South Dakota Business Startup Guides
Opening a Business in Brookings, South Dakota
Contemplating starting a business in Brookings, South Dakota? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Brookings.
Brookings, South Dakota Demographic Information
Brookings has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Brookings demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Brookings.
Businesses
As a new Brookings entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Brookings 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.
Businesses
Is a Franchise Opportunity Right For You?
As you drive around Brookings, you'll conclude that many business owners have opted to buy a franchise, rather than starting a business on their own. So, it probably makes sense for you to consider franchising too.
We highly recommend you consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as Franchise Marketing Support. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.
To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.
Representative franchise opportunities include VendMasters and Cinnamon City. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Fitness Franchises and Mail and Shipping Services Franchises.
Note on Brookings Franchise Opportunities: To find out if a franchise you are interested in is available in Brookings, you will need to get in direct contact with the franchisor.
Have You Considered Buying an Existing Brookings Business?
We've created a handy website page for those who want to Buy a Business in South Dakota. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Brookings.
Before buying a business, be sure to read this article: Hold Harmless Agreements When Buying Businesses.
Naming the Business
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.
On a final note, given that you are planning on starting a business in Brookings, it's very important that you make sure no other South Dakota company is using the business name you want to use.
Forming a Company in Brookings, South Dakota
It's very important that you form your business as a legal structure. The primary advantage of forming your new business as a legal entity is that it separates your business liabilities from your personal liabilities.
The entity you form can be a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.
Incorporation 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 South Dakota, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in South Dakota. In fact, you can incorporate in the state of your choosing. 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. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as ESOP Formation. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Brookings, South Dakota, our information on Incorporating in South Dakota may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in South Dakota.
Don't Skip the Business Plan
A business plan is vital to the health of your new business. 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 Business Presentations. You can also get face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in South Dakota.
Letting the World Know You Exist
Whether your goal is to attract Brookings customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your doing well.
We have some great resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Advertising Campaigns is a good read to get your marketing ideas flowing. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.
Next Steps
You have a dream -- starting a business in Brookings. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.
If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.
We are here to help Brookings businesses to be successful. We have a wealth of experience in business start-ups, financing, marketing, sales and more...and we've made all of our knowledge available to you.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Brookings, South Dakota
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Brookings.
- Resources for Brookings, South Dakota Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Brookings entrepreneurs.
- South Dakota Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in South Dakota.
- South Dakota Small Business Development Center - The South Dakota Small Business Development Center (SBDC) helps new South Dakota entrepreneurs realize their dream of business ownership and assists existing businesses in their efforts to remain competitive.
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