Thinking of Starting a Business in Baltimore? Here’s a Quick Guide
The city of Baltimore is emerging as an important startup hub. Cited for its entrepreneur-friendly environment and its focus on tech innovation, the city provides ample opportunities for startup companies to flourish.
This comes as the digital revolution is making its rounds in “smart” cities across the United States. Baltimore, for one, saw a spike in terms of investments in tech and software development.
However, entering the startup arena still poses a considerable challenge for many young entrepreneurs. Although there is a large supply of talent that makes the city a sought-after hub in terms of tech innovation, making a successful breakthrough would mean competing with businesses within the same niche. Unless you come up with an innovative product or service for the local market, you will have to take the necessary steps to succeed in business when facing some tough competition.
Using these approaches, you can avoid risks and sustain the growth of your startup.
1. Prepare a surefire business plan
The first thing you will need to do is to draft out your goals and identify the actions you need to take to reach them. For this, you will have to be very specific when it comes to identifying your targets and creating surefire strategies. This, of course, requires a great deal of research, so you might as well spend ample time and resources in gathering market intelligence and analyzing the competition.
2. Get acquainted with local laws
Of course, if you’re planning to invest in the city, you will have to make sure you establish yourself legally. You wouldn’t want to risk facing the consequences that usually happen when you’re unaware of local ordinances and taxation schemes. You might also need to identify the best structure for your business and establish corporate governance. It’s for these reasons you might want to hire legal professionals such as those from McQuarrie law firm.
3. Know where to get your financing
You will have to have the right amount of capital to get started. Fortunately, the local startup ecosystem offers young entrepreneurs access to ready funding for their ideas or projects. Sure enough, Baltimore offers great sources for startup capital, considering that there is a vibrant environment where angel investors and venture capitalists thrive. Innovation programs such as Anchor Ventures also provide the best options for many newcomers to the local startup scene. You may also use crowdfunding platforms so long as you come up with an irresistible pitch for your market.
4. Know where to find office space
Commercial real estate is one of Baltimore’s greater strengths. That said, it shouldn’t be difficult to look for office space for your startup. With new commercial developments in the offering, there are plenty of options providing the best possible rental rates. On the other hand, the city also has numerous co-working spaces, just in case you’re planning to keep it low-key and wait until you have enough resources for expansion.
Baltimore is the place to be for your startup project. Applying the tips above will help make sure you have your feet planted firmly on the ground before your business takes off running.
Boris Dzhingarov graduated UNWE with a major in marketing. He is the founder of ESBO ltd a brand mentioning company. He is also passionate about meditation and healthy living. You can find articles on such topics at his spiritual blog Dzhingarov.com.