Contemplating starting a business in Edwardsville, Illinois? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Edwardsville.
Is Becoming an Entrepreneur Right for You?
Before you get too far along in the process, take inventory of your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.
While entrepreneurship has become a popular career choice, we recommend you do the following before you take the plunge:
- Talk to other entrepreneurs in Edwardsville. 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.
Edwardsville, Illinois Demographic Information
Edwardsville has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Edwardsville demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Edwardsville.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
5884 |
| 5-9 Employees |
1968 |
| 10-19 Employees |
1392 |
| 20-49 Employees |
624 |
| 50-99 Employees |
192 |
| 100-249 Employees |
156 |
| 250-499 Employees |
48 |
| 500-999 Employees |
0 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Edwardsville Businesses |
10264 |
As a new Edwardsville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Edwardsville 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 |
| Architectural Services |
5 |
| Art Dealers |
1 |
| Automotive Exhaust System Repair |
1 |
| Automotive Glass Replacement Shops |
1 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
3 |
| Automotive Transmission Repair |
1 |
| Baked Goods Stores |
3 |
| Beauty Salons |
7 |
| Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
1 |
| Book Stores |
1 |
| Bowling Centers |
2 |
| Business Associations |
4 |
| Car Washes |
1 |
| Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services |
1 |
| Cemeteries and Crematories |
2 |
| Charter Bus Industry |
1 |
| Child and Youth Services |
1 |
| Child Day Care Services |
5 |
| Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
3 |
| Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners |
2 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
1 |
| Commercial Screen Printing |
2 |
| Community Food Services |
1 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
2 |
| Concrete Pipe Manufacturing |
1 |
| Confectionery and Nut Stores |
2 |
| Consumer Lending |
2 |
| Convenience Stores |
1 |
| Convention and Trade Show Organizers |
1 |
| Cosmetology and Barber Schools |
1 |
| Court Reporting and Stenotype Services |
1 |
| Credit Unions |
3 |
| Custom Computer Programming Services |
3 |
| Dental Laboratories |
1 |
| Diagnostic Imaging Centers |
4 |
| Direct Life Insurance Carriers |
1 |
| Direct Mail Advertising |
1 |
| Direct Title Insurance Carriers |
2 |
| Discount Department Stores |
2 |
| Document Preparation Services |
1 |
| Drafting Services |
1 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
6 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
2 |
| Electrical Contractors |
7 |
| Engineering Services |
5 |
| Exam Preparation and Tutoring |
1 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
2 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
2 |
| Farm Labor Contractors and Crew Leaders |
1 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
1 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
4 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
4 |
| Floor Covering Stores |
2 |
| Flooring Contractors |
3 |
| Florists |
5 |
| Food (Health) Supplement Stores |
1 |
| Framing Contractors |
5 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
28 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
3 |
| Furniture Stores |
2 |
| General Automotive Repair |
7 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
3 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
1 |
| General Warehousing and Storage |
5 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
4 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
4 |
| Graphic Design Services |
2 |
| Hardware Stores |
2 |
| Heating Oil Dealers |
1 |
| Historical Sites |
1 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
2 |
| Home Centers |
1 |
| Home Health Care Services |
1 |
| Homes for the Elderly |
1 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
1 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
26 |
| Interior Design Services |
3 |
| Internet Service Providers |
2 |
| Investment Advice |
5 |
| Janitorial Services |
4 |
| Jewelry Stores |
3 |
| Land Subdivision |
2 |
| Landscape Architectural Services |
2 |
| Landscaping Services |
15 |
| Lessors of Other Real Estate Property |
1 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
18 |
| Machine Shops |
3 |
| Manifold Business Forms Printing |
1 |
| Marketing Consulting Services |
2 |
| Masonry Contractors |
5 |
| Meat Markets |
1 |
| Miscellaneous Intermediation |
1 |
| Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers |
6 |
| Motor Vehicle Towing |
1 |
| Museums |
1 |
| Music Publishers |
1 |
| Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores |
2 |
| Natural Gas Liquid Extraction |
1 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
6 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
3 |
| Nonresidential Property Managers |
1 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
3 |
| Office Administrative Services |
3 |
| Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Office Supplies and Stationery Stores |
1 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
8 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
7 |
| Offices of Dentists |
22 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
42 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
3 |
| Offices of Other Holding Companies |
1 |
| Offices of Podiatrists |
1 |
| Offices of Real Estate Appraisers |
1 |
| Optical Goods Stores |
1 |
| Packaging and Labeling Services |
1 |
| Packing and Crating |
1 |
| Paint and Wallpaper Stores |
1 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
6 |
| Pet and Pet Supplies Stores |
1 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
1 |
| Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals |
1 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
3 |
| Photography Studios, Portrait |
2 |
| Portfolio Management |
1 |
| Professional Organizations |
1 |
| Quick Printing |
3 |
| Real Estate Credit |
1 |
| Repossession Services |
1 |
| Residential Property Managers |
3 |
| Residential Remodelers |
10 |
| Roofing Contractors |
3 |
| Savings Institutions |
1 |
| Securities Brokerage |
7 |
| Sewage Treatment Facilities |
1 |
| Shoe Stores |
1 |
| Siding Contractors |
2 |
| Sign Manufacturing |
1 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
9 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
8 |
| Software Publishers |
2 |
| Solid Waste Collection |
1 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
3 |
| Sports and Recreation Instruction |
2 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
2 |
| Temporary Help Services |
3 |
| Tire and Tube Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Tire Dealers |
3 |
| Title Abstract and Settlement Offices |
5 |
| Tobacco Stores |
1 |
| Travel Agencies |
1 |
| Used Car Dealers |
2 |
| Veterinary Services |
2 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
1 |
| Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
1 |
| Water Supply and Irrigation Systems |
1 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
7 |
| Window Treatment Stores |
1 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
2 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
3 |
What About Buying an Existing Edwardsville Business?
An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Illinois. Follow that link and you can assess several good businesses for sale in Edwardsville.
If you are serious about buying a business, you may want to read this article: How to Buy a Business.
Choosing a Company Name
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.
Even if the name doesn't do it by itself, many naming experts believe there should be a story behind the name that ties into your company mission.
To get up to speed on what makes for a good company name, we encourage you to read this useful article: Naming a Company.
There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are opening a business in Edwardsville, it's very important that you make sure no other Illinois company is using the business name you want to use.
Do You Need a Business Plan?
A business plan is critical in laying a solid foundation for your business success. In effect, a business plan is a written description of the future you envision for your business. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.
To learn more about business plans, read Business Plan Contests. You can also get face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in Illinois.
Raising Money for Your New Venture
Getting your Edwardsville business the capital it needs to succeed will be harder than you might expect. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.
To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as 504 Loans.
For Edwardsville entrepreneurs in need of startup financing, browse our List of Illinois Angel Investors and our List of Illinois Venture Capital Firms.
Moving Forward
You have a dream -- starting a business in Edwardsville. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.
If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.
We are here to help Edwardsville 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 Edwardsville, Illinois
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Edwardsville.
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