Maine Business Startup Guides

Opening a Business in Bath, Maine

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

Do You Have What It Takes?

Before announcing to the world that you are going to start your own business, assess your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.

Because entrepreneurship is not for everyone, we recommend you do the following to help you assess whether you should move forward with starting a business:

  • Talk to other entrepreneurs in Bath. Get their candid feedback on what it takes to start a successful business.
  • We recommend reading Why Small Businesses Fail. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
  • Get feedback from somebody whom you trust. A support network of family and friends can be a great sounding board for good advice before you decide for sure to go into business.

Which Business to Choose?

Choosing a business that is right for you is very important. If you are struggling with what type of business to start, read Finding Your Niche in Life.

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 Starting a Platemaking Services Business guide or our Opening a Surplus Merchandise Commercial & Industrial Business guide.

Always keep in mind that Bath is the place where you are starting a business. Think about what needs are currently being underserved in Bath. A critical consideration is whether Bath demographics mesh well with your startup concept.

Bath, Maine Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
3045
5-9 Employees
1095
10-19 Employees
555
20-49 Employees
480
50-99 Employees
135
100-249 Employees
75
250-499 Employees
0
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
15
All Bath Businesses
5400

As a new Bath entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Bath 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
Architectural Services
2
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
3
Beauty Salons
8
Bed-and-Breakfast Inns
1
Car Washes
1
Caterers
1
Child Day Care Services
9
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
1
Computer Facilities Management Services
2
Computer Systems Design Services
4
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
1
Convenience Stores
5
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
3
Directory and Mailing List Publishers
1
Electrical Contractors
6
Elementary and Secondary Schools
1
Employment Placement Agencies
1
Engineering Services
8
Finfish Fishing
1
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
3
Flooring Contractors
2
Florists
2
Framing Contractors
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
1
Full-Service Restaurants
15
Furniture Stores
1
General Automotive Repair
7
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Stores
1
Heating Oil Dealers
3
Homes for the Elderly
1
Household Appliance Stores
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
5
Internet Service Providers
1
Janitorial Services
2
Jewelry Stores
2
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Landscaping Services
5
Libraries and Archives
1
Limited-Service Restaurants
11
Machine Shops
1
Mail-Order Houses
2
Masonry Contractors
3
Materials Recovery Facilities
1
Motorcycle Dealers
1
Museums
1
New Car Dealers
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
5
Offices of Dentists
7
Offices of Lawyers
12
Offices of Optometrists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
2
Optical Goods Stores
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
2
Payroll Services
1
Private Mail Centers
2
Real Estate Credit
1
Remediation Services
1
Residential Remodelers
4
Rooming and Boarding Houses
1
Savings Institutions
4
Seafood Canning
1
Shellfish Fishing
2
Ship Building and Repairing
1
Site Preparation Contractors
4
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
3
Solid Waste Collection
1
Sporting Goods Stores
3
Tax Preparation Services
1
Tire Dealers
1
Travel Agencies
1
Used Car Dealers
2
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
2
Used Merchandise Stores
2
Veterinary Services
1
Video Tape and Disc Rental
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
1
Women's Clothing Stores
2

Marketing Your New Venture

To rise above the crowd in Bath and build your business, you need a solid marketing plan.

We have some helpful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Business Logo Design is a good read to get your marketing juices flowing. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.

Bring in Revenues

Being able to sell is critical to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Bath or are selling to customers throughout Maine, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.

Not knowing how to sell can result in lost customers and minimal market share. Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.

Compensating Sales People is worth reading, as it may give you some good ideas on how to sell your products or services. We have many more good articles on selling that you may enjoy reading.

Advancing Your Entrepreneurial Skills

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

As an entrepreneur who lives in Bath, Maine, you will want to take advantage of the learning programs at local Maine educational institutions. It's also smart to see if there are any networking organizations for Bath entrepreneurs.

Now It's Up To You

You have a dream -- starting a business in Bath. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.

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 Bath and throughout the United States . We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Bath, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Bath, Maine

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

  • Resources for Bath, Maine Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Bath entrepreneurs.
  • Maine Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Maine.
  • Maine Small Business Development Center - Maine Small Business Development Centers and its technology-focused group, the Maine Small Business & Technology Development Centers, provide comprehensive business management assistance, training, resource and information services to Maine's entrepreneurs and small business owners.

More Business Startup Guides for Maine

Starting a Business in Bar Harbor
Starting a Business in Belfast

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