Starting a Business in Norton, Virginia

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

Are You Sure You Want to Do This?

Most startup businesses do not succeed, in part because the founder did not have the perseverance and abilities that are necessary to succeed. So, before you open a business, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.

With so much at stake when you start a business, we strongly recommend you do the following before you proceed:

• Grab a meal or cofee with other entrepreneurs in Norton. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
• Take a look at The Entrepreneurial Personality. It's a short article but it's a good reality check for those are about to jump into the world of entrepreneurship.
• Reach out to a trusted acquaintance. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.

What Type of Business Should You Start?

Choosing a business that is right for you is very important. You might get some good ideas about what kind of business to start by reading 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 How to Start a Birth Announcement Services Business guide or our Starting a Church of Divine Man Churches Business guide.

Remember that Norton is the place where you are starting a business. Some businesses will do better in Norton than others. Only by spending some time analyzing Norton demographics can you decide if there will be strong demand for your business idea.

Norton, Virginia Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size	# of Businesses
1-4 Employees	1215
5-9 Employees	630
10-19 Employees	324
20-49 Employees	270
50-99 Employees	81
100-249 Employees	81
250-499 Employees	36
500-999 Employees	9
1000+ Employees	0
All Norton Businesses	2646

As a new Norton entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Norton 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
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores	3
Beauty Salons	1
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers	1
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores	1
Bituminous Coal Underground Mining	3
Bowling Centers	1
Business Associations	1
Cable and Other Program Distribution	1
Child Day Care Services	5
Commercial Lithographic Printing	1
Commercial Screen Printing	1
Community Food Services	1
Computer Systems Design Services	1
Consumer Lending	1
Convenience Stores	1
Credit Bureaus	1
Credit Unions	1
Cut Stock, Resawing Lumber, and Planing	1
Diagnostic Imaging Centers	1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers	1
Discount Department Stores	1
Drive-In Motion Picture Theaters	1
Electric Power Distribution	2
Electrical Contractors	4
Family Clothing Stores	1
Finish Carpentry Contractors	1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers	2
Floor Covering Stores	2
Florists	1
Fruit and Vegetable Markets	1
Full-Service Restaurants	4
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services	2
Furniture Stores	3
General Automotive Repair	4
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	3
General Warehousing and Storage	1
Grantmaking Foundations	1
Hardware Stores	1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores	1
Home Health Care Services	1
Household Appliance Stores	1
Industrial Launderers	1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages	6
Jewelry Stores	4
Land Subdivision	1
Landscaping Services	1
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property	1
Limited-Service Restaurants	13
Local Messengers and Local Delivery	1
Logging	1
Mail-Order Houses	1
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers	3
Media Representatives	1
Medical Laboratories	1
Men's Clothing Stores	1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers	2
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores	1
New Car Dealers	1
Newspaper Publishers	1
Office Administrative Services	1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores	1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants	2
Offices of Chiropractors	1
Offices of Dentists	3
Offices of Lawyers	15
Offices of Optometrists	1
Offices of Other Holding Companies	1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers	1
One-Hour Photofinishing	1
Paging	1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores	1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors	1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores	2
Photography Studios, Portrait	1
Plate Work Manufacturing	1
Portfolio Management	1
Radio Stations	1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing	1
Residential Property Managers	2
Residential Remodelers	3
Security Guards and Patrol Services	1
Shoe Stores	1
Soft Drink Manufacturing	1
Solid Waste Collection	1
Solid Waste Landfill	1
Special Needs Transportation	1
Sporting Goods Stores	2
Support Activities for Coal Mining	4
Tax Preparation Services	1
Temporary Shelters	1
Tire Dealers	2
Used Car Dealers	1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers	6
Women's Clothing Stores	1
Wood Preservation	1

Forming a Company in Norton, Virginia

It's very important that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. The principal advantage of forming your new business as a legal entity is that it separates your business liabilities from your personal liabilities.

When forming a company, you will pick from many company types, such as a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.

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. If you are starting a business in Virginia, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Virginia. As it turns out, you can incorporate wherever you want. For example, it's very popular to incorporate in Delaware, and incorporating in Nevada has become very trendy as well. Don't forget, though, that you will have to register as a foreign entity in all states that you do business in.

There are many nuances to forming a company. To learn the fundamentals of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as Corporate Formalities. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Norton, Virginia, our web page covering Incorporating in Virginia may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Virginia.

Don't Forget to Create a Business Plan

A business plan is vital in maximizing the prospects of your new company. In effect, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

To learn more about business plans, read Expert Advice on Business Plans. A great resource for business planning assistance is the free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Virginia.

Marketing Your New Venture

To rise above the crowd in Norton and grow your business, you need a excellent marketing plan.

You can learn quite a bit about marketing on our site. Making the Most of Trade Shows 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.

How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Abilities

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

Given that you are starting a business in Norton, Virginia, you should get information on some of the learning programs at local Virginia educational institutions. You should also check if there are any Norton networking organizations.

Next Steps

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

Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.

This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Norton and elsewhere to achieve real success. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Norton 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 Norton, Virginia

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

• Resources for Norton, Virginia Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Norton entrepreneurs.
• Virginia Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Virginia.
• Virginia Small Business Development Center - Virginia Small Business Development Centers offer professional business counseling, training and information resources to help grow and strengthen Virginia businesses.
• Norton, Virginia Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Norton, Virginia newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Norton area.
• Norton, Virginia Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Norton, Virginia area radio stations.

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