Start a Business in Fort Madison, Iowa

Contemplating starting a business in Fort Madison, Iowa? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Fort Madison.

Choosing the Right Company to Start

Choosing a business that is right for you is very important. To stir your creative juices on what kind of business to start, take a look at 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 How to Start a Copiers Rental & Leasing Business guide or our How to Start a Railroads Business guide.

Always keep in mind that you are starting a business in Fort Madison. Some businesses will do better in Fort Madison than others. Only by spending some time analyzing Fort Madison demographics can you decide if there will be strong demand for your business idea.

Fort Madison, Iowa Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size	# of Businesses
1-4 Employees	545
5-9 Employees	228
10-19 Employees	87
20-49 Employees	66
50-99 Employees	48
100-249 Employees	36
250-499 Employees	9
500-999 Employees	3
1000+ Employees	0
All Fort Madison Businesses	1022

As a new Fort Madison entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Fort Madison 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	2
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores	3
Beauty Salons	6
Bed-and-Breakfast Inns	2
Boat Dealers	1
Book Stores	1
Bowling Centers	1
Breweries	1
Broom, Brush, and Mop Manufacturing	1
Business Associations	1
Car Washes	1
Casinos (except Casino Hotels)	2
Child Day Care Services	3
Civic and Social Organizations	6
Commercial Screen Printing	1
Computer and Software Stores	2
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining	1
Convention and Visitors Bureaus	1
Cosmetology and Barber Schools	2
Credit Unions	1
Custom Roll Forming	1
Discount Department Stores	1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)	7
Electric Power Distribution	1
Elementary and Secondary Schools	2
Emergency and Other Relief Services	1
Engineering Services	1
Exterminating and Pest Control Services	1
Family Planning Centers	1
Farm Management Services	1
Finish Carpentry Contractors	1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers	1
Floor Covering Stores	3
Florists	1
Freight Transportation Arrangement	1
Full-Service Restaurants	17
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services	2
Furniture Stores	1
General Automotive Repair	5
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores	2
Hardware Stores	1
Home Centers	1
Home Health Care Services	1
Homes for the Elderly	1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages	9
Interior Design Services	1
Investment Advice	2
Janitorial Services	2
Jewelry Stores	2
Landscaping Services	1
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property	1
Limited-Service Restaurants	11
Machine Shops	2
Masonry Contractors	2
Meat Processed from Carcasses	1
Men's Clothing Stores	1
Metal Can Manufacturing	1
Motorcycle Dealers	1
Musical Instrument Manufacturing	1
Nail Salons	1
Navigational Services to Shipping	1
New Car Dealers	2
Newspaper Publishers	1
Nursing Care Facilities	1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores	3
Offices of Certified Public Accountants	1
Offices of Chiropractors	4
Offices of Dentists	4
Offices of Lawyers	7
Offices of Optometrists	3
Offices of Other Holding Companies	1
Offices of Podiatrists	2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers	1
One-Hour Photofinishing	1
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores	1
Paint and Coating Manufacturing	1
Paper (except Newsprint) Mills	1
Paperboard Mills	1
Pen and Mechanical Pencil Manufacturing	1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores	1
Plate Work Manufacturing	1
Polystyrene Foam Product Manufacturing	1
Portfolio Management	1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing	1
Residential Remodelers	2
Roofing Contractors	1
Rooming and Boarding Houses	1
Sawmills	1
Securities Brokerage	3
Security Guards and Patrol Services	1
Shoe Stores	2
Siding Contractors	1
Site Preparation Contractors	2
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars	2
Software Publishers	1
Sports and Recreation Instruction	1
Tax Preparation Services	3
Telemarketing Bureaus	1
Temporary Help Services	3
Temporary Shelters	1
Tire Dealers	1
Tire Manufacturing (except Retreading)	1
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices	2
Tobacco Stores	1
Used Car Dealers	3
Used Household and Office Goods Moving	1
Used Merchandise Stores	1
Vending Machine Operators	1
Veterinary Services	1
Video Tape and Disc Rental	1
Window Treatment Stores	1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers	1
Women's Clothing Stores	1
Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing	2

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Fort Madison Business?

An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Iowa. Follow that link and you can assess several good businesses for sale in Fort Madison.

If you are intent on buying a business, you may want to read this article: Hold Harmless Agreements When Buying Businesses.

Forming a Company in Fort Madison, Iowa

It's essential that you form your business as a legal structure. Doing so will shield you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.

The entity you form can be a traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.

Incorporating is a very popular way to form a business. 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 Iowa, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Iowa. In fact, you can 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. To learn the fundamentals of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as Getting an EIN. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Fort Madison, Iowa, our information on Incorporating in Iowa may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Iowa.

Make Sure You Have a Business Plan

A business plan is critical to the health of your new business. In effect, 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 is a recipe for disaster.

To learn more about business plans, read Business Plan Contests. A great resource for business planning assistance is the face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in Iowa.

Learning More About Entrepreneurship

The best entrepreneurs recognize that they need to continually improve.

Given that you are starting a business in Fort Madison, Iowa, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Iowa universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also smart to see if there are any Fort Madison networking organizations.

Never Give Up

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Fort Madison and throughout the United States . We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Fort Madison, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Fort Madison, Iowa

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

• Resources for Fort Madison, Iowa Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Fort Madison entrepreneurs.
• Iowa Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Iowa.
• Iowa Small Business Development Center - The Iowa SBDC conducts research, counsels, and trains business people in management, financing, and operating small businesses. They provide comprehensive information services and access to experts in a variety of fields. This is a great resource for Iowa entrepreneurs!
• Fort Madison, Iowa Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Fort Madison, Iowa newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Fort Madison area.
• Fort Madison, Iowa Payroll Services - This list includes Fort Madison, Iowa payroll services, national payroll services for Fort Madison, and helpful information on choosing a Fort Madison payroll service.
• Fort Madison, Iowa Businesses for Sale - This list includes resources for buying a business in Fort Madison, Iowa, such as business brokers in Fort Madison and other helpful information on how to buy a Fort Madison business.

More Startup Articles for Iowa Cities
Starting a Business in Fort Dodge
Starting a Business in Fremont

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