Kentucky Business Startup Guides
Start a Business in Lexington, Kentucky
Are you starting a business in Lexington, Kentucky? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Lexington.
What Business Are You Starting?
An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. To stir your creative juices on what kind of business to start, take a look at Good Business Ideas.
For step-by-step instructions on starting a variety of business types, visit the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Starting a Dance Club guide or our Starting a Tatoo Parlor guide.
Remember that your new startup will be located in Lexington. Think about what needs are currently being underserved in Lexington. Only by spending some time analyzing Lexington demographics can you decide if there will be strong demand for your business idea.
Lexington, Kentucky Demographic Information
Lexington has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Lexington demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Lexington.
Businesses
As a new Lexington entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Lexington 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 Buying an Existing Lexington Business a Good Strategy?
We've created a useful website page for those who want to Buy a Business in Kentucky. Follow that link and you might discover several good businesses for sale in Lexington.
Before buying a business, be sure to read this article: Buying a Business.
Don't Skip the Business Plan
A business plan is essential in maximizing the prospects of your new company. Simply put, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Starting a business without a business plan is a recipe for disaster.
If you want more information on writing business plans, we recommend reading Business Plan Contests. A great resource for business planning assistance is the face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in Kentucky.
Raising Capital for Your Business
Getting your Lexington business the capital it needs to succeed is very difficult due to the ongoing business credit crunch. To obtain business financing, you will need to hear a lot of rejections before you finally find a funding solution that works for you.
Take advantage of our many articles on securing funding, such as How to Raise Money.
For Lexington entrepreneurs who need startup capital, you'll want to take a look at our List of Kentucky Angel Investors and our List of Kentucky Venture Capital Firms.
How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Abilities
Good business owners recognize that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.
Given that you are starting a business in Lexington, Kentucky, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Kentucky universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also beneficial to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Lexington entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.
Now It's Up To You
Most new Lexington businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.
This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Lexington and elsewhere to achieve real success. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Lexington, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Lexington, Kentucky
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Lexington.
- Resources for Lexington, Kentucky Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Lexington entrepreneurs.
- Kentucky Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Kentucky.
- Kentucky Small Business Development Center - The Kentucky Small Business Development Center (KSBDC) has been assisting Kentucky small business community for more than 25 years. KSBDC is co-sponsored by the U.S. Small Business Administration and is administered by the University of Kentucky in partnership with regional universities, community and private colleges, and the private sector.
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