Thinking about starting a business in Flanders, New Jersey? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Flanders.
Do You Have What It Takes?
Before quitting your day job, consider 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 Flanders. Get their candid feedback on what it takes to start a successful business.
- We recommend reading Why Small Businesses Fail. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
- Get feedback from somebody whom you trust. A support network of family and friends can be a great sounding board for good advice before you decide for sure to go into business.
What Business Are You Starting?
An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. If you are struggling with what type of business to start, read Free 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 Dance Club guide or our Starting a Tatoo Parlor guide.
Don't forget that your new business will be in Flanders. Some businesses will do better in Flanders than others. Don't forget to review Flanders demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.
Flanders, New Jersey Demographic Information
Flanders has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Flanders demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Flanders.
| Business Size | # of Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
688 |
| 5-9 Employees |
207 |
| 10-19 Employees |
147 |
| 20-49 Employees |
96 |
| 50-99 Employees |
42 |
| 100-249 Employees |
30 |
| 250-499 Employees |
3 |
| 500-999 Employees |
3 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Flanders Businesses |
1216 |
As a new Flanders entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Flanders 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 |
3 |
| Amusement Arcades |
1 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
2 |
| Beauty Salons |
3 |
| Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
2 |
| Books Printing |
1 |
| Business Associations |
1 |
| Cable and Other Program Distribution |
1 |
| Car Washes |
1 |
| Caterers |
2 |
| Child Day Care Services |
7 |
| Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners |
1 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
1 |
| Computer and Software Stores |
3 |
| Computer Facilities Management Services |
1 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
5 |
| Confectionery and Nut Stores |
1 |
| Credit Bureaus |
1 |
| Custom Computer Programming Services |
9 |
| Dental Laboratories |
1 |
| Discount Department Stores |
1 |
| Document Preparation Services |
1 |
| Drafting Services |
1 |
| Electrical Contractors |
7 |
| Electronic Shopping |
1 |
| Engineering Services |
5 |
| Envelope Manufacturing |
1 |
| Environmental Consulting Services |
1 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
2 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
2 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
1 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
1 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
3 |
| Flooring Contractors |
2 |
| Florists |
1 |
| Food (Health) Supplement Stores |
2 |
| Food Service Contractors |
1 |
| Framing Contractors |
1 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
10 |
| Furniture Stores |
1 |
| General Automotive Repair |
1 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
2 |
| General Warehousing and Storage |
1 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
1 |
| Graphic Design Services |
3 |
| Hardware Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Hardware Stores |
1 |
| Hazardous Waste Collection |
1 |
| Hazardous Waste Treatment and Disposal |
1 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
1 |
| Home Centers |
1 |
| Home Health Care Services |
2 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
1 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
10 |
| Interior Design Services |
1 |
| Investment Advice |
1 |
| Janitorial Services |
4 |
| Jewelry Stores |
1 |
| Landscape Architectural Services |
1 |
| Landscaping Services |
12 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
9 |
| Luggage and Leather Goods Stores |
1 |
| Machine Shops |
1 |
| Masonry Contractors |
1 |
| Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers |
1 |
| Nail Salons |
3 |
| Office Administrative Services |
2 |
| Office Supplies and Stationery Stores |
1 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
4 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
4 |
| Offices of Dentists |
10 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
2 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
1 |
| Offices of Other Holding Companies |
1 |
| Offices of Podiatrists |
2 |
| Ophthalmic Goods Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Outdoor Power Equipment Stores |
1 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
3 |
| Pet and Pet Supplies Stores |
1 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
2 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
2 |
| Photography Studios, Portrait |
2 |
| Precision Turned Product Manufacturing |
1 |
| Prepress Services |
1 |
| Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing |
1 |
| Residential Remodelers |
4 |
| Roofing Contractors |
1 |
| Securities Brokerage |
2 |
| Shoe Stores |
1 |
| Siding Contractors |
2 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
3 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
2 |
| Solid Waste Collection |
1 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
1 |
| Sports and Recreation Instruction |
4 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
1 |
| Temporary Help Services |
1 |
| Tile and Terrazzo Contractors |
2 |
| Tire Dealers |
2 |
| Travel Agencies |
1 |
| Used Household and Office Goods Moving |
1 |
| Veterinary Services |
3 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
1 |
| Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
1 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
5 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
4 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
1 |
What About Franchising Opportunities?
Visit the business district of Flanders and you'll notice that many local entrepreneurs have gone the franchising route. But is franchising the right option for you?
We advise the entrepreneurs we work with to investigate buying a franchise. 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 Subway Franchises and Starbucks Franchises. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Accounting Franchises and Moving Franchises.
Note on Flanders Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Flanders.
Have You Considered Buying an Existing Flanders Business?
We've created a helpful website page for those who want to Buy a Business in New Jersey. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Flanders.
For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: Buying a Business.
Naming the Company
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.
Company names should be fun to say, and they should help people to understand what you do and how you differentiate yourself in the market.
For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Branding Advice.
As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are starting a business in Flanders, it's very important that you make sure no other New Jersey company is using the business name you want to use.
Forming a Company in Flanders, New Jersey
It's essential that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Among other things, forming a legal entity for the business limits your liabilities.
The entity you form can be a traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.
Incorporating is a very common way to legally create a business entity. A key decision is whether to form and S-Corp or a C-Corp, and you also must decide in which state you will incorporate. If you are starting a business in New Jersey, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in New Jersey. In fact, you are allowed to incorporate in the state of your choosing. However, if you do incorporate in another state, you'll have to register as a foreign corporation in your home state.
There are many nuances to forming a company. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Piercing the Corporate Veil. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Flanders, New Jersey, our information on Incorporating in New Jersey may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in New Jersey.
Don't Skip the Business Plan
Having a business plan is critical in maximizing the prospects of your new company. Simply put, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Not having a business plan makes you more prone to becoming a business failure statistic.
If you want more information on writing business plans, we recommend reading Reasons to Write a Business Plan. You can also get face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in New Jersey.
Raising Money for Your Venture
Getting your Flanders business the capital it needs to succeed is very difficult due to the ongoing business credit crunch. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.
Take advantage of our many articles on raising capital, such as Getting a Small Business Loan.
For Flanders entrepreneurs who want to raise money for a new venture, check out our List of New Jersey Angel Investors and our List of New Jersey Venture Capital Firms.
Getting the Word Out About Your New Venture
Whether your goal is to attract Flanders customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your succeeding.
There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Comparing Advertising to PR is a good read to get your marketing ideas flowing. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.
Building Up Your Sales
Being able to sell is critical to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Flanders or are selling to customers throughout New Jersey, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.
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.
Selling Stuff on the Web offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.
Increase Your Entrepreneurial Knowledge
Good entrepreneurs recognize that they need to continually improve.
Given that you are starting a business in Flanders, New Jersey, you will want to take advantage of the learning programs at local New Jersey educational institutions. It's also worthwhile to see if there are any Flanders networking organizations.
Now It's Up To You
You have a dream -- starting a business in Flanders. 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.
This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Flanders and elsewhere to achieve real success. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Flanders 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 Flanders, New Jersey
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Flanders.
Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in New Jersey
Starting a Business in Fair Lawn
Starting a Business in Flemington
Browse All
Business Startup Guides for New Jersey