Starting a Business in Garrettsville, Ohio

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

Are You Sure You Want to Do This?

Before announcing to the world that you are going to start your own business, assess your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.

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

• Reach out to other entrepreneurs in Garrettsville. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
• Peruse Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. This is one of our more popular articles for folks who want to go into business for themselves.
• Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.

Garrettsville, Ohio Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size	# of Businesses
1-4 Employees	225
5-9 Employees	87
10-19 Employees	54
20-49 Employees	48
50-99 Employees	6
100-249 Employees	0
250-499 Employees	0
500-999 Employees	0
1000+ Employees	0
All Garrettsville Businesses	420

As a new Garrettsville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Garrettsville 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
Aluminum Foundries (except Die-Casting)	1
Ambulance Services	1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance	1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores	2
Beauty Salons	2
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores	1
Bowling Centers	1
Child Day Care Services	1
Civic and Social Organizations	1
Commercial Bakeries	1
Computer Systems Design Services	1
Copper Wire (except Mechanical) Drawing	1
Custom Computer Programming Services	1
Dental Laboratories	1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)	2
Drywall and Insulation Contractors	1
Electrical Contractors	6
Electronic Auctions	1
Fine Arts Schools	1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers	4
Florists	2
Fruit and Vegetable Canning	1
Full-Service Restaurants	3
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services	1
General Automotive Repair	2
General Freight Trucking, Local	1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs	1
Hardware Stores	1
Home Centers	1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages	2
Janitorial Services	1
Landscaping Services	5
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property	1
Limited-Service Restaurants	6
Machine Shops	2
Mail-Order Houses	1
New Car Dealers	3
Newspaper Publishers	1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants	1
Offices of Chiropractors	2
Offices of Dentists	2
Offices of Lawyers	1
Offices of Optometrists	1
Offices of Podiatrists	1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors	1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores	2
Precision Turned Product Manufacturing	1
Residential Remodelers	3
Securities Brokerage	1
Sports and Recreation Instruction	1
Taxi Service	1
Used Car Dealers	1
Veterinary Services	2
Video Tape and Disc Rental	1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers	1
Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing	1

What About Buying an Existing Garrettsville Business?

We've created a handy website page for those who want to Buy a Business in Ohio. Follow that link and you might discover several good businesses for sale in Garrettsville.

If you are headed down the path of buying a business, you may want to read this article: Buying a Business.

Naming the Business

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.

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.

For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Naming a Company.

On a final note, given that you are starting a business in Garrettsville, it's very important that you make sure your company name has not already been claimed by another Ohio business.

Forming a Company in Garrettsville, Ohio

A critical step is ensuring that you form your business as a legal structure. Doing so will insulate you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.

When forming a company, you will decide among many company types, such as a traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.

Incorporation is a very common way to legally create a business entity. Of course, you have to decide which type of corporation to form and where to incorporate. If you are starting a business in Ohio, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Ohio. As it turns out, 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. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Incorporation Advice. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Garrettsville, Ohio, our web page covering Incorporating in Ohio may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Ohio.

Ramping Up Sales

Being able to sell is essential to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Garrettsville or are selling to customers throughout Ohio, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.

Not knowing how to sell can result in lost customers and minimal market share. The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.

Selling on the Phone is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.

Next Steps

You have a dream -- starting a business in Garrettsville. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.

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

This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Garrettsville and elsewhere to achieve real success. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Garrettsville, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Garrettsville, Ohio

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

• Resources for Garrettsville, Ohio Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Garrettsville entrepreneurs.
• Ohio Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Ohio.
• Ohio Small Business Development Center - Whether you're starting your business, expanding your business, or just looking to stay in business, the Small Business Development Centers of Ohio (SBDCs of Ohio) can help with professional guidance by connecting you with research, financing sources, and training opportunities.
• Garrettsville, Ohio Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Garrettsville, Ohio newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Garrettsville area.

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