Contemplating starting a business in Milford, Massachusetts? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Milford.
Is Becoming a Business Owner Right for You?
Most new businesses fail, in part because the business owner did not have the entrepreneurial skills and traits needed to succeed. So, before jumping into the world of entrepreneurship, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.
Because entrepreneurship is not for everyone, we recommend you do the following to help you assess whether you should move forward with starting a business:
- Grab a meal or cofee with other entrepreneurs in Milford. Get their take on what it's really like to be an entrepreneur.
- Take a look at Business Failure. It's a short article but it's a good reality check for those are about to jump into the world of entrepreneurship.
- Involve a spouse, family member or trusted friend in the decision. That's the best way to get a truly objective assessment as to whether others think you have what it takes.
Milford, Massachusetts Demographic Information
Milford has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Milford demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Milford.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
22268 |
| 5-9 Employees |
8607 |
| 10-19 Employees |
6156 |
| 20-49 Employees |
4503 |
| 50-99 Employees |
1767 |
| 100-249 Employees |
1026 |
| 250-499 Employees |
114 |
| 500-999 Employees |
114 |
| 1000+ Employees |
114 |
| All Milford Businesses |
44669 |
As a new Milford entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Milford 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 |
| Advertising Agencies |
2 |
| Ambulance Services |
1 |
| Architectural Services |
3 |
| Automotive Glass Replacement Shops |
3 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
5 |
| Baked Goods Stores |
3 |
| Beauty Salons |
12 |
| Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
8 |
| Book Stores |
1 |
| Building Inspection Services |
2 |
| Business Associations |
2 |
| Cable and Other Program Distribution |
1 |
| Car Washes |
4 |
| Caterers |
2 |
| Cemeteries and Crematories |
2 |
| Child Day Care Services |
12 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
1 |
| Claims Adjusting |
2 |
| Clothing Accessories Stores |
1 |
| Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners |
2 |
| Collection Agencies |
2 |
| Commercial Bakeries |
1 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
3 |
| Computer Facilities Management Services |
2 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
5 |
| Computer Training |
1 |
| Consumer Lending |
1 |
| Convenience Stores |
3 |
| Credit Bureaus |
1 |
| Custom Computer Programming Services |
6 |
| Diagnostic Imaging Centers |
1 |
| Dimension Stone Mining and Quarrying |
1 |
| Direct Title Insurance Carriers |
2 |
| Discount Department Stores |
3 |
| Drafting Services |
1 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
2 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
2 |
| Electrical Contractors |
8 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
1 |
| Emergency and Other Relief Services |
1 |
| Employment Placement Agencies |
1 |
| Engineering Services |
5 |
| Environmental Consulting Services |
1 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
1 |
| Fabric Coating Mills |
1 |
| Facilities Support Services |
1 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Family Planning Centers |
1 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
2 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
3 |
| Fish and Seafood Markets |
1 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
6 |
| Floor Covering Stores |
3 |
| Flooring Contractors |
2 |
| Florists |
2 |
| Food Service Contractors |
4 |
| Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation |
1 |
| Framing Contractors |
5 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
31 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
3 |
| Furniture Stores |
1 |
| General Automotive Repair |
8 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
1 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
1 |
| General Rental Centers |
2 |
| General Warehousing and Storage |
2 |
| Glass Container Manufacturing |
1 |
| Graphic Design Services |
1 |
| Hardware Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Heating Oil Dealers |
3 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
1 |
| Home Centers |
1 |
| Home Health Care Services |
2 |
| Homes for the Elderly |
1 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
1 |
| Industrial Building Construction |
1 |
| Industrial Launderers |
1 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
5 |
| Internet Publishing and Broadcasting |
1 |
| Investigation Services |
2 |
| Investment Advice |
2 |
| Janitorial Services |
6 |
| Jewelry Stores |
4 |
| Junior Colleges |
1 |
| Land Subdivision |
2 |
| Landscape Architectural Services |
2 |
| Landscaping Services |
10 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
20 |
| Limousine Service |
2 |
| Mail-Order Houses |
1 |
| Marketing Consulting Services |
1 |
| Marking Device Manufacturing |
1 |
| Masonry Contractors |
5 |
| Meat Markets |
1 |
| Medical Laboratories |
1 |
| Men's Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Metal Stamping |
1 |
| Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers |
2 |
| Motor Vehicle Body Manufacturing |
1 |
| Motor Vehicle Metal Stamping |
1 |
| Motor Vehicle Towing |
1 |
| Musical Groups and Artists |
1 |
| Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores |
2 |
| Nail Salons |
1 |
| New Car Dealers |
4 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
2 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
1 |
| Nonresidential Property Managers |
1 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
2 |
| Office Administrative Services |
2 |
| Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
5 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
1 |
| Offices of Dentists |
17 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
31 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
1 |
| Offices of Other Holding Companies |
1 |
| Offices of Podiatrists |
1 |
| Offices of Real Estate Appraisers |
1 |
| One-Hour Photofinishing |
1 |
| Ophthalmic Goods Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Optical Goods Stores |
2 |
| Paint and Coating Manufacturing |
2 |
| Paint and Wallpaper Stores |
1 |
| Passenger Car Rental |
2 |
| Payroll Services |
1 |
| Pet and Pet Supplies Stores |
1 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
2 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
7 |
| Photography Studios, Portrait |
2 |
| Portfolio Management |
1 |
| Professional Organizations |
1 |
| Quick Printing |
3 |
| Radio Stations |
1 |
| Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing |
1 |
| Real Estate Credit |
7 |
| Residential Property Managers |
3 |
| Residential Remodelers |
6 |
| Retail Bakeries |
1 |
| Roofing Contractors |
4 |
| Savings Institutions |
5 |
| School and Employee Bus Transportation |
2 |
| Securities Brokerage |
2 |
| Security Guards and Patrol Services |
1 |
| Shoe Stores |
2 |
| Siding Contractors |
1 |
| Sign Manufacturing |
2 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
8 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
8 |
| Software Publishers |
1 |
| Solid Waste Collection |
1 |
| Special Needs Transportation |
1 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
6 |
| Sports and Recreation Instruction |
1 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
2 |
| Telemarketing Bureaus |
1 |
| Temporary Help Services |
3 |
| Temporary Shelters |
1 |
| Tile and Terrazzo Contractors |
3 |
| Tire Dealers |
1 |
| Tobacco Stores |
1 |
| Travel Agencies |
1 |
| Used Car Dealers |
5 |
| Used Household and Office Goods Moving |
4 |
| Used Merchandise Stores |
1 |
| Veterinary Services |
2 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
4 |
| Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
3 |
| Water Supply and Irrigation Systems |
1 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
4 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
4 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
2 |
Is a Franchise Opportunity Right For You?
Visit the business district of Milford and you may be surprised to see how many franchises there are in the area. Evidently, there must be some significant advantages to purchasing a franchise.
We highly recommend you investigate buying a franchise. On our site, you can read many articles about franchising, such as Before Buying a Franchise. Gain a solid understanding of franchising by scanning all of our Articles on Franchising.
You can review hundreds of franchise opportunities by browing our Franchise Directory.
Sample franchise opportunities include The Philly Connection and La Paletera Franchise Systems, Inc.. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Video and DVD Rental Franchises and Auto Parts and Tools Franchises.
Note on Milford Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Milford.
What About Buying an Existing Milford Business?
An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Massachusetts. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Milford.
If you are going to be buying a business, you may want to read this article: How to Buy a Business.
Naming the Company
Making the right decision when choosing a company name is very important. There are many decisions you'll make now that you can change later, but changing a company name years down the road is not very easy. So, choose a good company name at the outset.
Pick a company name that isn't too generic. If you do a search engine search for your proposed name and a billion results come up, you may want to reconsider the name. It's much easier to come up in the search engines when your name is fairly unique.
To get up to speed on what makes for a good company name, we encourage you to read this useful article: Naming a Business.
As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are starting a business in Milford, it's imperative that you check now that no other Massachusetts company is using the business name you want to use.
Increase Your Entrepreneurial Knowledge
Successful entrepreneurs recognize that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.
As an entrepreneur who lives in Milford, Massachusetts, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Massachusetts universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also worthwhile to see if there are any networking organizations for Milford entrepreneurs.
Moving Forward
Most new Milford businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
From this point on, you control your own destiny.
We are here to help Milford businesses to be successful. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Milford, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Milford, Massachusetts
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Milford.
- Resources for Milford, Massachusetts Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Milford entrepreneurs.
- Massachusetts Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Massachusetts.
- Massachusetts Small Business Development Center - The Massachusetts Small Business Development Center (MSBDC) Network provides one-to-one free comprehensive and confidential services focusing on, business growth and strategies, financing and loan assistance as well as strategic, marketing and operational analysis.
- Milford, Massachusetts Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Milford, Massachusetts newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Milford area.
- Milford, Massachusetts Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Milford, Massachusetts area radio stations.
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