Are you starting a business in Burlington, Iowa? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Burlington.
Is Becoming an Entrepreneur Right for You?
Most new ventures don't make it, in part because the founder 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.
Because entrepreneurship is not for everyone, we recommend you do the following to help you assess whether you should move forward with starting a business:
- Reach out to other entrepreneurs in Burlington. Get their take on what it's really like to be an entrepreneur.
- Peruse Should You Become an Entrepreneur?. This is one of our more popular articles for folks who want to go into business for themselves.
- 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.
What Business to Start
There are many businesses that you can start. How do you know which type of business is right for you? If you are struggling with what type of business to start, read 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 Starting a Recycling Services, Equipment, & Supplies Business guide or our Opening a Semi-Private Golf Courses Business guide.
Don't forget that your new startup will be located in Burlington. Some businesses will do better in Burlington than others. Make sure you fully understand Burlington demographics before you lock in on your business idea.
Burlington, Iowa Demographic Information
Burlington has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Burlington demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Burlington.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
21384 |
| 5-9 Employees |
9558 |
| 10-19 Employees |
5562 |
| 20-49 Employees |
3996 |
| 50-99 Employees |
1728 |
| 100-249 Employees |
486 |
| 250-499 Employees |
270 |
| 500-999 Employees |
108 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Burlington Businesses |
43092 |
As a new Burlington entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Burlington 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 |
| Amusement Arcades |
2 |
|
Appliance Repair and Maintenance |
1 |
| Architectural Services |
1 |
| Automotive Exhaust System Repair |
1 |
| Automotive Glass Replacement Shops |
1 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
8 |
| Baked Goods Stores |
2 |
| Beauty Salons |
11 |
| Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
|
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
1 |
| Boat Dealers |
1 |
| Books Printing |
1 |
| Building Inspection Services |
2 |
| Business Associations |
2 |
| Cable and Other Program Distribution |
1 |
| Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores |
2 |
| Car Washes |
2 |
|
Cemeteries and Crematories |
2 |
| Child Day Care Services |
10 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
6 |
| Claims Adjusting |
1 |
| Collection Agencies |
2 |
| Commercial Bakeries |
1 |
| Commercial Flexographic Printing |
1 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
2 |
|
Commercial Screen Printing |
2 |
| Commodity Contracts Brokerage |
1 |
| Computer and Software Stores |
1 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
1 |
| Concrete Block and Brick Manufacturing |
1 |
| Construction Machinery Manufacturing |
1 |
| Construction Sand and Gravel Mining |
1 |
| Continuing Care Retirement Communities |
1 |
|
Cookie and Cracker Manufacturing |
1 |
| Cosmetology and Barber Schools |
1 |
| Credit Unions |
4 |
| Discount Department Stores |
2 |
| Display Advertising |
1 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
16 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
1 |
| Electric Power Distribution |
3 |
|
Electrical Contractors |
5 |
| Electronic Shopping |
1 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
3 |
| Emergency and Other Relief Services |
1 |
| Engineering Services |
1 |
| Environmental Consulting Services |
1 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
3 |
| Family Planning Centers |
1 |
|
Fine Arts Schools |
1 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
2 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
3 |
| Floor Covering Stores |
2 |
| Flooring Contractors |
2 |
| Florists |
2 |
| Food (Health) Supplement Stores |
1 |
| Framing Contractors |
1 |
|
Freight Transportation Arrangement |
2 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
23 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
3 |
| Furniture Stores |
4 |
| General Automotive Repair |
8 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
2 |
| General Warehousing and Storage |
2 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
6 |
|
Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
2 |
| Hardware Stores |
3 |
| Historical Sites |
1 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
3 |
| Home Centers |
1 |
| Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Home Health Care Services |
4 |
| Homes for the Elderly |
2 |
|
Household Appliance Stores |
3 |
| Industrial Launderers |
1 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
20 |
| Interior Design Services |
1 |
| Investment Advice |
1 |
| Janitorial Services |
8 |
| Jewelry Stores |
1 |
| Landscaping Services |
4 |
|
Leather and Hide Tanning and Finishing |
1 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
25 |
| Locksmiths |
1 |
| Machine Shops |
1 |
| Marinas |
1 |
| Marketing Consulting Services |
2 |
| Masonry Contractors |
1 |
| Mattress Manufacturing |
1 |
|
Medical Laboratories |
1 |
| Miscellaneous Intermediation |
1 |
| Motor Vehicle Towing |
1 |
| Motorcycle Dealers |
3 |
| Museums |
1 |
| Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores |
2 |
| Natural Gas Distribution |
1 |
| Navigational Services to Shipping |
1 |
|
New Car Dealers |
1 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
2 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
2 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
4 |
| Office Administrative Services |
2 |
| Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers |
2 |
| Office Supplies and Stationery Stores |
2 |
| Offices of Bank Holding Companies |
1 |
|
Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
5 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
10 |
| Offices of Dentists |
13 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
18 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
3 |
| Offices of Podiatrists |
1 |
| Offices of Real Estate Appraisers |
3 |
| Optical Goods Stores |
1 |
|
Paint and Coating Manufacturing |
2 |
| Paint and Wallpaper Stores |
2 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
2 |
| Paper (except Newsprint) Mills |
1 |
| Passenger Car Rental |
1 |
| Payroll Services |
1 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
1 |
| Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals |
3 |
|
Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
2 |
| Photography Studios, Portrait |
3 |
| Port and Harbor Operations |
2 |
| Portfolio Management |
2 |
| Private Mail Centers |
1 |
| Professional Employer Organizations |
1 |
| Professional Organizations |
1 |
| Radio Stations |
6 |
|
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing |
1 |
| Real Estate Credit |
1 |
| Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage |
1 |
| Residential Remodelers |
3 |
| Retail Bakeries |
1 |
| Roofing Contractors |
3 |
| Rooming and Boarding Houses |
1 |
| Sales Financing |
1 |
|
Savings Institutions |
2 |
| Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation |
1 |
| Securities Brokerage |
7 |
| Security Guards and Patrol Services |
2 |
| Septic Tank and Related Services |
2 |
| Shoe Stores |
4 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
1 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
1 |
|
Soap and Other Detergent Manufacturing |
1 |
| Solid Waste Collection |
1 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
3 |
| Sports Teams and Clubs |
1 |
| Support Activities for Forestry |
1 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
6 |
| Temporary Help Services |
2 |
| Temporary Shelters |
1 |
|
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors |
1 |
| Tire Dealers |
3 |
| Title Abstract and Settlement Offices |
2 |
| Tobacco Stores |
1 |
| Travel Agencies |
2 |
| Used Car Dealers |
2 |
| Used Merchandise Stores |
3 |
| Vending Machine Operators |
1 |
|
Veterinary Services |
2 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
2 |
| Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
4 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
1 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
3 |
| Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing |
2 |
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.
If you want more information on writing business plans, we recommend reading The Art of the Executive Summary. A great resource for business planning assistance is the free business counselors available to you through your local SCORE chapter in Iowa.
Marketing Your New Company
To grow your Burlington business, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your doing well.
You can learn all about marketing on our site. Radio Ads discusses marketing strategy and tactical marketing in a way that should get you thinking about how to creatively promote your business. That's just a taste of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.
Bring in Revenues
Mastering the art of selling is priority one if you want your new Burlington business to do well.
Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.
Why Salespeople Fail 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.
Moving Forward
Most new Burlington businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.
This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Burlington and elsewhere to achieve real success. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Burlington, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Burlington, Iowa
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Burlington.
- Resources for Burlington, Iowa Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Burlington entrepreneurs.
- Iowa Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Iowa.
- Iowa Small Business Development Center - The Iowa SBDC conducts research, counsels, and trains business people in management, financing, and operating small businesses. They provide comprehensive information services and access to experts in a variety of fields. This is a great resource for Iowa entrepreneurs!
- Burlington, Iowa Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Burlington, Iowa newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Burlington area.
- Burlington, Iowa Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Burlington, Iowa area radio stations.
- Burlington, Iowa Payroll Services - This list includes Burlington, Iowa payroll services, national payroll services for Burlington, and helpful information on choosing a Burlington payroll service.
- Burlington, Iowa Businesses for Sale - This list includes resources for buying a business in Burlington, Iowa, such as business brokers in Burlington and other helpful information on how to buy a Burlington business.
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