North Dakota Business Startup Guides

Open a Business in Grafton, North Dakota

Need help starting a business in Grafton, North Dakota? We've got the information you need to open a business in Grafton.

Do You Have What It Takes?

Running your own business is difficult, much harder than working as an employee. Are you positive you have the stamina and skills to succeed on your own?

To determine whether you have what it takes to run a business, we recommend these three steps to help you decide:

  • Talk to other entrepreneurs in Grafton. Get their candid feedback on what it takes to start a successful business.
  • We recommend reading Should You Become an Entrepreneur?. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
  • Have a candid conversation with friends and family. 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.

Grafton, North Dakota Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
2408
5-9 Employees
1071
10-19 Employees
609
20-49 Employees
252
50-99 Employees
105
100-249 Employees
63
250-499 Employees
21
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
0
All Grafton Businesses
4529

As a new Grafton entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Grafton 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
Ambulance Services
1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
1
Beauty Salons
3
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
1
Business Associations
2
Car Washes
1
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Casinos (except Casino Hotels)
1
Caterers
1
Collection Agencies
1
Commodity Contracts Dealing
1
Confectionery and Nut Stores
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
5
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
1
Electrical Contractors
2
Engineering Services
1
Family Clothing Stores
1
Farm Labor Contractors and Crew Leaders
1
Farm Management Services
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
2
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
1
Floor Covering Stores
1
Florists
2
Framing Contractors
1
Full-Service Restaurants
8
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
2
Furniture Stores
1
General Automotive Repair
3
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
1
Hardware Stores
1
Household Appliance Stores
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
6
Janitorial Services
5
Jewelry Stores
1
Landscaping Services
2
Limited-Service Restaurants
3
Museums
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
1
Natural Gas Distribution
1
New Car Dealers
1
New Housing Operative Builders
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
3
Offices of Chiropractors
1
Offices of Dentists
3
Offices of Lawyers
7
Offices of Optometrists
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
2
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
2
Radio Stations
1
Residential Property Managers
2
Residential Remodelers
1
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Securities Brokerage
3
Septic Tank and Related Services
1
Site Preparation Contractors
1
Solid Waste Collection
1
Sporting Goods Stores
1
Tax Preparation Services
1
Telemarketing Bureaus
1
Tire Dealers
3
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
1
Travel Agencies
1
Used Merchandise Stores
1
Vending Machine Operators
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
1
Women's Clothing Stores
1
Wood Window and Door Manufacturing
1

Is a Franchise Opportunity Right For You?

Visit the business district of Grafton and it's apparent that franchising has become a very popular way to start a business. But is franchising the right option for you?

Our advice is to consider franchising as an option. This site has dozens of articles on franchising, such as Franchising Pros and Cons. Gain a solid understanding of franchising by scanning all of our Articles on Franchising.

You can review hundreds of franchise opportunities by browing our Franchise Directory.

Representative franchise opportunities include Rollerz and Billboard Connection. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Seafood Restaurant Franchises and Employment and Staffing Franchises.

Note on Grafton Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Grafton.

Company Formation in Grafton, North Dakota

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 North Dakota, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in North Dakota. As it turns out, 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'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 Offshore Company Formation. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Grafton, North Dakota, our information on Incorporating in North Dakota may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in North Dakota.

Where to Get Money to Start a Company

Getting your Grafton business the capital it needs to succeed requires strong organization skills and perseverance. The reality is that there is very little funding available for new small businesses, and you have to explore every possible alternative.

Fortunately, this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled Business Incubators.

For Grafton entrepreneurs in need of startup financing, check out our List of North Dakota Angel Investors and our List of North Dakota Venture Capital Firms.

Bring in Revenues

Do you know how to sell? In order to attract customers to your new Grafton 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.

Sales Prospecting 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.

Increase Your Entrepreneurial Knowledge

Good entrepreneurs know that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.

Given that you are starting a business in Grafton, North Dakota, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby North Dakota universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also smart to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Grafton entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.

Now It's Up To You

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Grafton and elsewhere to achieve real success. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Grafton 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 Grafton, North Dakota

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

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