Texas Business Startup Guides
Start a Business in Memphis, Texas
Are you starting a business in Memphis, Texas? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Memphis.
Will You Be a Successful Entrepreneur?
Before you get too far along in the process, take inventory of your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.
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 Memphis. They are usually very willing to share their insights on the ups and downs of being an entrepreneur.
- We recommend reading Why Small Businesses Fail. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
- Get feedback from somebody whom you trust. Others sometimes know you better than you know yourself.
Memphis, Texas Demographic Information
Memphis has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Memphis demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Memphis.
Businesses
As a new Memphis entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Memphis 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
What About Buying an Existing Memphis Business?
If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in Texas. Follow that link and you can assess several good businesses for sale in Memphis.
If you are serious about buying a business, you may want to read this article: Buying a Business.
Forming a Company in Memphis, Texas
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. A key decision is whether to form and S-Corp or a C-Corp, and you also must decide in which state you will incorporate. If you are starting a business in Texas, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in Texas. As it turns out, you can incorporate wherever you want. 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 Company Formation. You may also want to seek the advice of an lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Memphis, Texas, our information on Incorporating in Texas may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Texas.
Startup Financing Basics
Getting your Memphis 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.
To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as 504 Loans.
For Memphis entrepreneurs who need startup capital, check out our List of Texas Angel Investors and our List of Texas Venture Capital Firms.
The Art of Selling
Being able to sell is a key enabler to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Memphis or are selling to customers throughout Texas, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.
Clever sales techniques can transform any business from good to great. Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.
Writing Great Proposals offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.
Advancing Your Entrepreneurial Skills
Successful business owners recognize that they don't know everything.
With your business being located in Memphis, Texas, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Texas universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also worthwhile to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Memphis entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.
What's Next?
You have a dream -- starting a business in Memphis. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.
Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.
This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Memphis and elsewhere to achieve real success. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Memphis, neighborhood development and overall economic health.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Memphis, Texas
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Memphis.
- Resources for Memphis, Texas Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Memphis entrepreneurs.
- Texas Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Texas.
- Houston, Texas Small Business Development Center - Serving 32 counties in Southeast Texas through 14 business consulting and training centers, the Small Business Development Center Network contributes to the growth and prosperity of the Texas Gulf Coast communities.
- North Texas Small Business Development Center - The NTSBDC Network promotes small business success by providing management education.
- Northwest Texas Small Business Development Center - The Northwest Texas Small Business Development Center was established with Texas Tech University in 1986. This regional program serves over ninety thousand square miles including ninety-five counties with a population base of approximately 1.8 million people. This region is serviced by six centers located in Lubbock, Amarillo, Midland/Odessa, Abilene, Stephenville, and Wichita Falls.
- South-West Texas Border�SBDC Network Texas Small Business Development Center - The South-West Texas Border Small Business Development Center (SBDC) provides consulting and technical assistance to the small business community.
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