Arkansas Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Harrison, Arkansas

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

Harrison, Arkansas Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
15588
5-9 Employees
6744
10-19 Employees
4500
20-49 Employees
2052
50-99 Employees
684
100-249 Employees
432
250-499 Employees
216
500-999 Employees
108
1000+ Employees
0
All Harrison Businesses
30324

As a new Harrison entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Harrison 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 Die-Casting Foundries
1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
3
Architectural Services
2
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
2
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
12
Baked Goods Stores
1
Barber Shops
1
Book Stores
1
Bowling Centers
1
Building Inspection Services
1
Business Associations
2
Cable and Other Program Distribution
2
Car Washes
1
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
2
Child and Youth Services
3
Child Day Care Services
9
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
1
Civic and Social Organizations
3
Claims Adjusting
2
Clothing Accessories Stores
1
Collection Agencies
1
Commercial Screen Printing
1
Community Food Services
1
Computer and Software Stores
4
Computer Systems Design Services
1
Concrete Block and Brick Manufacturing
1
Consumer Lending
1
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Credit Unions
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
3
Dental Laboratories
3
Direct Mail Advertising
1
Display Advertising
2
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
1
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
1
Electrical Contractors
4
Electronic Shopping
1
Elementary and Secondary Schools
2
Engineering Services
1
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
2
Family Clothing Stores
6
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
5
Floor Covering Stores
3
Florists
5
Folding Paperboard Box Manufacturing
1
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
1
Footwear and Leather Goods Repair
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
1
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
3
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
1
Furniture Stores
4
General Automotive Repair
10
General Freight Trucking, Local
5
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
3
Glass and Glazing Contractors
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
2
Grantmaking Foundations
1
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Stores
1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
2
Home Centers
1
Home Health Care Services
1
Home Health Equipment Rental
3
Homes for the Elderly
1
Household Appliance Stores
3
Human Rights Organizations
1
Industrial Launderers
1
Industrial Mold Manufacturing
2
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
26
Investment Advice
2
Iron and Steel Mills
1
Janitorial Services
3
Jewelry Stores
3
Land Subdivision
2
Landscaping Services
4
Livestock Merchant Wholesalers
1
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
4
Machine Shops
2
Masonry Contractors
2
Mattress Manufacturing
1
Meat Markets
1
Meat Processed from Carcasses
1
Motion Picture and Video Production
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
1
Motorcycle Dealers
2
Museums
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
2
Natural Gas Distribution
1
New Car Dealers
8
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
2
Nursing Care Facilities
3
Office Administrative Services
3
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
2
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
8
Offices of Chiropractors
7
Offices of Lawyers
16
Offices of Optometrists
1
Offices of Podiatrists
1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
1
Optical Goods Stores
1
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
2
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
7
Photography Studios, Portrait
1
Precision Turned Product Manufacturing
1
Private Mail Centers
1
Radio Networks
1
Radio Stations
2
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
2
Residential Property Managers
1
Residential Remodelers
1
Retail Bakeries
1
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
1
Roofing Contractors
2
Savings Institutions
4
Securities Brokerage
5
Security Guards and Patrol Services
1
Shoe Stores
2
Siding Contractors
2
Sign Manufacturing
2
Site Preparation Contractors
6
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
3
Sporting Goods Stores
1
Tax Preparation Services
3
Telemarketing Bureaus
1
Television Broadcasting
1
Temporary Help Services
4
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
1
Tire Dealers
4
Tobacco Stores
1
Travel Agencies
1
Truss Manufacturing
1
Used Car Dealers
8
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Used Merchandise Stores
4
Vending Machine Operators
1
Video Tape and Disc Rental
5
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
1
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
2
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
3
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
4
Women's Clothing Stores
3
Wood Window and Door Manufacturing
1

Should You Franchise?

Browse the Yellow Pages for Harrison and you'll conclude that many business owners have opted to buy a franchise, rather than starting a business on their own. Should you be giving franchising serious consideration?

Our advice is to consider franchising as an option. This site has dozens of articles on franchising, such as How to Get More Franchisees. 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 Help-U-Sell Real Estate and Ben & Jerry's Franchising, Inc.. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as B2B Franchises and Hair Styling Franchises.

Note on Harrison Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Harrison.

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Harrison Business?

If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in Arkansas. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Harrison.

If you are serious about buying a business, you may want to read this article: Buying a Business.

Naming the Business

A good company name can give a big boost to a new startup. It might seem like an easy thing to do, but there are many things to consider when naming a business.

Company names need to be easy to spell, easy to pronounce, and easy to remember.

Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Naming a Company.

As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are starting a business in Harrison, it's very important that you make sure no other Arkansas company is using the business name you want to use.

Forming a Company in Harrison, Arkansas

A critical step is ensuring that you are forming a legal entity that operates independently from you. The principal advantage of forming your new business as a legal entity is that it separates your business liabilities from your personal liabilities.

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. Of course, you have to decide which type of corporation to form and where to incorporate. If you are starting a business in Arkansas, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Arkansas. In fact, you can incorporate in any state you would like to. 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 should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Harrison, Arkansas, our information on Incorporating in Arkansas may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Arkansas.

Getting Money to Start a Business

Getting your Harrison business the capital it needs to succeed is a difficult chore. If you don't have a rich uncle to fund you, you'll need to be creative in how you approach your fundraising efforts.

Fortunately, this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled 504 Loans.

For Harrison entrepreneurs with great ambition but a shortage of investment capital, check out our List of Arkansas Angel Investors and our List of Arkansas Venture Capital Firms.

What's Next?

You have a dream -- starting a business in Harrison. 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.

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Harrison and throughout the United States . 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 Harrison, Arkansas

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

Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in Arkansas

Starting a Business in Harrisburg
Starting a Business in Hazen

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

 

 

Share this article


Additional Resources for Entrepreneurs

Lists of Venture Capital and Private Equity Firms

Franchise Opportunities

Contributors

Business Glossary