Open a Business in Skagway, Alaska

Contemplating starting a business in Skagway, Alaska? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Skagway.

Skagway, Alaska Demographic Information

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

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

As a new Skagway entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Skagway 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.

Selecting a Name For Your Venture

A big decision when starting a company is choosing a company name. Believe it or not, choosing a good company name can be a big contributor to your business success.

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?

Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Naming a Company.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are opening a business in Skagway, it's critical that you ensure that no other Alaska company is using the business name you want to use.

Company Formation in Skagway, Alaska

It's very important that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Doing so will shield you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.

The entity you form can be a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.

Incorporating is a very common way to legally create a business entity. 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 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's a lot to know about forming a company. To learn the fundamentals of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as ESOP Formation. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Skagway, Alaska, our information on Incorporating in Alaska may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Alaska.

The Role of the Business Plan

Having a business plan is vital to the health of your new business. Simply put, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Failure to write a business plan makes you more prone to becoming a business failure statistic.

If you want more information on writing business plans, we recommend reading Business Plan Contests. You should also take advantage of free business counselors available to you through your local SCORE chapter in Alaska.

Raising Capital for Your Venture

Getting your Skagway business the capital it needs to succeed is not an easy task. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.

To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as Getting a Small Business Loan.

For Skagway entrepreneurs who need startup capital, check out our List of Alaska Angel Investors and our List of Alaska Venture Capital Firms.

Marketing Your New Venture

To rise above the crowd in Skagway and build your business, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your beating the competition.

We have some excellent resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Music on Hold is an article that will stimulate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. That's just a taste of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

Building Up Your Sales

Do you know how to sell? In order to attract customers to your new Skagway business, you need to focus on sales.

Why should customers buy from you instead of buying from competitors? The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.

Selling with Questions is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.

Never Give Up

As an entrepreneur in Skagway, you won't be working for the boss anymore. You are the boss.

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

We are here to help Skagway businesses to be successful. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Skagway 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 Skagway, Alaska

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

• Resources for Skagway, Alaska Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Skagway 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.
• Skagway, Alaska Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Skagway, Alaska newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Skagway area.