Start a Business in Jamestown, North Dakota

Are you starting a business in Jamestown, North Dakota? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Jamestown.

Is Becoming an Entrepreneur Right for You?

Before announcing to the world that you are going to start your own business, take inventory of 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 Jamestown. Get their take on what it's really like to be an entrepreneur.
• We recommend reading Why Small Businesses Fail. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
• Get feedback from somebody whom you trust. That's the best way to get a truly objective assessment as to whether others think you have what it takes.

Jamestown, North Dakota Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size	# of Businesses
1-4 Employees	13725
5-9 Employees	5850
10-19 Employees	3510
20-49 Employees	2520
50-99 Employees	945
100-249 Employees	360
250-499 Employees	225
500-999 Employees	0
1000+ Employees	0
All Jamestown Businesses	27135

As a new Jamestown entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Jamestown 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	1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance	1
Automotive Exhaust System Repair	1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops	1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores	7
Baked Goods Stores	1
Beauty Salons	10
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers	2
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores	3
Boat Dealers	2
Book Publishers	1
Book Stores	2
Bowling Centers	1
Business Associations	3
Cable and Other Program Distribution	1
Cafeterias	2
Canvas and Related Product Mills	1
Car Washes	1
Cemeteries and Crematories	2
Child and Youth Services	3
Child Day Care Services	4
Civic and Social Organizations	6
Claims Adjusting	6
Clothing Accessories Stores	1
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners	1
Commercial Bakeries	1
Commercial Lithographic Printing	1
Commercial Screen Printing	2
Computer and Software Stores	2
Consumer Lending	2
Convention and Visitors Bureaus	1
Couriers	1
Credit Unions	2
Crop Harvesting, Primarily by Machine	1
Custom Computer Programming Services	1
Dental Laboratories	1
Discount Department Stores	2
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)	5
Drywall and Insulation Contractors	2
Educational Support Services	1
Electric Power Distribution	1
Electrical Contractors	8
Emergency and Other Relief Services	1
Engineering Services	1
Environmental Consulting Services	1
Family Clothing Stores	1
Farm Product Warehousing and Storage	2
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	3
Finish Carpentry Contractors	3
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers	1
Floor Covering Stores	2
Florists	2
Food (Health) Supplement Stores	1
Food Service Contractors	1
Framing Contractors	2
Freight Transportation Arrangement	3
Full-Service Restaurants	11
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services	2
Furniture Stores	2
General Automotive Repair	7
General Freight Trucking, Local	4
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	1
General Rental Centers	4
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores	7
Golf Courses and Country Clubs	1
Hardware Stores	2
Home Health Care Services	2
Homes for the Elderly	1
Household Appliance Stores	1
Industrial Launderers	1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages	13
Janitorial Services	6
Jewelry Stores	2
Landscaping Services	3
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property	1
Limited-Service Restaurants	13
Livestock Merchant Wholesalers	1
Locksmiths	1
Malt Manufacturing	1
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers	3
Marketing Consulting Services	1
Masonry Contractors	1
Meat Markets	1
Men's Clothing Stores	1
Motorcycle Dealers	2
Museums	1
Nail Salons	1
Natural Gas Distribution	2
New Car Dealers	3
Newspaper Publishers	1
Nonresidential Property Managers	1
Nursing Care Facilities	3
Office Administrative Services	1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores	3
Offices of Certified Public Accountants	1
Offices of Chiropractors	8
Offices of Dentists	7
Offices of Lawyers	7
Offices of Optometrists	2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers	2
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors	2
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services	1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals	1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores	4
Photography Studios, Portrait	2
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas	1
Plate Work Manufacturing	1
Quick Printing	1
Radio Stations	2
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing	2
Recreational Vehicle Dealers	2
Residential Property Managers	1
Residential Remodelers	4
Roofing Contractors	2
Savings Institutions	1
Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation	1
School and Employee Bus Transportation	2
Securities Brokerage	5
Security Guards and Patrol Services	1
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing	1
Shoe Stores	1
Siding Contractors	4
Sign Manufacturing	2
Site Preparation Contractors	5
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars	1
Sporting Goods Stores	2
Sports and Recreation Instruction	2
Tax Preparation Services	3
Telemarketing Bureaus	1
Temporary Help Services	1
Temporary Shelters	1
Testing Laboratories	2
Tire and Tube Merchant Wholesalers	1
Tire Dealers	2
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices	1
Travel Agencies	2
Used Car Dealers	1
Used Merchandise Stores	1
Vending Machine Operators	1
Veterinary Services	4
Video Tape and Disc Rental	2
Vocational Rehabilitation Services	3
Voluntary Health Organizations	1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers	3
Women's Clothing Stores	3

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Jamestown Business?

We've created a handy website page for those who want to Buy a Business in North Dakota. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Jamestown.

For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: How to Buy a Business.

Forming a Company in Jamestown, North Dakota

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.

When forming a company, you will pick from many company types, such as 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 North Dakota, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in North Dakota. 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. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as LLC Advantages. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Jamestown, North Dakota, our web page covering Incorporating in North Dakota may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in North Dakota.

Do You Need a Business Plan?

Writing a business plan is critical to the health of your new business. Simply put, a business plan is a written description of the future you envision for your business. Not having a business plan will greatly reduce your chances of business success.

To learn more about business plans, read Expert Advice on Business Plans. You can also get free business counselors available to you through your local SCORE chapter in North Dakota.

Startup Financing Basics

Raising money to fund your new Jamestown business is a difficult chore. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.

The good news is this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled 504 Loans.

For Jamestown entrepreneurs who need startup capital, check out our List of North Dakota Angel Investors and our List of North Dakota Venture Capital Firms.

Advancing Your Entrepreneurial Skills

Successful entrepreneurs recognize that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.

With your business being located in Jamestown, North Dakota, you should check out some of the many programs available at nearby North Dakota universities, colleges and community colleges. You should also check if there are any Jamestown networking organizations.

Moving Forward

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

We are here to help Jamestown 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 Jamestown, North Dakota

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

• Resources for Jamestown, North Dakota Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Jamestown entrepreneurs.
• North Dakota Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in North Dakota.
• North Dakota Small Business Development Center - The North Dakota Small Business Development Center's mission is to provide high quality business assistance in the form of counseling, training, and research to existing and prospective North Dakota small businesses.
• Jamestown, North Dakota Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Jamestown, North Dakota newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Jamestown area.
• Jamestown, North Dakota Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Jamestown, North Dakota area radio stations.

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