Open a Business in Portland, Maine

Need help starting a business in Portland, Maine? We've got the information you need to open a business in Portland.

Are You Sure You Want to Do This?

Being an entrepreneur is hard work, much more challenging than working as an employee. Are you positive you have the stamina and skills to succeed on your own?

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

• Speak with other entrepreneurs in Portland. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
• You should read Business Failure. It's a good read for those who are thinking about becoming an entrepreneur.
• Involve a spouse, family member or trusted friend in the decision. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.

Portland, Maine Demographic Information

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

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

As a new Portland entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Portland 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.

Forming a Company in Portland, Maine

A critical step is ensuring that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Doing so will separate you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.

When forming a company, you will decide among many company types, such as 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. If you are starting a business in Maine, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Maine. In fact, 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 are many nuances to forming a company. To learn the fundamentals of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as Dissolving a Corporation. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Portland, Maine, our web page covering Incorporating in Maine may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Maine.

Make Sure You Have a Business Plan

A business plan is critical in laying a solid foundation for your business success. In effect, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Failure to write a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

To learn more about business plans, read Free Business Plan Templates. You should also take advantage of free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Maine.

Getting Money to Start a Business

Obtaining startup financing for your Portland business is a difficult chore. In fact, financing your new business may be the hardest challenge you ever face.

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

For Portland entrepreneurs with great ambition but a shortage of investment capital, we have assembled a List of Maine Angel Investors and our List of Maine Venture Capital Firms.

Promoting Your New Venture

To grow your Portland business, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your successs.

You can learn plenty about marketing on our site. Exhibiting at Tradeshows is an article that will generate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. That's just one of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

The Art of Selling

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

Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.

Sales Training offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

Next Steps

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

Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.

We are here to help Portland businesses to be successful. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Portland 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 Portland, Maine

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

• Resources for Portland, Maine Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Portland entrepreneurs.
• Maine Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Maine.
• Maine Small Business Development Center - Maine Small Business Development Centers and its technology-focused group, the Maine Small Business & Technology Development Centers, provide comprehensive business management assistance, training, resource and information services to Maine's entrepreneurs and small business owners.
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