Starting a Business in Chisholm, Minnesota

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

Is Becoming an Entrepreneur Right for You?

Running your own business is hard work, much harder than working as an employee. Are you certain you have the stamina and skills to succeed on your own?

Here are three things we recommend you do before you fully commit to starting a new business of your own.

Talk to other entrepreneurs in Chisholm. 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.

Chisholm, Minnesota Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size	# of Businesses
1-4 Employees	448
5-9 Employees	186
10-19 Employees	84
20-49 Employees	60
50-99 Employees	6
100-249 Employees	30
250-499 Employees	0
500-999 Employees	0
1000+ Employees	0
All Chisholm Businesses	814

As a new Chisholm entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Chisholm 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
Ambulance Services	1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores	1
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores	3
Business Associations	1
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services	1
Child Day Care Services	2
Civic and Social Organizations	5
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners	1
Commercial Bakeries	1
Commercial Lithographic Printing	1
Commercial Screen Printing	1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)	5
Dry Pasta Manufacturing	1
Drywall and Insulation Contractors	1
Electrical Contractors	3
Engineering Services	1
Family Clothing Stores	1
Floor Covering Stores	1
Florists	1
Full-Service Restaurants	4
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services	1
Furniture Stores	1
General Automotive Repair	1
General Freight Trucking, Local	1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores	2
Hardware Stores	1
Homes for the Elderly	1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages	1
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting	1
Janitorial Services	1
Landscaping Services	2
Limited-Service Restaurants	2
Logging	2
Natural Gas Distribution	1
New Car Dealers	1
Newspaper Publishers	1
Nursing Care Facilities	1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants	1
Offices of Chiropractors	1
Offices of Dentists	2
Offices of Lawyers	1
Offices of Optometrists	1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores	1
Residential Remodelers	4
Siding Contractors	1
Site Preparation Contractors	2
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars	1
Solid Waste Collection	2
Tire Dealers	1
Veterinary Services	1
Video Tape and Disc Rental	1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers	2

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Chisholm Business?

If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in Minnesota. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Chisholm.

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

Choosing a Company Name

Making the right decision when choosing a company name is very important. There are many decisions you'll make now that you can change later, but changing a company name years down the road is not very easy. So, choose a good company name at the outset.

Pick a company name that isn't too generic. If you do a search engine search for your proposed name and a billion results come up, you may want to reconsider the name. It's much easier to come up in the search engines when your name is fairly unique.

Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Naming a Company.

As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are starting a business in Chisholm, it's critical that you ensure that no other Minnesota company is using the business name you want to use.

Don't Forget to Create a Business Plan

Writing a business plan is vital in maximizing the prospects of your new company. In effect, a business plan is a written description of the future you envision for your business. Starting a business without a business plan will greatly reduce your chances of business success.

If you want more information on writing business plans, we recommend reading Reasons to Write a Business Plan. You should also take advantage of free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Minnesota.

Raising Capital for Your Venture

Getting your Chisholm 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 Getting a Small Business Loan.

For Chisholm entrepreneurs in need of startup financing, check out our List of Minnesota Angel Investors and our List of Minnesota Venture Capital Firms.

Advancing Your Entrepreneurial Skills

The best entrepreneurs know that they need to continually improve.

With your business being located in Chisholm, Minnesota, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Minnesota universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also beneficial to see if there are any Chisholm networking organizations.

Moving Forward

As an entrepreneur in Chisholm, you won't be working for the boss anymore. You are the boss.

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

We are here to help Chisholm businesses to be successful. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Chisholm 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 Chisholm, Minnesota

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

Resources for Chisholm, Minnesota Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Chisholm entrepreneurs.
Minnesota Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Minnesota.
Minnesota Small Business Development Center - The Minnesota Small Business Development Centers provide no-cost, professional business consulting to Minnesota small businesses covering a variety of business needs.
Chisholm, Minnesota Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Chisholm, Minnesota newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Chisholm area.

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