Michigan Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Dundee, Michigan

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

What Type of Business Should You Start?

There are many businesses that you can start. How do you know which type of business is right for you? We recommend that you read Evaluating Your Idea.

To view an extensive list of business types, complete with startup instructions, spend some time in the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Starting a Credit Investigators Business guide or our Opening a Fire Departments Business guide.

Don't forget that you are starting a business in Dundee. Some businesses will do better in Dundee than others. Make sure you fully understand Dundee demographics before you lock in on your business idea.

Dundee, Michigan Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
1188
5-9 Employees
486
10-19 Employees
324
20-49 Employees
288
50-99 Employees
144
100-249 Employees
72
250-499 Employees
0
500-999 Employees
18
1000+ Employees
0
All Dundee Businesses
2520

As a new Dundee entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Dundee 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 Parts and Accessories Stores
1
Cafeterias
1
Cement Manufacturing
1
Child Day Care Services
2
Civic and Social Organizations
1
Community Food Services
1
Confectionery and Nut Stores
1
Custom Compounding of Purchased Resins
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
2
Food Service Contractors
2
Framing Contractors
2
Full-Service Restaurants
6
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
1
General Freight Trucking, Local
3
General Warehousing and Storage
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
1
Hardware Stores
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
2
Internet Service Providers
1
Iron and Steel Mills
1
Limited-Service Restaurants
7
Machine Shops
2
Marketing Consulting Services
1
Masonry Contractors
3
Metal Stamping
1
Motor Vehicle Metal Stamping
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
1
New Housing Operative Builders
2
Newspaper Publishers
1
Offices of Chiropractors
2
Offices of Dentists
2
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
3
Residential Remodelers
2
Sales Financing
1
Savings Institutions
1
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
2
Solid Waste Collection
1
Sporting Goods Stores
1
Travel Agencies
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
1

What About Buying an Existing Dundee Business?

We've created a handy website page for those who want to Buy a Business in Michigan. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Dundee.

If you are intent on buying a business, you may want to read this article: How to Buy a Business.

Choosing a Company Name

A good company name can give a big boost to a new startup. It might seem like an easy thing to do, but there are many things to consider when naming a business.

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.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are planning on starting a business in Dundee, it's critical that you ensure that no other Michigan company is using the business name you want to use.

Company Formation in Dundee, Michigan

It's essential 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 popular way to form a business. Of course, you have to decide which type of corporation to form and where to incorporate. Just because you are starting a business in Michigan, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Michigan. As it turns out, you can incorporate in any state you would like to. 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. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Registered Agents. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Dundee, Michigan, our information on Incorporating in Michigan may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Michigan.

Raising Money for Your New Venture

Getting your Dundee business the capital it needs to succeed is not an easy task. If you don't have a rich uncle to fund you, you'll need to be creative in how you approach your fundraising efforts.

Take advantage of our many articles on raising money, such as Attracting Investors.

For Dundee entrepreneurs who want to raise money for a new venture, check out our List of Michigan Angel Investors and our List of Michigan Venture Capital Firms.

Marketing Your New Venture

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

We have some helpful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Advertising on the Web 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.

Next Steps

As an entrepreneur in Dundee, 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 Dundee and throughout the United States . 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 Dundee, Michigan

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

  • Resources for Dundee, Michigan Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Dundee entrepreneurs.
  • Michigan Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Michigan.
  • Michigan Small Business Development Center - This organization supports 12 regional offices and over 30 satellite offices, each providing counseling and training to Michigan small business owners and entrepreneurs throughout the 83 counties in Michigan. Services to entrepreneurs are offered through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.

More Startup Articles for Michigan Cities

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Starting a Business in East Lansing

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