Michigan Business Startup Guides

Opening a Business in Northville, Michigan

Contemplating starting a business in Northville, Michigan? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Northville.

What Type of Business Should You Start?

An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. You might get some good ideas about what kind of business to start by reading How to Evaluate a Business Idea.

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 How to Start a Sheet Metal Work Industrial Business guide or our How to Start a Used Musical Instruments Business guide.

Always keep in mind that you are opening your new business in Northville. Some businesses will do better in Northville than others. Study Northville demographics and do a competitive analysis as part of your startup planning process.

Northville, Michigan Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
5992
5-9 Employees
1820
10-19 Employees
1176
20-49 Employees
924
50-99 Employees
240
100-249 Employees
156
250-499 Employees
36
500-999 Employees
12
1000+ Employees
0
All Northville Businesses
10356

As a new Northville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Northville 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
3
Architectural Services
3
Art Dealers
4
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
2
Beauty Salons
15
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers
1
Book Publishers
1
Book Stores
1
Business Associations
2
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Car Washes
3
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Caterers
3
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
2
Civic and Social Organizations
3
Claims Adjusting
3
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
1
Commercial Bakeries
2
Commercial Lithographic Printing
3
Commercial Photography
2
Computer Facilities Management Services
1
Computer Systems Design Services
14
Consumer Lending
1
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
1
Convenience Stores
2
Convention and Visitors Bureaus
1
Court Reporting and Stenotype Services
1
Curtain and Drapery Mills
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
13
Deep Sea Freight Transportation
2
Dental Laboratories
1
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
2
Direct Mail Advertising
1
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
2
Document Preparation Services
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
2
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
2
Electric Power Distribution
1
Electrical Contractors
2
Employment Placement Agencies
1
Engineering Services
13
Family Clothing Stores
2
Fine Arts Schools
4
Finish Carpentry Contractors
2
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
6
Floor Covering Stores
1
Florists
3
Food Service Contractors
1
Framing Contractors
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
3
Full-Service Restaurants
26
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
1
Furniture Stores
2
General Automotive Repair
5
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
3
Glass and Glazing Contractors
2
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
5
Grantmaking Foundations
1
Graphic Design Services
2
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Hardware Stores
1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
1
Home Centers
2
Home Health Care Services
2
Homes for the Elderly
3
Industrial Design Services
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
23
Interior Design Services
3
Investment Advice
6
Janitorial Services
6
Jewelry Stores
2
Landscape Architectural Services
3
Landscaping Services
22
Limited-Service Restaurants
15
Locksmiths
2
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
3
Marketing Consulting Services
4
Masonry Contractors
6
Materials Recovery Facilities
1
Men's Clothing Stores
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
4
Motion Picture and Video Production
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
1
New Car Dealers
2
New Housing Operative Builders
8
News Syndicates
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
1
Office Administrative Services
6
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
9
Offices of Chiropractors
5
Offices of Dentists
16
Offices of Lawyers
15
Offices of Optometrists
2
Offices of Podiatrists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
3
Payroll Services
1
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
2
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
3
Photography Studios, Portrait
4
Portfolio Management
2
Private Mail Centers
1
Racetracks
2
Real Estate Credit
3
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
1
Residential Property Managers
6
Residential Remodelers
8
Savings Institutions
4
Securities Brokerage
5
Shoe Stores
3
Siding Contractors
1
Site Preparation Contractors
4
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
9
Solid Waste Collection
1
Spice and Extract Manufacturing
1
Sporting Goods Stores
7
Sports and Recreation Instruction
1
Tax Preparation Services
1
Temporary Help Services
1
Testing Laboratories
1
Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters
2
Tire Dealers
1
Tobacco Stores
1
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
2
Used Merchandise Stores
4
Vending Machine Operators
1
Veterinary Services
2
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
1
Window Treatment Stores
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
3
Women's Clothing Stores
3

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.

Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Naming a Business.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are starting a business in Northville, it's critical that you ensure that you will be the only Michigan company using the business name you have chosen.

Forming a Company in Northville, Michigan

It's very important that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. The main advantage of forming your new business as a legal entity is that it separates your business liabilities from your personal liabilities.

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 Michigan, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in Michigan. 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 Pre-Incorporation Agreements. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Northville, Michigan, our information on Incorporating in Michigan may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Michigan.

Getting Money to Start a Business

Finding the funds to fuel the growth of your Northville business will be harder than you might expect. If you don't have a rich uncle to fund you, you'll need to be creative in how you approach your fundraising efforts.

To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as 504 Loans.

For Northville entrepreneurs in need of startup financing, check out our List of Michigan Angel Investors and our List of Michigan Venture Capital Firms.

Getting the Word Out About Your New Company

Whether your goal is to attract Northville customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you need a great marketing plan.

There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Marketing Versus Sales is an article that will stimulate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.

Bring in Revenues

Do you know how to sell? In order to attract customers to your new Northville business, you need to focus on sales.

Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.

Tips on Customer Referrals is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.

Never Give Up

As an entrepreneur in Northville, 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 Northville and elsewhere to achieve real success. We have a wealth of experience in business start-ups, financing, marketing, sales and more...and we've made all of our knowledge available to you.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Northville, Michigan

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

  • Resources for Northville, Michigan Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Northville entrepreneurs.
  • Michigan Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Michigan.
  • Michigan Small Business Development Center - This organization supports 12 regional offices and over 30 satellite offices, each providing counseling and training to Michigan small business owners and entrepreneurs throughout the 83 counties in Michigan. Services to entrepreneurs are offered through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.

More Business Startup Guides for Michigan

Starting a Business in Niles
Starting a Business in Ontonagon

Browse All Business Startup Guides for Michigan
Starting a Business Guides for Other States

 

 

Share this article


Additional Resources for Entrepreneurs

Lists of Venture Capital and Private Equity Firms

Franchise Opportunities

Contributors

Business Glossary