Rhode Island Business Startup Guides

Opening a Business in Newport, Rhode Island

Contemplating starting a business in Newport, Rhode Island? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Newport.

Newport, Rhode Island Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
32266
5-9 Employees
10863
10-19 Employees
7293
20-49 Employees
5151
50-99 Employees
1836
100-249 Employees
765
250-499 Employees
153
500-999 Employees
51
1000+ Employees
51
All Newport Businesses
58429

As a new Newport entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Newport 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
4
Amusement Arcades
1
Architectural Services
6
Art Dealers
10
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
1
Beauty Salons
13
Bed-and-Breakfast Inns
24
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
12
Boat Building
4
Boat Dealers
11
Book Publishers
1
Book Stores
4
Business and Secretarial Schools
1
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
2
Canvas and Related Product Mills
2
Car Washes
1
Carpet and Rug Mills
1
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
2
Caterers
4
Child and Youth Services
3
Child Day Care Services
9
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
2
Civic and Social Organizations
13
Clothing Accessories Stores
6
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
1
Commercial Photography
1
Computer Systems Design Services
6
Computer Training
1
Confectionery and Nut Stores
1
Confectionery Merchant Wholesalers
2
Convenience Stores
10
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
3
Credit Unions
4
Deep Sea Freight Transportation
1
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
2
Discount Department Stores
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
14
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
1
Electrical Contractors
5
Elementary and Secondary Schools
4
Engineering Services
13
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
2
Facilities Support Services
1
Family Clothing Stores
14
Fine Arts Schools
1
Finfish Fishing
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
3
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
4
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
6
Floor Covering Stores
1
Florists
3
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
3
Food Service Contractors
4
Framing Contractors
1
Full-Service Restaurants
67
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
4
Furniture Stores
4
General Automotive Repair
8
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
2
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
20
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Graphic Design Services
6
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Hardware Stores
3
Heating Oil Dealers
2
Historical Sites
2
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
3
Home Centers
2
Homes for the Elderly
2
Household Appliance Stores
1
Ice Manufacturing
1
Industrial Design Services
1
Inland Water Passenger Transportation
2
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
7
Interior Design Services
3
Investment Advice
1
Janitorial Services
8
Jewelry (except Costume) Manufacturing
1
Jewelry Stores
9
Landscape Architectural Services
3
Landscaping Services
9
Libraries and Archives
1
Linen Supply
1
Locksmiths
2
Mail-Order Houses
2
Marinas
4
Marketing Consulting Services
3
Masonry Contractors
2
Media Representatives
1
Miscellaneous Intermediation
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
4
Motion Picture and Video Production
2
Motor Vehicle Towing
2
Museums
15
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
1
Navigational Services to Shipping
3
New Housing Operative Builders
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
2
Nursing Care Facilities
4
Office Administrative Services
4
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
1
Offices of Chiropractors
4
Offices of Dentists
16
Offices of Lawyers
28
Offices of Podiatrists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
1
Optical Goods Stores
3
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
8
Periodical Publishers
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
7
Photography Studios, Portrait
3
Plate Work Manufacturing
1
Port and Harbor Operations
1
Portfolio Management
2
Private Mail Centers
4
Quick Printing
2
Radio Stations
1
Real Estate Credit
2
Record Production
1
Recreational Goods Rental
4
Residential Property Managers
6
Residential Remodelers
16
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
1
Roofing Contractors
3
Rooming and Boarding Houses
2
Savings Institutions
7
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Seafood Canning
1
Securities Brokerage
4
Septic Tank and Related Services
1
Ship Building and Repairing
2
Shoe Stores
7
Site Preparation Contractors
1
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
18
Software Publishers
2
Solid Waste Collection
1
Sports and Recreation Instruction
2
Tax Preparation Services
3
Taxi Service
1
Telephone Answering Services
1
Temporary Help Services
1
Temporary Shelters
2
Textile Bag Mills
2
Tire Dealers
1
Tobacco Stores
1
Tour Operators
4
Travel Agencies
4
Used Car Dealers
1
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Used Merchandise Stores
7
Video Tape and Disc Rental
1
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
2
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
6
Window Treatment Stores
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
2
Women's Clothing Stores
18

Is a Franchise Opportunity Right For You?

Visit the business district of Newport and you may be surprised to see how many franchises there are in the area. But is franchising the right option for you?

We advise the entrepreneurs we work with to consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as Opportunities in International Franchising. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.

To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.

Sample franchise opportunities include Rainbow International Restoration & Cleaning and AIM Mail Centers. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Candy and Chocolate Franchises and Fitness Franchises.

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

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Newport Business?

An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Rhode Island. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Newport.

If you are serious about buying a business, you may want to read this article: Buying a Business.

Naming the Company

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.

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.

To get up to speed on what makes for a good company name, we encourage you to read this useful article: Naming a Company.

As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are opening a business in Newport, it's imperative that you check now that your company name has not already been claimed by another Rhode Island business.

Forming a Company in Newport, Rhode Island

It's very important that you choose the right legal structure for your new entity. Doing so will shield you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.

When forming a company, you will pick from many company types, such as a traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.

Incorporation is a very common way to legally create a business entity. 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 Rhode Island, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Rhode Island. In fact, you can incorporate in any state you would like to. However, if you do incorporate in another state, you'll have to register as a foreign corporation in your home state.

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 Subchapter S Corporations. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Newport, Rhode Island, our web page covering Incorporating in Rhode Island may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Rhode Island.

Don't Skip the Business Plan

Having a business plan is vital in laying a solid foundation for your business success. Simply put, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Starting a business without a business plan makes you more prone to becoming a business failure statistic.

To learn more about business plans, read The Art of the Executive Summary. A great resource for business planning assistance is the free business counselors available to you through your local SCORE chapter in Rhode Island.

How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Abilities

The best entrepreneurs recognize that they need to continually improve.

Given that you are starting a business in Newport, Rhode Island, you should check out some of the many programs available at nearby Rhode Island universities, colleges and community colleges. You should also check if there are any Newport networking organizations.

Now It's Up To You

Most new Newport businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

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

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

More Business Startup Guides for Rhode Island

Starting a Business in Kingston
Starting a Business in North Kingstown

Browse All Business Startup Guides for Rhode Island
Starting a Business Guides for Other States

 

 

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