Kansas Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in Hays, Kansas

Are you starting a business in Hays, Kansas? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Hays.

Are You Ready for Life as an Owner?

Being an entrepreneur is hard work, much harder than working as an employee. Are you certain you want to start a business?

Here are three things we recommend you do before you fully commit to starting a new business of your own.

  • Talk to other entrepreneurs in Hays. Listen closely to their experiences and see if you think you too can be successful.
  • 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. Ask them directly: Do I have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Listen carefully to their answer, as they presumably know your strengths and weaknesses.

Hays, Kansas Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
6192
5-9 Employees
2508
10-19 Employees
1560
20-49 Employees
804
50-99 Employees
228
100-249 Employees
120
250-499 Employees
48
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
12
All Hays Businesses
11472

As a new Hays entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Hays 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
Advertising Agencies
1
Aircraft Manufacturing
1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
2
Architectural Services
2
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
4
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
5
Baked Goods Stores
1
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers
1
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
9
Book Stores
5
Bowling Centers
1
Business Associations
3
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Cafeterias
2
Caterers
1
Child and Youth Services
6
Child Day Care Services
12
Civic and Social Organizations
7
Claims Adjusting
2
Clothing Accessories Stores
1
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
2
Commercial Screen Printing
3
Commodity Contracts Brokerage
3
Community Food Services
2
Computer and Software Stores
3
Computer Systems Design Services
1
Convenience Stores
1
Couriers
3
Credit Unions
2
Crop Harvesting, Primarily by Machine
2
Custom Computer Programming Services
1
Dental Laboratories
1
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
1
Document Preparation Services
3
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
12
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
1
Educational Support Services
1
Electric Power Distribution
1
Electrical Contractors
6
Electronic Shopping
1
Elementary and Secondary Schools
3
Engineering Services
2
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
2
Facilities Support Services
1
Family Clothing Stores
2
Family Planning Centers
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
2
Fine Arts Schools
2
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
3
Floor Covering Stores
4
Flooring Contractors
4
Florists
2
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
2
Food Service Contractors
1
Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation
1
Full-Service Restaurants
26
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
3
Furniture Stores
5
General Automotive Repair
19
General Freight Trucking, Local
6
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
2
Grantmaking Foundations
2
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Stores
1
Heating Oil Dealers
1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
1
Home Health Care Services
3
Homes for the Elderly
6
Household Appliance Stores
4
Industrial Mold Manufacturing
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
27
Interior Design Services
1
Investment Advice
3
Janitorial Services
6
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Landscape Architectural Services
1
Landscaping Services
11
Language Schools
1
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
2
Limited-Service Restaurants
25
Livestock Merchant Wholesalers
1
Mail-Order Houses
2
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
2
Masonry Contractors
1
Meat Markets
1
Medical Laboratories
2
Miscellaneous Intermediation
1
Mobile Food Services
1
Motor Vehicle Body Manufacturing
1
Motorcycle Dealers
2
Museums
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
1
Natural Gas Distribution
1
New Car Dealers
5
New Housing Operative Builders
1
Nursing Care Facilities
2
Office Administrative Services
3
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
2
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
5
Offices of Chiropractors
5
Offices of Dentists
15
Offices of Lawyers
14
Offices of Podiatrists
1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
2
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Packaging and Labeling Services
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
2
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
2
Photography Studios, Portrait
2
Plate Work Manufacturing
1
Quick Printing
1
Radio Stations
4
Real Estate Credit
4
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
1
Residential Property Managers
4
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
1
Roofing Contractors
5
Rooming and Boarding Houses
1
Savings Institutions
1
Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation
2
Securities Brokerage
5
Security Guards and Patrol Services
1
Siding Contractors
3
Sign Manufacturing
1
Site Preparation Contractors
6
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
7
Solid Waste Collection
2
Solid Waste Landfill
1
Sporting Goods Stores
9
Tax Preparation Services
3
Telephone Answering Services
1
Television Broadcasting
1
Temporary Help Services
1
Temporary Shelters
1
Tire Dealers
3
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
1
Travel Agencies
2
Used Car Dealers
7
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
2
Used Merchandise Stores
5
Vending Machine Operators
1
Veterinary Services
4
Video Tape and Disc Rental
2
Voluntary Health Organizations
1
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
5
Women's Clothing Stores
10
Wood Window and Door Manufacturing
1

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Hays Business?

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

For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: Buying a Business.

Naming the Company

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.

Before you decide on a company name, run it by some prospective customers and see what they think. If they don't like it, it's probably a good idea to go back to the drawing board.

For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Naming a Company.

On a final note, given that you are starting a business in Hays, it's critical that you ensure that no other Kansas company is using the business name you want to use.

Don't Forget to Create a Business Plan

Having a business plan is essential to the health of your new business. Indeed, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Not having a business plan makes you more prone to becoming a business failure statistic.

If you want more information on writing business plans, we recommend reading Business Plan Contests. You should also take advantage of face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in Kansas.

Startup Financing Basics

Getting your Hays business the capital it needs to succeed is very difficult due to the ongoing business credit crunch. The reality is that there is very little funding available for new small businesses, and you have to explore every possible alternative.

Take advantage of our many articles on raising capital, such as Business Cash Advances.

For Hays entrepreneurs on the hunt for startup funding, we have assembled a List of Kansas Angel Investors and our List of Kansas Venture Capital Firms.

Never Give Up

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Hays and throughout the United States . We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Hays 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 Hays, Kansas

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

More Business Startup Guides for Kansas

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