Opening a Business in Jena, Louisiana

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

What Business Are You Starting?

An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. If you are struggling with what type of business to start, read How to Evaluate a Business Idea.

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 Opening an Auto Repair & Car Service Business guide or our How to Start a Steel Detailers Business guide.

Always keep in mind that your new startup will be located in Jena. Some businesses will do better in Jena than others. Don't forget to review Jena demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.

Jena, Louisiana Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size	# of Businesses
1-4 Employees	297
5-9 Employees	144
10-19 Employees	63
20-49 Employees	33
50-99 Employees	15
100-249 Employees	6
250-499 Employees	3
500-999 Employees	0
1000+ Employees	0
All Jena Businesses	561

As a new Jena entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Jena 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
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores	2
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services	1
Child Day Care Services	1
Computer and Software Stores	1
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining	1
Consumer Lending	4
Convenience Stores	6
Cut Stock, Resawing Lumber, and Planing	1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers	1
Discount Department Stores	1
Drilling Oil and Gas Wells	2
Electric Power Distribution	1
Electrical Contractors	3
Engineering Services	3
Environmental Consulting Services	1
Facilities Support Services	1
Florists	2
Freight Transportation Arrangement	1
Full-Service Restaurants	2
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services	2
Furniture Stores	1
General Automotive Repair	2
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores	2
Golf Courses and Country Clubs	1
Hardware Stores	2
Home Health Care Services	1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages	4
Janitorial Services	2
Limited-Service Restaurants	5
Logging	5
Machine Shops	1
Masonry Contractors	1
Miscellaneous Intermediation	1
New Car Dealers	3
Newspaper Publishers	1
Nursing Care Facilities	2
Office Administrative Services	1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores	1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants	2
Offices of Chiropractors	2
Offices of Dentists	2
Offices of Lawyers	6
Offices of Optometrists	1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers	1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals	1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores	4
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas	2
Radio Stations	1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing	1
Roofing Contractors	1
Savings Institutions	1
Security Guards and Patrol Services	1
Site Preparation Contractors	3
Solid Waste Landfill	1
Sporting Goods Stores	2
Tire Dealers	2
Used Car Dealers	1
Used Merchandise Stores	1
Video Tape and Disc Rental	2
Vocational Rehabilitation Services	1
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems	1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers	1

Should You Buy an Existing Jena Business?

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

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

Naming the Company

A big decision when starting a company is choosing a company name. Believe it or not, choosing a good company name can be a big contributor to your business success.

Companies like Starbucks, Apple, Target, Microsoft and Intuit all have strong company names that are easy to remember and have become well-loved brands. Wouldn't it be nice if your new company name got on a similar track?

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

As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are starting a business in Jena, it's very important that you make sure you will be the only Louisiana company using the business name you have chosen.

Forming a Company in Jena, Louisiana

It's essential that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. 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.

Incorporation 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 Louisiana, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in Louisiana. 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 Avoiding Personal Liability in Business. You may also want to seek the advice of an lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Jena, Louisiana, our information on Incorporating in Louisiana may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Louisiana.

The Role of the Business Plan

A business plan is critical to the health of your new business. Indeed, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

Before you start writing a business plan, we suggest you skim Business Plan Outsourcing. You can also get face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in Louisiana.

Moving Forward

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

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Jena and throughout the United States . We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Jena entrepreneur who is just getting started or you are already up and running with your new venture.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Jena, Louisiana

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

• Resources for Jena, Louisiana Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Jena entrepreneurs.
• Louisiana Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Louisiana.
• Louisiana Small Business Development Center - The Louisiana Small Business Development Center (LSBDC Network) provides low- or no-cost guidance and training for small business owners and potential owners.
• Jena, Louisiana Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Jena, Louisiana newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Jena area.
• Jena, Louisiana Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Jena, Louisiana area radio stations.

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