Tennessee Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Chattanooga, Tennessee

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

Which Business to Choose?

There are many businesses that you can start. How do you know which type of business is right for you? We recommend that you 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 Popcorn & Popcorn Supplies Business guide or our Starting a Vineyard Christian Fellowship Church guide.

Don't forget that your new business will be in Chattanooga. If Chattanooga already has plenty of the kind of business you want to start, you might want to change your plans. Make sure you fully understand Chattanooga demographics before you lock in on your business idea.

Chattanooga, Tennessee Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
18822
5-9 Employees
8916
10-19 Employees
6366
20-49 Employees
4956
50-99 Employees
1680
100-249 Employees
1098
250-499 Employees
186
500-999 Employees
66
1000+ Employees
60
All Chattanooga Businesses
42150

As a new Chattanooga entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Chattanooga 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
Aluminum Die-Casting Foundries
1
Amusement Arcades
4
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
6
Apprenticeship Training
3
Architectural Services
22
Armored Car Services
2
Art Dealers
4
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
4
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
8
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
40
Automotive Transmission Repair
13
Barber Shops
4
Beauty Salons
72
Bed-and-Breakfast Inns
2
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
27
Blood and Organ Banks
4
Boat Dealers
7
Book Publishers
2
Book Stores
15
Books Printing
1
Bowling Centers
2
Business and Secretarial Schools
1
Business Associations
17
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Cafeterias
10
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
4
Canvas and Related Product Mills
2
Car Washes
15
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
10
Caterers
8
Cement Manufacturing
1
Cemeteries and Crematories
6
Charter Bus Industry
2
Child and Youth Services
12
Child Day Care Services
63
Civic and Social Organizations
39
Claims Adjusting
5
Clay Refractory Manufacturing
1
Clothing Accessories Stores
5
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
6
Collection Agencies
8
Commercial Bakeries
2
Commercial Gravure Printing
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
19
Commercial Photography
1
Commercial Screen Printing
8
Community Food Services
2
Computer and Software Stores
12
Computer Facilities Management Services
1
Computer Training
2
Concrete Block and Brick Manufacturing
1
Concrete Pipe Manufacturing
1
Confectionery and Nut Stores
4
Confectionery Merchant Wholesalers
2
Construction Machinery Manufacturing
4
Consumer Lending
27
Convenience Stores
15
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
2
Convention and Visitors Bureaus
1
Cookie and Cracker Manufacturing
2
Copper Foundries (except Die-Casting)
1
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
2
Couriers
7
Credit Unions
39
Crown and Closure Manufacturing
1
Curtain and Drapery Mills
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
27
Custom Roll Forming
1
Dance Companies
1
Dental Laboratories
12
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
6
Digital Printing
4
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
20
Direct Mail Advertising
4
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
3
Directory and Mailing List Publishers
3
Discount Department Stores
8
Document Preparation Services
2
Drafting Services
2
Drilling Oil and Gas Wells
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
15
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
14
Educational Support Services
3
Electrical Contractors
45
Electronic Shopping
5
Elementary and Secondary Schools
25
Emergency and Other Relief Services
1
Employment Placement Agencies
5
Engineering Services
49
Environmental Consulting Services
3
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
3
Fabric Coating Mills
1
Facilities Support Services
5
Family Clothing Stores
37
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fats and Oils Refining and Blending
1
Fertilizer (Mixing Only) Manufacturing
1
Fine Arts Schools
5
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
29
Floor Covering Stores
11
Flooring Contractors
4
Florists
14
Flour Milling
2
Fluid Milk Manufacturing
1
Folding Paperboard Box Manufacturing
1
Food Service Contractors
18
Formal Wear and Costume Rental
3
Framing Contractors
4
Freight Transportation Arrangement
13
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
2
Full-Service Restaurants
217
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
13
Furniture Stores
25
General Automotive Repair
53
General Freight Trucking, Local
13
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
5
General Rental Centers
10
General Warehousing and Storage
21
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
37
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
8
Grantmaking Foundations
13
Graphic Design Services
12
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
8
Hardware Stores
12
Hazardous Waste Collection
3
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
14
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
8
Home Health Care Services
12
Home Health Equipment Rental
8
Homes for the Elderly
11
Household Appliance Stores
13
Human Rights Organizations
3
Hydroelectric Power Generation
1
Industrial Building Construction
1
Industrial Gas Manufacturing
3
Industrial Launderers
6
Industrial Pattern Manufacturing
2
Industrial Valve Manufacturing
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
130
Interior Design Services
8
Investigation Services
2
Investment Advice
18
Iron and Steel Forging
1
Iron Foundries
3
Irradiation Apparatus Manufacturing
1
Janitorial Services
48
Jewelry (except Costume) Manufacturing
2
Kidney Dialysis Centers
6
Land Subdivision
11
Landscape Architectural Services
3
Landscaping Services
33
Language Schools
1
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
4
Limited-Service Restaurants
224
Linen Supply
1
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
3
Locksmiths
3
Luggage and Leather Goods Stores
4
Machine Shops
22
Mail-Order Houses
9
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
1
Marketing Consulting Services
7
Marking Device Manufacturing
1
Masonry Contractors
18
Materials Recovery Facilities
1
Mattress Manufacturing
2
Meat Markets
3
Media Buying Agencies
1
Medical Laboratories
7
Medicinal and Botanical Manufacturing
1
Men's Clothing Stores
9
Metal Heat Treating
1
Metal Household Furniture Manufacturing
3
Metal Stamping
2
Metal Tank (Heavy Gauge) Manufacturing
4
Miscellaneous Intermediation
6
Mobile Food Services
2
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
22
Motion Picture and Video Production
6
Motor Vehicle Metal Stamping
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
8
Motorcycle Dealers
5
Musical Groups and Artists
2
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
6
Nail Salons
1
Natural Gas Distribution
4
Navigational Services to Shipping
1
New Car Dealers
22
New Housing Operative Builders
4
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
12
Nursing Care Facilities
15
Office Administrative Services
25
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
14
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
10
Offices of Bank Holding Companies
2
Offices of Chiropractors
26
Offices of Dentists
114
Offices of Lawyers
158
Offices of Optometrists
16
Offices of Other Holding Companies
7
Offices of Podiatrists
7
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
23
Open-End Investment Funds
1
Ophthalmic Goods Merchant Wholesalers
1
Optical Goods Stores
16
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
3
Packaging and Labeling Services
5
Packing and Crating
1
Paging
3
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
13
Paperboard Mills
2
Parking Lots and Garages
16
Passenger Car Leasing
1
Passenger Car Rental
13
Payroll Services
2
Periodical Publishers
6
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
5
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
7
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
50
Photography Studios, Portrait
26
Plastics Bag Manufacturing
2
Plastics Bottle Manufacturing
1
Plate Work Manufacturing
1
Polystyrene Foam Product Manufacturing
1
Portfolio Management
18
Poultry Processing
2
Powder Metallurgy Part Manufacturing
1
Precision Turned Product Manufacturing
1
Prepress Services
5
Printing Ink Manufacturing
2
Professional Employer Organizations
1
Professional Organizations
10
Public Relations Agencies
2
Pulp Mills
1
Quick Printing
7
Radio Networks
5
Radio Stations
15
Real Estate Credit
39
Record Production
1
Recreational Goods Rental
1
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
3
Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage
1
Remediation Services
4
Repossession Services
4
Residential Remodelers
31
Retail Bakeries
6
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
9
Rolled Steel Shape Manufacturing
1
Roofing Contractors
12
Rooming and Boarding Houses
1
Sales Financing
13
Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation
4
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Securities Brokerage
29
Security Guards and Patrol Services
14
Septic Tank and Related Services
2
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
11
Shoe Stores
43
Sign Manufacturing
8
Site Preparation Contractors
19
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
27
Soap and Other Detergent Manufacturing
2
Soft Drink Manufacturing
1
Software Publishers
3
Solid Waste Collection
9
Special Needs Transportation
1
Sporting Goods Stores
24
Sports and Recreation Instruction
3
Sports Teams and Clubs
1
Steel Foundries (except Investment)
1
Steel Investment Foundries
1
Steel Wire Drawing
1
Surface Active Agent Manufacturing
1
Synthetic Rubber Manufacturing
2
Tax Preparation Services
16
Taxi Service
2
Telecommunications Resellers
1
Telemarketing Bureaus
3
Telephone Answering Services
3
Television Broadcasting
6
Temporary Help Services
50
Temporary Shelters
5
Testing Laboratories
8
Textile Bag Mills
2
Textile Machinery Manufacturing
2
Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters
3
Tire and Tube Merchant Wholesalers
9
Tire Dealers
17
Tire Manufacturing (except Retreading)
1
Tire Retreading
2
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
10
Tobacco Stores
7
Toilet Preparation Manufacturing
2
Tradebinding and Related Work
1
Travel Agencies
10
Used Car Dealers
31
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
6
Used Merchandise Stores
22
Vending Machine Operators
6
Veterinary Services
18
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
4
Voluntary Health Organizations
10
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
2
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
44
Window Treatment Stores
2
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
27
Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing
2
Yarn Spinning Mills
2
Zoos and Botanical Gardens
4

Have You Considered Franchising?

Browse the Yellow Pages for Chattanooga and you may be surprised to see how many franchises there are in the area. But is franchising the right option for you?

We highly recommend you evaluate the possibility of your buying a franchise opportunity. This site has dozens of articles on franchising, such as Franchising My Business. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.

To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.

Sample franchise opportunities include Cafe Fondue Franchise Systems Inc. and Interstate Batteries. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Fitness Franchises and Mail and Shipping Services Franchises.

Note on Chattanooga Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Chattanooga.

Naming the Company

A good company name can give a big boost to a new startup. It might seem like an easy thing to do, but there are many things to consider when naming a business.

We strongly advocate that you make sure the ".com" domain name is available for your company name. Every business needs a strong Web presence these days, and having a non ".com" domain means somebody else may outrank you in the search results for your own company name.

Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Branding Advice.

As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are planning on starting a business in Chattanooga, it's imperative that you check now that no other Tennessee company is using the business name you want to use.

Don't Skip the Business Plan

Writing a business plan is essential in laying a solid foundation for your business success. Indeed, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Starting a business without a business plan will greatly reduce your chances of business success.

If writing a business plan is on your to-do list, be sure to read Business Plan Contests. A great resource for business planning assistance is the free business counselors available to you through your local SCORE chapter in Tennessee.

Building Up Your Sales

Mastering the art of selling is a must if you want your new Chattanooga business to do well.

So what does it take to bring in more prospects and close more business? Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.

Closing Sales Techniques offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

Never Give Up

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

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

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Chattanooga and throughout the United States . We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Chattanooga 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 Chattanooga, Tennessee

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

Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in Tennessee

Starting a Business in Centerville
Starting a Business in Clarksville

Browse All Business Startup Guides for Tennessee
Starting a Business Guides for Other States

 

 

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