Start a Business in Lamar, Colorado

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

Do You Have Entrepreneurial Drive and Passion?

Before quitting your day job, take inventory of 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.

• Grab a meal or cofee with other entrepreneurs in Lamar. Get their candid feedback on what it takes to start a successful business.
• Take a look at Starting a Company. It's a short article but it's a good reality check for those are about to jump into the world of entrepreneurship.
• Talk it over with a close friend or partner. 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.

Lamar, Colorado Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size	# of Businesses
1-4 Employees	2928
5-9 Employees	1512
10-19 Employees	684
20-49 Employees	306
50-99 Employees	198
100-249 Employees	36
250-499 Employees	18
500-999 Employees	0
1000+ Employees	0
All Lamar Businesses	5682

As a new Lamar entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Lamar 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
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops	1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores	3
Beauty Salons	3
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores	3
Bowling Centers	1
Business Associations	1
Cable and Other Program Distribution	2
Child and Youth Services	1
Child Day Care Services	2
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores	1
Civic and Social Organizations	3
Collection Agencies	1
Commercial Lithographic Printing	1
Community Food Services	1
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining	1
Consumer Lending	1
Couriers	2
Court Reporting and Stenotype Services	1
Credit Unions	3
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)	4
Electric Power Distribution	1
Electrical Contractors	7
Environmental Consulting Services	1
Farm Labor Contractors and Crew Leaders	1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	1
Finish Carpentry Contractors	1
Floor Covering Stores	1
Florists	1
Food Service Contractors	3
Framing Contractors	1
Full-Service Restaurants	5
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services	2
Furniture Stores	1
General Automotive Repair	5
General Freight Trucking, Local	1
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores	1
Glass and Glazing Contractors	1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs	1
Grantmaking Foundations	1
Graphic Design Services	1
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers	1
Heavy Duty Truck Manufacturing	1
Home Centers	1
Home Health Care Services	1
Home Health Equipment Rental	2
Homes for the Elderly	1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages	10
Jewelry Stores	2
Landscaping Services	1
Lead Pencil and Art Good Manufacturing	1
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property	2
Limited-Service Restaurants	10
Locksmiths	1
Machine Shops	1
Marketing Consulting Services	3
Meat Markets	1
Motor Vehicle Towing	1
Natural Gas Distribution	2
New Car Dealers	2
Newspaper Publishers	1
Nursing Care Facilities	2
Offices of Certified Public Accountants	4
Offices of Chiropractors	2
Offices of Dentists	7
Offices of Lawyers	10
Offices of Optometrists	2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers	1
Optical Goods Stores	1
Paging	1
Paper Industry Machinery Manufacturing	1
Periodical Publishers	1
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services	1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals	2
Pipeline Transportation of Crude Oil	1
Portfolio Management	1
Professional Organizations	1
Radio Networks	1
Radio Stations	1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing	1
Real Estate Credit	1
Securities Brokerage	1
Shoe Stores	1
Site Preparation Contractors	2
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars	2
Sporting Goods Stores	1
Sports and Recreation Instruction	1
Tax Preparation Services	2
Tire Dealers	1
Truck Trailer Manufacturing	1
Used Car Dealers	4
Used Merchandise Stores	2
Veterinary Services	3
Video Tape and Disc Rental	1
Vocational Rehabilitation Services	1
Voluntary Health Organizations	1
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters	1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers	1
Women's Clothing Stores	3

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.

Before you decide on a company name, run it by some prospective customers and see what they think. If they don't like it, it's probably a good idea to go back to the drawing board.

For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Branding Advice.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are opening a business in Lamar, it's very important that you make sure no other Colorado company is using the business name you want to use.

Do You Need a Business Plan?

A business plan is vital in laying a solid foundation for your business success. In effect, 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.

To learn more about business plans, read Business Plan Contests. You can also get free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Colorado.

Marketing Your New Venture

Whether your goal is to attract Lamar customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you'll need to have a good marketing plan.

You can learn all about marketing on our site. Six Tips for Getting Customer Testimonials is a good read to get your marketing juices flowing. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.

The Art of Selling

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

Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.

Selling on the Phone offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

Now It's Up To You

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

We are here to help Lamar 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 Lamar, Colorado

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

• Resources for Lamar, Colorado Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Lamar entrepreneurs.
• Colorado Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Colorado.
• Colorado Small Business Development Center - The Colorado Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network is dedicated to helping small businesses throughout Colorado achieve their goals by providing free confidential counseling and various training programs.
• Lamar, Colorado Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Lamar, Colorado newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Lamar area.
• Lamar, Colorado Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Lamar, Colorado area radio stations.

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