Tennessee Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Trenton, Tennessee

Thinking about starting a business in Trenton, Tennessee? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Trenton.

Are You Ready for Entrepreneurship?

Running your own business is hard work, much harder than working as an employee. Are you positive you are ready to take on this challenge?

Before you move forward with starting a business, be sure to do these three things:

  • Talk to other entrepreneurs in Trenton. Listen closely to their experiences and see if you think you too can be successful.
  • We recommend reading Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
  • Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. Ask them directly: Do I have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Listen carefully to their answer, as they presumably know your strengths and weaknesses.

Trenton, Tennessee Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
5082
5-9 Employees
1932
10-19 Employees
1008
20-49 Employees
672
50-99 Employees
294
100-249 Employees
42
250-499 Employees
0
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
0
All Trenton Businesses
9030

As a new Trenton entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Trenton 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
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
3
Boat Dealers
1
Business Associations
2
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Child Day Care Services
4
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
1
Civic and Social Organizations
2
Computer Systems Design Services
1
Consumer Lending
1
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
1
Couriers
4
Electric Power Distribution
1
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
1
Family Clothing Stores
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
1
Floor Covering Stores
1
Florists
2
Framing Contractors
1
Full-Service Restaurants
5
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
1
Furniture Stores
3
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
2
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Hardware Stores
2
Home Centers
1
Home Health Equipment Rental
1
Homes for the Elderly
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
5
Jewelry Stores
1
Landscaping Services
1
Limited-Service Restaurants
7
Linen Supply
1
Livestock Merchant Wholesalers
1
Masonry Contractors
1
Men's Clothing Stores
1
New Car Dealers
2
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
1
Offices of Chiropractors
1
Offices of Lawyers
7
Offices of Optometrists
1
Offices of Podiatrists
1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
3
Radio Stations
1
Securities Brokerage
1
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
1
Site Preparation Contractors
3
Tax Preparation Services
3
Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters
1
Tire Dealers
2
Toilet Preparation Manufacturing
1
Vending Machine Operators
1
Veterinary Services
1
Video Tape and Disc Rental
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
2
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
1

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.

We strongly advocate that you make sure the ".com" domain name is available for your company name. Every business needs a strong Web presence these days, and having a non ".com" domain means somebody else may outrank you in the search results for your own company name.

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

As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are opening a business in Trenton, it's critical that you ensure that you will be the only Tennessee company using the business name you have chosen.

Raising Money for Your New Venture

Finding the funds to fuel the growth of your Trenton business will be harder than you might expect. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.

To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as Find Start-Up Capital.

For Trenton entrepreneurs with great ambition but a shortage of investment capital, you'll want to take a look at our List of Tennessee Angel Investors and our List of Tennessee Venture Capital Firms.

Selling Tips

Do you know how to sell? In order to attract customers to your new Trenton 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.

Closing Sales Techniques is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.

Improving Your Entrepreneurial Skillset

Good business owners recognize that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.

Given that you are starting a business in Trenton, Tennessee, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Tennessee universities, colleges and community colleges. We also recommend you look into networking organizations for Trenton entrepreneurs.

Never Give Up

As an entrepreneur in Trenton, 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.

This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Trenton 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 Trenton, Tennessee

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

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