Contemplating starting a business in Greeneville, Tennessee? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Greeneville.
Do You Have What It Takes?
Most new ventures do not succeed, in part because the entrepreneur did not have the entrepreneurial skills and traits needed to succeed. So, before you start your business, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.
While entrepreneurship has become a popular career choice, we recommend you do the following before you take the plunge:
- Talk to other entrepreneurs in Greeneville. Get their candid feedback on what it takes to start a successful business.
- We recommend reading Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
- Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. 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. You might get some good ideas about what kind of business to start by reading Good Business Ideas.
For step-by-step instructions on starting a variety of business types, visit the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our How to Start a Paint Spraying Equipment & Booths Business guide or our How to Start a Hoisting & Rigging Equipment Dealers Business guide.
Don't forget that your new business will be in Greeneville. Some businesses will do better in Greeneville than others. Make sure you fully understand Greeneville demographics before you lock in on your business idea.
Greeneville, Tennessee Demographic Information
Greeneville has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Greeneville demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Greeneville.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
1460 |
| 5-9 Employees |
669 |
| 10-19 Employees |
378 |
| 20-49 Employees |
276 |
| 50-99 Employees |
84 |
| 100-249 Employees |
75 |
| 250-499 Employees |
39 |
| 500-999 Employees |
12 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Greeneville Businesses |
2993 |
As a new Greeneville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Greeneville 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 |
| Appliance Repair and Maintenance |
1 |
| Architectural Services |
1 |
| Audio and Video Equipment Manufacturing |
1 |
| Automotive Exhaust System Repair |
1 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
8 |
| Baked Goods Stores |
1 |
| Beauty Salons |
5 |
| Bed-and-Breakfast Inns |
2 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
4 |
| Blood and Organ Banks |
1 |
| Book Stores |
3 |
| Bottled Water Manufacturing |
1 |
| Bowling Centers |
1 |
| Business Associations |
2 |
| Cable and Other Program Distribution |
2 |
| Cafeterias |
1 |
| Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores |
1 |
| Car Washes |
4 |
| Carpet and Rug Mills |
1 |
| Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services |
2 |
| Caterers |
3 |
| Cemeteries and Crematories |
2 |
| Charter Bus Industry |
1 |
| Child and Youth Services |
2 |
| Child Day Care Services |
12 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
6 |
| Clothing Accessories Stores |
2 |
| Collection Agencies |
1 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
5 |
| Computer and Software Stores |
1 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
1 |
| Construction Machinery Manufacturing |
1 |
| Construction Sand and Gravel Mining |
2 |
| Consumer Lending |
10 |
| Credit Bureaus |
1 |
| Credit Unions |
6 |
| Custom Computer Programming Services |
1 |
| Cut Stock, Resawing Lumber, and Planing |
1 |
| Dental Laboratories |
2 |
| Diagnostic Imaging Centers |
1 |
| Diet and Weight Reducing Centers |
1 |
| Direct Life Insurance Carriers |
1 |
| Discount Department Stores |
2 |
| Dog and Cat Food Manufacturing |
1 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
1 |
| Electrical Contractors |
8 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
2 |
| Emergency and Other Relief Services |
1 |
| Engineering Services |
6 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
3 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
2 |
| Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
3 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
3 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
3 |
| Flight Training |
1 |
| Floor Covering Stores |
3 |
| Florists |
5 |
| Food (Health) Supplement Stores |
2 |
| Food Service Contractors |
5 |
| Framing Contractors |
1 |
| Freight Transportation Arrangement |
2 |
| Fruit and Vegetable Markets |
2 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
29 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
4 |
| Furniture Stores |
3 |
| General Automotive Repair |
12 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
3 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
2 |
| General Rental Centers |
3 |
| General Warehousing and Storage |
4 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
4 |
| Glass and Glazing Contractors |
1 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
4 |
| Grantmaking Foundations |
2 |
| Hardware Manufacturing |
2 |
| Hardware Merchant Wholesalers |
2 |
| Hardware Stores |
2 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
1 |
| Home Centers |
1 |
| Home Health Care Services |
3 |
| Home Health Equipment Rental |
2 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
3 |
| Industrial Building Construction |
1 |
| Industrial Launderers |
1 |
| Industrial Mold Manufacturing |
1 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
16 |
| Internet Service Providers |
1 |
| Investment Advice |
2 |
| Janitorial Services |
6 |
| Jewelry Stores |
5 |
| Kidney Dialysis Centers |
1 |
| Landscaping Services |
6 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
39 |
| Locksmiths |
1 |
| Luggage and Leather Goods Stores |
1 |
| Machine Shops |
6 |
| Manifold Business Forms Printing |
4 |
| Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers |
3 |
| Masonry Contractors |
2 |
| Meat Markets |
1 |
| Media Representatives |
1 |
| Medical Laboratories |
1 |
| Metal Household Furniture Manufacturing |
1 |
| Metal Tank (Heavy Gauge) Manufacturing |
1 |
| Motorcycle Dealers |
2 |
| Natural Gas Distribution |
1 |
| New Car Dealers |
7 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
1 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
1 |
| Nonclay Refractory Manufacturing |
1 |
| Nonresidential Property Managers |
1 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
4 |
| Office Supplies and Stationery Stores |
1 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
6 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
9 |
| Offices of Dentists |
16 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
26 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
6 |
| Offices of Other Holding Companies |
2 |
| Offices of Podiatrists |
1 |
| Optical Goods Stores |
2 |
| Outdoor Power Equipment Stores |
1 |
| Outerwear Knitting Mills |
1 |
| Packaging and Labeling Services |
1 |
| Paint and Wallpaper Stores |
2 |
| Paper Industry Machinery Manufacturing |
1 |
| Passenger Car Leasing |
1 |
| Periodical Publishers |
1 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
3 |
| Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals |
1 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
13 |
| Photography Studios, Portrait |
2 |
| Polystyrene Foam Product Manufacturing |
1 |
| Portfolio Management |
1 |
| Precision Turned Product Manufacturing |
1 |
| Private Mail Centers |
2 |
| Professional Organizations |
2 |
| Public Relations Agencies |
1 |
| Radio Stations |
1 |
| Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing |
1 |
| Real Estate Credit |
5 |
| Repossession Services |
1 |
| Residential Remodelers |
1 |
| Roofing Contractors |
1 |
| Savings Institutions |
3 |
| Sawmills |
3 |
| Securities Brokerage |
3 |
| Septic Tank and Related Services |
1 |
| Shoe Stores |
2 |
| Siding Contractors |
2 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
7 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
1 |
| Software Publishers |
1 |
| Solid Waste Collection |
1 |
| Spice and Extract Manufacturing |
1 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
3 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
3 |
| Temporary Help Services |
4 |
| Temporary Shelters |
1 |
| Tire Dealers |
5 |
| Tobacco Stores |
1 |
| Travel Agencies |
1 |
| Truss Manufacturing |
1 |
| Used Car Dealers |
3 |
| Used Household and Office Goods Moving |
1 |
| Used Merchandise Stores |
5 |
| Vending Machine Operators |
4 |
| Veterinary Services |
8 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
6 |
| Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
1 |
| Water Supply and Irrigation Systems |
1 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
3 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
3 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
2 |
| Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing |
1 |
| Wood Preservation |
1 |
Is Franchising a Better Option?
As you drive around Greeneville, you may be surprised to see how many franchises there are in the area. But is franchising the right option for you?
Most business experts recommend that you look into purchasing a franchise. On our site, you can read many articles about franchising, such as Why Franchises Fail. Gain a solid understanding of franchising by scanning all of our Articles on Franchising.
To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.
Representative franchise opportunities include Wellesley Inns & Suites Franchising, Inc. and Sareen & Associates. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Child Care Franchises and Home Services Franchises.
Note on Greeneville Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Greeneville.
Have You Considered Buying an Existing Greeneville Business?
An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Tennessee. Follow that link and you can assess several good businesses for sale in Greeneville.
For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: Hold Harmless Agreements When Buying Businesses.
Improving Your Entrepreneurial Skillset
Good entrepreneurs recognize that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.
As an entrepreneur who lives in Greeneville, Tennessee, you will want to take advantage of the learning programs at local Tennessee educational institutions. It's also beneficial to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Greeneville entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.
Now It's Up To You
Most new Greeneville businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.
We are here to help Greeneville 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 Greeneville, Tennessee
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Greeneville.
Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in Tennessee
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