Thinking about starting a business in Starkville, Mississippi? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Starkville.
Which Business to Choose?
There are many businesses that you can start. How do you know which type of business is right for you? To stir your creative juices on what kind of business to start, take a look at Evaluating Your Idea.
For step-by-step instructions on starting a variety of business types, visit the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Starting a Motorcycle Riding & Safety Instruction Business guide or our Opening a Bridal Supplies Retail Business guide.
Always keep in mind that your new startup will be located in Starkville. The business you want to start may already be well-represented in Starkville. A critical consideration is whether Starkville demographics mesh well with your startup concept.
Starkville, Mississippi Demographic Information
Starkville has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Starkville demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Starkville.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
1874 |
| 5-9 Employees |
1038 |
| 10-19 Employees |
756 |
| 20-49 Employees |
432 |
| 50-99 Employees |
120 |
| 100-249 Employees |
54 |
| 250-499 Employees |
24 |
| 500-999 Employees |
12 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Starkville Businesses |
4310 |
As a new Starkville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Starkville 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 |
| Appliance Repair and Maintenance |
1 |
| Architectural Services |
3 |
| Art Dealers |
1 |
| Automotive Exhaust System Repair |
1 |
| Automotive Glass Replacement Shops |
2 |
|
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
7 |
| Automotive Transmission Repair |
1 |
| Beauty Salons |
11 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
3 |
| Book Stores |
5 |
| Bowling Centers |
1 |
| Broadwoven Fabric Finishing Mills |
1 |
| Broadwoven Fabric Mills |
1 |
|
Business Associations |
1 |
| Cable and Other Program Distribution |
2 |
| Cafeterias |
2 |
| Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services |
1 |
| Caterers |
1 |
| Cemeteries and Crematories |
1 |
| Charter Bus Industry |
2 |
| Child Day Care Services |
8 |
|
Civic and Social Organizations |
2 |
| Clothing Accessories Stores |
1 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
1 |
| Computer and Software Stores |
1 |
| Computer Facilities Management Services |
1 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
1 |
| Consumer Lending |
7 |
| Continuing Care Retirement Communities |
2 |
|
Convenience Stores |
3 |
| Copper Wire (except Mechanical) Drawing |
1 |
| Credit Unions |
1 |
| Custom Computer Programming Services |
2 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
4 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
2 |
| Educational Support Services |
1 |
| Electric Power Distribution |
1 |
|
Electrical Contractors |
3 |
| Electronic Shopping |
2 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
2 |
| Emergency and Other Relief Services |
1 |
| Engineering Services |
7 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
1 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
3 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
1 |
|
Finfish Fishing |
1 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
2 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
2 |
| Floor Covering Stores |
3 |
| Florists |
2 |
| Food (Health) Supplement Stores |
1 |
| Food Service Contractors |
2 |
| Framing Contractors |
1 |
|
Freight Transportation Arrangement |
1 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
26 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
2 |
| Furniture Stores |
5 |
| General Automotive Repair |
11 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
1 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
1 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
4 |
|
Glass and Glazing Contractors |
1 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
1 |
| Home Centers |
3 |
| Home Health Care Services |
2 |
| Homes for the Elderly |
2 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
1 |
| Ice Manufacturing |
1 |
| Industrial Mold Manufacturing |
1 |
|
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
12 |
| Investment Advice |
2 |
| Janitorial Services |
3 |
| Jewelry Stores |
3 |
| Kidney Dialysis Centers |
1 |
| Land Subdivision |
1 |
| Landscaping Services |
11 |
| Lessors of Other Real Estate Property |
3 |
|
Limited-Service Restaurants |
35 |
| Logging |
1 |
| Mail-Order Houses |
1 |
| Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers |
1 |
| Masonry Contractors |
1 |
| Meat Markets |
1 |
| Men's Clothing Stores |
2 |
| Motion Picture and Video Production |
1 |
|
Motor Vehicle Towing |
2 |
| Motorcycle Dealers |
1 |
| Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores |
1 |
| Natural Gas Distribution |
1 |
| New Car Dealers |
3 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
2 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
1 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
2 |
|
Office Administrative Services |
1 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
6 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
3 |
| Offices of Dentists |
11 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
14 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
3 |
| Offices of Other Holding Companies |
1 |
| Offices of Real Estate Appraisers |
2 |
|
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores |
1 |
| Paint and Wallpaper Stores |
2 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
3 |
| Passenger Car Rental |
1 |
| Pet and Pet Supplies Stores |
3 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
1 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
4 |
| Photography Studios, Portrait |
2 |
|
Precision Turned Product Manufacturing |
2 |
| Private Mail Centers |
1 |
| Radio Stations |
2 |
| Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing |
1 |
| Real Estate Credit |
3 |
| Repossession Services |
1 |
| Residential Property Managers |
4 |
| Residential Remodelers |
4 |
|
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair |
1 |
| Roofing Contractors |
3 |
| Rooming and Boarding Houses |
2 |
| Securities Brokerage |
5 |
| Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing |
1 |
| Shoe Stores |
5 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
2 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
5 |
|
Software Publishers |
2 |
| Solid Waste Collection |
1 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
2 |
| Sports and Recreation Instruction |
3 |
| Support Activities for Forestry |
1 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
3 |
| Temporary Help Services |
2 |
| Testing Laboratories |
1 |
|
Timber Tract Operations |
1 |
| Tire Dealers |
3 |
| Tobacco Stores |
1 |
| Travel Agencies |
1 |
| Used Car Dealers |
4 |
| Used Merchandise Stores |
3 |
| Veterinary Services |
6 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
3 |
|
Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
2 |
| Voluntary Health Organizations |
2 |
| Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters |
1 |
| Water Supply and Irrigation Systems |
1 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
2 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
7 |
Choosing a Company Name
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.
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.
For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Branding Advice.
As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are opening a business in Starkville, it's critical that you ensure that you will be the only Mississippi company using the business name you have chosen.
Company Formation in Starkville, Mississippi
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 traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.
Incorporation 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 Mississippi, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Mississippi. As it turns out, 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. To learn the basics of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as Incorporating Online. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Starkville, Mississippi, our information on Incorporating in Mississippi may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Mississippi.
Where to Get Money to Start a Company
Finding the funds to fuel the growth of your Starkville business is very difficult due to the ongoing business credit crunch. In fact, financing your new business may be the hardest challenge you ever face.
To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as Only Idiots Send Venture Capitalists Business Plans.
For Starkville entrepreneurs with great ambition but a shortage of investment capital, you'll want to take a look at our List of Mississippi Angel Investors and our List of Mississippi Venture Capital Firms.
Marketing Your New Venture
To grow your Starkville business, you'll need to have a good marketing plan.
You can learn a ton about marketing on our site. Internet Advertising is an article that will stimulate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. That's just one of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.
Never Give Up
As an entrepreneur in Starkville, 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.
Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Starkville and throughout the United States . We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Starkville 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 Starkville, Mississippi
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Starkville.
- Resources for Starkville, Mississippi Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Starkville entrepreneurs.
- Mississippi Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Mississippi.
- Mississippi Small Business Development Center - The Mississippi Small Business Development Centers (MSBDC) is dedicated to helping build and grow businesses in Mississippi. For new entrepreneurs, this is an excellent resource.
- Starkville, Mississippi Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Starkville, Mississippi newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Starkville area.
- Starkville, Mississippi Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Starkville, Mississippi area radio stations.
- Starkville, Mississippi Payroll Services - This list includes Starkville, Mississippi payroll services, national payroll services for Starkville, and helpful information on choosing a Starkville payroll service.
- Starkville, Mississippi Businesses for Sale - This list includes resources for buying a business in Starkville, Mississippi, such as business brokers in Starkville and other helpful information on how to buy a Starkville business.
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