Thinking about starting a business in Fitchburg, Massachusetts? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Fitchburg.
Are You Ready for the Challenges of Being an Entrepreneur?
Before quitting your day job, assess 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 Fitchburg. 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.
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 Good Business Ideas.
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 Cake & Candy Decorating Equipment & Supplies Business guide or our Starting a Business Form & Card Printing Business guide.
Always keep in mind that your new startup will be located in Fitchburg. Some businesses will do better in Fitchburg than others. Study Fitchburg demographics and do a competitive analysis as part of your startup planning process.
Fitchburg, Massachusetts Demographic Information
Fitchburg has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Fitchburg demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Fitchburg.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
2604 |
| 5-9 Employees |
1064 |
| 10-19 Employees |
768 |
| 20-49 Employees |
432 |
| 50-99 Employees |
162 |
| 100-249 Employees |
90 |
| 250-499 Employees |
18 |
| 500-999 Employees |
0 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Fitchburg Businesses |
5138 |
As a new Fitchburg entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Fitchburg 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 |
|
Apprenticeship Training |
1 |
| Automotive Glass Replacement Shops |
1 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
5 |
| Automotive Transmission Repair |
2 |
| Baked Goods Stores |
1 |
| Beauty Salons |
6 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
10 |
| Blind and Shade Manufacturing |
1 |
|
Book Stores |
2 |
| Bowling Centers |
1 |
| Building Inspection Services |
2 |
| Cable and Other Program Distribution |
1 |
| Cafeterias |
1 |
| Car Washes |
2 |
| Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services |
1 |
| Caterers |
4 |
|
Cemeteries and Crematories |
1 |
| Child and Youth Services |
1 |
| Child Day Care Services |
7 |
| Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
11 |
| Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners |
2 |
| Commercial Bakeries |
1 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
1 |
|
Community Food Services |
1 |
| Computer and Software Stores |
1 |
| Convenience Stores |
11 |
| Cosmetology and Barber Schools |
1 |
| Court Reporting and Stenotype Services |
2 |
| Credit Unions |
4 |
| Curtain and Drapery Mills |
1 |
| Custom Compounding of Purchased Resins |
2 |
|
Custom Computer Programming Services |
2 |
| Custom Roll Forming |
1 |
| Dental Laboratories |
2 |
| Discount Department Stores |
1 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
11 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
3 |
| Electric Power Distribution |
1 |
| Electrical Contractors |
13 |
|
Electronic Computer Manufacturing |
1 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
2 |
| Engineering Services |
2 |
| Environmental Consulting Services |
2 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
2 |
| Family Planning Centers |
1 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
1 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
1 |
|
Fish and Seafood Markets |
1 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
4 |
| Flooring Contractors |
2 |
| Florists |
1 |
| Folding Paperboard Box Manufacturing |
2 |
| Food (Health) Supplement Stores |
1 |
| Food Service Contractors |
5 |
| Framing Contractors |
1 |
|
Full-Service Restaurants |
20 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
3 |
| Furniture Stores |
4 |
| General Automotive Repair |
12 |
| General Rental Centers |
4 |
| General Warehousing and Storage |
2 |
| Glass and Glazing Contractors |
3 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
1 |
|
Graphic Design Services |
2 |
| Hardware Stores |
4 |
| Heating Oil Dealers |
5 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
1 |
| Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Home Health Care Services |
3 |
| Homes for the Elderly |
1 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
1 |
|
Human Rights Organizations |
1 |
| Industrial Design Services |
1 |
| Industrial Mold Manufacturing |
3 |
| Industrial Pattern Manufacturing |
1 |
| Institutional Furniture Manufacturing |
1 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
10 |
| Interior Design Services |
1 |
| Investment Advice |
2 |
|
Iron and Steel Mills |
1 |
| Janitorial Services |
4 |
| Jewelry Stores |
4 |
| Kidney Dialysis Centers |
1 |
| Landscape Architectural Services |
1 |
| Landscaping Services |
9 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
38 |
| Limousine Service |
3 |
|
Locksmiths |
2 |
| Machine Shops |
7 |
| Masonry Contractors |
1 |
| Materials Recovery Facilities |
1 |
| Men's Clothing Stores |
3 |
| Miscellaneous Intermediation |
1 |
| Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers |
1 |
| Museums |
2 |
|
New Car Dealers |
4 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
1 |
| News Dealers and Newsstands |
1 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
2 |
| Nonresidential Property Managers |
2 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
6 |
| Office Administrative Services |
2 |
| Office Supplies and Stationery Stores |
2 |
|
Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
9 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
2 |
| Offices of Dentists |
23 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
23 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
4 |
| Offices of Podiatrists |
3 |
| Offices of Real Estate Appraisers |
1 |
| One-Hour Photofinishing |
1 |
|
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores |
1 |
| Packaging and Labeling Services |
1 |
| Paint and Wallpaper Stores |
1 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
7 |
| Paper (except Newsprint) Mills |
2 |
| Passenger Car Rental |
1 |
| Payroll Services |
1 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
2 |
|
Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
7 |
| Photography Studios, Portrait |
2 |
| Plate Work Manufacturing |
1 |
| Polystyrene Foam Product Manufacturing |
1 |
| Portfolio Management |
1 |
| Professional Organizations |
1 |
| Quick Printing |
2 |
| Radio Stations |
1 |
|
Recreational Vehicle Dealers |
1 |
| Remediation Services |
3 |
| Residential Property Managers |
5 |
| Residential Remodelers |
4 |
| Reupholstery and Furniture Repair |
4 |
| Roofing Contractors |
1 |
| Savings Institutions |
8 |
| Saw Blade and Handsaw Manufacturing |
2 |
|
School and Employee Bus Transportation |
1 |
| Securities Brokerage |
1 |
| Security Guards and Patrol Services |
1 |
| Shoe Stores |
2 |
| Siding Contractors |
1 |
| Sign Manufacturing |
2 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
2 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
14 |
|
Solid Waste Collection |
2 |
| Special Needs Transportation |
2 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
3 |
| Sports and Recreation Instruction |
1 |
| Surface Active Agent Manufacturing |
1 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
2 |
| Taxi Service |
1 |
| Telephone Answering Services |
1 |
|
Temporary Help Services |
4 |
| Testing Laboratories |
1 |
| Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters |
1 |
| Tile and Terrazzo Contractors |
1 |
| Tire Dealers |
4 |
| Title Abstract and Settlement Offices |
1 |
| Travel Agencies |
5 |
| Used Car Dealers |
9 |
|
Used Household and Office Goods Moving |
2 |
| Used Merchandise Stores |
2 |
| Vending Machine Operators |
2 |
| Veterinary Services |
2 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
5 |
| Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
3 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
1 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
2 |
|
Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing |
2 |
Have You Considered Buying an Existing Fitchburg Business?
We've created a useful website page for those who want to Buy a Business in Massachusetts. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Fitchburg.
Before buying a business, be sure to read this article: Hold Harmless Agreements When Buying Businesses.
Naming the Business
A big decision when starting a company is choosing a company name. Believe it or not, choosing a good company name can be a big contributor to your business success.
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.
For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Naming a Business.
As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are starting a business in Fitchburg, it's very important that you make sure no other Massachusetts company is using the business name you want to use.
The Art of Selling
Being able to sell is critical to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Fitchburg or are selling to customers throughout Massachusetts, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.
Why should customers buy from you instead of buying from competitors? Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.
Compensating Sales People is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.
Never Give Up
You have a dream -- starting a business in Fitchburg. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.
From this point on, you control your own destiny.
We are here to help Fitchburg businesses to be successful. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Fitchburg, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Fitchburg, Massachusetts
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Fitchburg.
- Resources for Fitchburg, Massachusetts Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Fitchburg entrepreneurs.
- Massachusetts Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Massachusetts.
- Massachusetts Small Business Development Center - The Massachusetts Small Business Development Center (MSBDC) Network provides one-to-one free comprehensive and confidential services focusing on, business growth and strategies, financing and loan assistance as well as strategic, marketing and operational analysis.
- Fitchburg, Massachusetts Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Fitchburg, Massachusetts newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Fitchburg area.
- Fitchburg, Massachusetts Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Fitchburg, Massachusetts area radio stations.
- Fitchburg, Massachusetts Payroll Services - This list includes Fitchburg, Massachusetts payroll services, national payroll services for Fitchburg, and helpful information on choosing a Fitchburg payroll service.
- Fitchburg, Massachusetts Businesses for Sale - This list includes resources for buying a business in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, such as business brokers in Fitchburg and other helpful information on how to buy a Fitchburg business.
More Startup Articles for Massachusetts Cities
Starting a Business in Feeding Hills
Starting a Business in Foxboro
Browse All
Business Startup Guides for Massachusetts
Starting a Business
Guides for Other States
