South Carolina Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in Orangeburg, South Carolina

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

Will You Be a Good Entrepreneur?

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

While entrepreneurship has become a popular career choice, we recommend you do the following before you take the plunge:

  • Grab a meal or cofee with other entrepreneurs in Orangeburg. They are usually very willing to share their insights on the ups and downs of being an entrepreneur.
  • Take a look at Starting a Company. It's a short article but it's a good reality check for those are about to jump into the world of entrepreneurship.
  • Talk it over with a close friend or partner. Others sometimes know you better than you know yourself.

Orangeburg, South Carolina Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
3562
5-9 Employees
1518
10-19 Employees
1134
20-49 Employees
636
50-99 Employees
294
100-249 Employees
60
250-499 Employees
36
500-999 Employees
12
1000+ Employees
12
All Orangeburg Businesses
7264

As a new Orangeburg entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Orangeburg 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
Animal (except Poultry) Slaughtering
1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
1
Architectural Services
1
Art Dealers
2
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
3
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
7
Ball and Roller Bearing Manufacturing
1
Beauty Salons
6
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers
1
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
4
Boat Building
1
Boat Dealers
3
Book Publishers
1
Broadwoven Fabric Finishing Mills
1
Business Associations
3
Cafeterias
1
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
1
Car Washes
1
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
4
Cemeteries and Crematories
4
Child Day Care Services
20
Civic and Social Organizations
6
Claims Adjusting
2
Clothing Accessories Stores
2
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
2
Commercial Bakeries
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
2
Computer and Software Stores
2
Computer Facilities Management Services
1
Computer Systems Design Services
2
Confectionery and Nut Stores
1
Confectionery Merchant Wholesalers
1
Consumer Lending
20
Convenience Stores
4
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Couriers
1
Credit Unions
5
Curtain and Drapery Mills
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
3
Dental Laboratories
3
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
2
Discount Department Stores
1
Dog and Cat Food Manufacturing
1
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
2
Electric Power Distribution
1
Electrical Contractors
7
Elementary and Secondary Schools
5
Emergency and Other Relief Services
1
Environmental Consulting Services
1
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
3
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
6
Family Clothing Stores
5
Farm Product Warehousing and Storage
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
4
Fine Arts Schools
1
Floor Covering Stores
3
Flooring Contractors
2
Florists
8
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
1
Food Service Contractors
7
Footwear and Leather Goods Repair
1
Framing Contractors
1
Full-Service Restaurants
37
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
4
Furniture Stores
9
General Automotive Repair
10
General Freight Trucking, Local
5
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
2
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
5
Glass and Glazing Contractors
2
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Grantmaking Foundations
2
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
2
Hardware Stores
3
Home Centers
1
Home Health Care Services
4
Home Health Equipment Rental
2
Homes for the Elderly
12
Household Appliance Stores
3
Industrial Building Construction
1
Industrial Launderers
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
18
Internet Service Providers
1
Investigation Services
1
Janitorial Services
8
Jewelry Stores
7
Kidney Dialysis Centers
2
Land Subdivision
1
Landscaping Services
6
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
2
Limited-Service Restaurants
39
Locksmiths
2
Logging
4
Machine Shops
2
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
2
Masonry Contractors
2
Meat Markets
2
Meat Processed from Carcasses
1
Media Representatives
1
Men's Clothing Stores
4
Motor and Generator Manufacturing
1
Motorcycle Dealers
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
2
Nail Salons
3
New Car Dealers
13
New Housing Operative Builders
4
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
3
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
2
Offices of Bank Holding Companies
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
11
Offices of Chiropractors
4
Offices of Dentists
17
Offices of Lawyers
21
Offices of Other Holding Companies
2
Offices of Podiatrists
1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
3
Optical Goods Stores
4
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
3
Paging
2
Paint and Coating Manufacturing
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
3
Passenger Car Rental
1
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
2
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
2
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
9
Photography Studios, Portrait
5
Portfolio Management
2
Precision Turned Product Manufacturing
1
Private Mail Centers
1
Professional Organizations
1
Quick Printing
2
Radio Stations
1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
2
Repossession Services
1
Residential Property Managers
2
Roofing Contractors
1
Sawmills
1
Securities Brokerage
2
Security Guards and Patrol Services
3
Septic Tank and Related Services
2
Sign Manufacturing
2
Site Preparation Contractors
7
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
4
Solid Waste Collection
1
Sporting Goods Stores
4
Steam and Air-Conditioning Supply
1
Steel Wire Drawing
1
Tax Preparation Services
8
Taxi Service
1
Telecommunications Resellers
1
Temporary Help Services
6
Temporary Shelters
1
Textile Machinery Manufacturing
1
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
1
Tire Dealers
6
Travel Agencies
3
Used Car Dealers
5
Used Merchandise Stores
3
Vending Machine Operators
3
Veterinary Services
3
Video Tape and Disc Rental
5
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
6
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
3
Women's Clothing Stores
7
Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing
1
Wood Preservation
1
Zoos and Botanical Gardens
1

Is Franchising a Better Option?

As you drive around Orangeburg, you'll see that franchises make up a large percentage of local businesses. Is it perhaps smarter to franchise a business instead of doing it from scratch.

Most business experts recommend that you consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as Selling A Franchise. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.

You can review hundreds of franchise opportunities by browing our Franchise Directory.

Representative franchise opportunities include Real Estate One and Sunbelt Business Brokers Inc.. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Children's Franchises and Kitchen Design Franchises.

Note on Orangeburg Franchise Opportunities: To find out if a franchise you are interested in is available in Orangeburg, you will need to get in direct contact with the franchisor.

What About Buying an Existing Orangeburg Business?

If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in South Carolina. Follow that link and you might discover several good businesses for sale in Orangeburg.

Before buying a business, be sure to read this article: Buying a Business.

Company Formation in Orangeburg, South Carolina

It's essential that you are forming a legal entity that operates independently from you. Among other things, forming a legal entity for the business limits your liabilities.

The entity you form can be a traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.

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. Just because you are starting a business in South Carolina, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in South Carolina. As it turns out, you can incorporate wherever you want. However, if you do incorporate in another state, you'll have to register as a foreign corporation in your home state.

There's a lot to know about forming a company. To learn the fundamentals of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as Registered Agents. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Orangeburg, South Carolina, our information on Incorporating in South Carolina may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in South Carolina.

Make Sure You Have a Business Plan

A business plan is critical in maximizing the prospects of your new company. In effect, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

To learn more about business plans, read Business Plan Contests. You should also take advantage of face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in South Carolina.

What's Next?

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

We are here to help Orangeburg businesses to be successful. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Orangeburg, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Orangeburg, South Carolina

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

More Business Startup Guides for South Carolina

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Starting a Business in Pageland

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