Open a Business in Nome, Alaska

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

Are You Sure You Want to Do This?

Most new businesses don't make it, in part because the business owner did not have the entrepreneurial skills and traits needed to succeed. So, before you open a business, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.

Here are three things we recommend you do before you fully commit to starting a new business of your own.

Reach out to other entrepreneurs in Nome. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
Peruse Why Small Businesses Fail. This is one of our more popular articles for folks who want to go into business for themselves.
Get feedback from somebody whom you trust. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.

Nome, Alaska Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size	# of Businesses
1-4 Employees	495
5-9 Employees	207
10-19 Employees	117
20-49 Employees	90
50-99 Employees	18
100-249 Employees	9
250-499 Employees	9
500-999 Employees	0
1000+ Employees	0
All Nome Businesses	945

As a new Nome entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Nome 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
Art Dealers	1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores	1
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores	3
Business Associations	2
Child Day Care Services	2
Civic and Social Organizations	4
Convention and Visitors Bureaus	1
Credit Unions	1
Document Preparation Services	1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)	2
Electrical Contractors	1
Fresh and Frozen Seafood Processing	1
Full-Service Restaurants	6
General Automotive Repair	2
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores	3
Grantmaking Foundations	1
Hardware Stores	2
Heating Oil Dealers	1
Janitorial Services	2
Land Subdivision	1
Limited-Service Restaurants	3
Miscellaneous Intermediation	1
Newspaper Publishers	1
Offices of Chiropractors	1
Offices of Dentists	1
Offices of Lawyers	2
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors	1
Passenger Car Rental	1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals	1
Portfolio Management	1
Recreational Vehicle Dealers	1
Scheduled Freight Air Transportation	2
Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation	3
School and Employee Bus Transportation	1
Septic Tank and Related Services	1
Site Preparation Contractors	1
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars	1
Solid Waste Collection	1
Sporting Goods Stores	1
Temporary Shelters	1

Choosing a Company Name

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.

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?

To get up to speed on what makes for a good company name, we encourage you to read this useful article: Naming a Company.

On a final note, given that you are opening a business in Nome, it's imperative that you check now that no other Alaska company is using the business name you want to use.

Company Formation in Nome, Alaska

It's essential that you choose the right legal structure for your new entity. Among other things, forming a legal entity for the business limits your 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. Just because you are starting a business in Alaska, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Alaska. In fact, you are allowed to 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's a lot to know about forming a company. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Offshore Company Formation. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Nome, Alaska, our information on Incorporating in Alaska may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Alaska.

Letting the World Know You Exist

To grow your Nome business, you'll need to have a good marketing plan.

We have some helpful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Newspaper Advertising Costs discusses marketing strategy and tactical marketing in a way that should get you thinking about how to creatively promote your business. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.

Bring in Revenues

Mastering the art of selling is essential if you want your new Nome business to do well.

Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.

Hiring Good Sales People offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

Learning More About Entrepreneurship

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

With your business being located in Nome, Alaska, you will want to take advantage of the learning programs at local Alaska educational institutions. It's also beneficial to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Nome entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.

Next Steps

Most new Nome businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.

If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.

We are here to help Nome 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 Nome, Alaska

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

Resources for Nome, Alaska Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Nome entrepreneurs.
Alaska Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Alaska.
Alaska Small Business Development Center - The Alaska Small Business Development Center, which is hosted by the University of Alaska and funded in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration, has assisted businesses by providing free, confidential technical business assistance and low-cost business training in Alaska for twenty years.
Nome, Alaska Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Nome, Alaska newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Nome area.
Nome, Alaska Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Nome, Alaska area radio stations.

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