Start a Business in Sidney, Montana

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

Are You Sure You Want to Do This?

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

While entrepreneurship has become a popular career choice, we recommend you do the following before you take the plunge:

• Talk to other entrepreneurs in Sidney. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
• We recommend reading Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
• Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.

Sidney, Montana Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size	# of Businesses
1-4 Employees	4968
5-9 Employees	1944
10-19 Employees	1224
20-49 Employees	600
50-99 Employees	48
100-249 Employees	72
250-499 Employees	24
500-999 Employees	0
1000+ Employees	0
All Sidney Businesses	8880

As a new Sidney entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Sidney 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 Exhaust System Repair	1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops	1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores	2
Beauty Salons	1
Beet Sugar Manufacturing	2
Book Stores	1
Bowling Centers	1
Broadwoven Fabric Finishing Mills	1
Business Associations	3
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services	1
Caterers	1
Charter Bus Industry	1
Child and Youth Services	1
Child Day Care Services	1
Civic and Social Organizations	4
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners	1
Collection Agencies	1
Commercial Lithographic Printing	1
Computer and Software Stores	1
Convention and Trade Show Organizers	1
Couriers	1
Credit Unions	1
Custom Computer Programming Services	1
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers	1
Drilling Oil and Gas Wells	1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)	5
Electric Power Distribution	2
Electrical Contractors	2
Engineering Services	1
Exam Preparation and Tutoring	1
Family Clothing Stores	2
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	1
Finish Carpentry Contractors	1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers	2
Floor Covering Stores	1
Florists	1
Food Service Contractors	2
Freight Transportation Arrangement	1
Full-Service Restaurants	10
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services	1
Furniture Stores	3
General Automotive Repair	2
General Freight Trucking, Local	2
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores	1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs	1
Grantmaking Foundations	1
Hardware Stores	3
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores	1
Home Health Equipment Rental	2
Homes for the Elderly	1
Household Appliance Stores	1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages	8
Janitorial Services	1
Jewelry Stores	1
Landscaping Services	2
Limited-Service Restaurants	8
Livestock Merchant Wholesalers	1
Machine Shops	1
Media Representatives	1
Medical Laboratories	1
Motorcycle Dealers	1
Museums	1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores	1
Natural Gas Distribution	2
New Car Dealers	3
New Housing Operative Builders	1
Newspaper Publishers	1
Office Administrative Services	1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants	4
Offices of Chiropractors	2
Offices of Dentists	3
Offices of Lawyers	12
Offices of Optometrists	2
Offices of Podiatrists	1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors	1
Periodical Publishers	1
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores	1
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services	1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals	3
Pharmacies and Drug Stores	2
Photography Studios, Portrait	1
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas	1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing	1
Recreational Vehicle Dealers	1
Residential Property Managers	1
Residential Remodelers	4
Retail Bakeries	1
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair	1
Roofing Contractors	1
Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation	1
School and Employee Bus Transportation	3
Securities Brokerage	3
Siding Contractors	1
Site Preparation Contractors	4
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars	1
Soft Drink Manufacturing	1
Sports and Recreation Instruction	1
Tax Preparation Services	1
Temporary Shelters	1
Tire and Tube Merchant Wholesalers	1
Tire Dealers	1
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices	1
Travel Agencies	1
Used Car Dealers	1
Veterinary Services	2
Video Tape and Disc Rental	2
Vocational Rehabilitation Services	1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers	1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers	2
Women's Clothing Stores	1

Should You Franchise?

As you drive around Sidney, it becomes clear that purchasing a franchise is a common way to get started as an entrepreneur. But is franchising the right option for you?

Most business experts recommend that you consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as How to Franchise a Business. Get a thorough education on franchising by browsing all of our Articles on Franchising.

To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.

Sample franchise opportunities include Window Genie and Affiliated Car Rental. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Blind Repair and Sales Franchises and Family Restaurant Franchises.

Note on Sidney Franchise Opportunities: To find out if a franchise you are interested in is available in Sidney, you will need to get in direct contact with the franchisor.

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Sidney Business?

An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Montana. Follow that link and you can review several good businesses for sale in Sidney.

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

Do You Need a Business Plan?

A business plan is essential to the health of your new business. Simply put, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Starting a business without a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

To learn more about business plans, read Find Sample Business Plans Online. A great resource for business planning assistance is the free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Montana.

Advancing Your Entrepreneurial Skills

Successful entrepreneurs recognize that they don't know everything.

Given that you are starting a business in Sidney, Montana, you will want to take advantage of the learning programs at local Montana educational institutions. We also recommend you look into Sidney networking organizations.

Next Steps

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

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

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

• Resources for Sidney, Montana Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Sidney entrepreneurs.
• Montana Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Montana.
• Montana Small Business Development Center - The Montana Small Business Development Centers focus on the creation, retention and expansion of Montana small businesses.
• Sidney, Montana Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Sidney, Montana newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Sidney area.
• Sidney, Montana Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Sidney, Montana area radio stations.

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