Contractors |
1 |
| Meat Markets |
1 |
| Medical Laboratories |
1 |
| Men's Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Motion Picture and Video Production |
2 |
| Motor Vehicle Metal Stamping |
2 |
| Motor Vehicle Towing |
1 |
| Motorcycle Dealers |
1 |
| Museums |
2 |
| Musical Groups and Artists |
1 |
| Nail Salons |
1 |
| New Car Dealers |
2 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
1 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
1 |
| Nonresidential Property Managers |
1 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
3 |
| Office Administrative Services |
2 |
| Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
3 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
5 |
| Offices of Dentists |
9 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
16 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
5 |
| Offices of Other Holding Companies |
1 |
| Offices of Real Estate Appraisers |
1 |
| Outdoor Power Equipment Stores |
4 |
| Packaging and Labeling Services |
1 |
| Paint and Wallpaper Stores |
2 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
2 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
2 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
3 |
| Photography Studios, Portrait |
1 |
| Plastics Bottle Manufacturing |
1 |
| Polystyrene Foam Product Manufacturing |
2 |
| Professional Employer Organizations |
1 |
| Quick Printing |
1 |
| Real Estate Credit |
2 |
| Residential Remodelers |
1 |
| Retail Bakeries |
1 |
| Savings Institutions |
2 |
| Securities Brokerage |
5 |
| Shoe Stores |
2 |
| Siding Contractors |
2 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
8 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
3 |
| Sports and Recreation Instruction |
1 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
3 |
| Temporary Help Services |
2 |
| Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters |
1 |
| Tile and Terrazzo Contractors |
1 |
| Tire Dealers |
3 |
| Tobacco Stores |
3 |
| Travel Agencies |
1 |
| Used Car Dealers |
1 |
| Used Merchandise Stores |
5 |
| Veterinary Services |
5 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
3 |
| Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
1 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
1 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
2 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
2 |
| Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing |
2 |
Forming a Company in Bardstown, Kentucky
It's very important that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Doing so will insulate you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.
The entity you form can be a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.
Incorporating 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 Kentucky, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Kentucky. In fact, you can incorporate in any state you would like to. For example, it's very popular to incorporate in Delaware, and incorporating in Nevada has become very trendy as well. Don't forget, though, that you will have to register as a foreign entity in all states that you do business in.
There are many nuances to forming a company. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Why Incorporate in Delaware. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Bardstown, Kentucky, our information on Incorporating in Kentucky may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Kentucky.
Don't Skip the Business Plan
Writing 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 will greatly reduce your chances of business success.
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 Kentucky.
Raising Money for Your New Venture
Getting your Bardstown business the capital it needs to succeed requires strong organization skills and perseverance. If you don't have a rich uncle to fund you, you'll need to be creative in how you approach your fundraising efforts.
To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as Choosing VC Firms.
For Bardstown entrepreneurs who want to raise money for a new venture, check out our List of Kentucky Angel Investors and our List of Kentucky Venture Capital Firms.
The Art of Selling
Mastering the art of selling is priority one if you want your new Bardstown 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.
Good Sales Strategies 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.
Never Give Up
Most new Bardstown businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
From this point on, you control your own destiny.
We are here to help Bardstown businesses to be successful. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Bardstown 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 Bardstown, Kentucky
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Bardstown.
- Resources for Bardstown, Kentucky Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Bardstown entrepreneurs.
- Kentucky Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Kentucky.
- Kentucky Small Business Development Center - The Kentucky Small Business Development Center (KSBDC) has been assisting Kentucky small business community for more than 25 years. KSBDC is co-sponsored by the U.S. Small Business Administration and is administered by the University of Kentucky in partnership with regional universities, community and private colleges, and the private sector.
- Bardstown, Kentucky Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Bardstown, Kentucky newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Bardstown area.
- Bardstown, Kentucky Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Bardstown, Kentucky area radio stations.
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