Starting a Business
Business Start Up Guide
Are you looking for information on how to start or grow a business in Oconee County? For specific local information and resources? You have come to the right place.
As part of a county-wide Entrepreneur Friendly planning effort championed by Oconee Economic Alliance, a special committee of local business and government stakeholders worked to compile this Business Start-Up Guide. It not only serves as a “101” for aspiring entrepreneurs, but also as a good resource for existing businesses who wish to take advantage of area resources and grow to the next level.
The Guide is also available in printed form at the office of the Oconee Economic Alliance.
Click here to download the Business Start-Up Guide.
Training and Mentorship
There is an abundance of resources available to help entrepreneurs reach their goals. Each of the following free resources is vital.
The Tri-County Entrepreneurial Development Corporation (TCEDC)
TCEDC offers expert training and on-one-one mentorship to new and existing businesses. It is a local volunteer non-profit made up of certified SCORE Mentors (Service Corps of Retired Executives) who work closely with Tri-County Tech, with Clemson SBDC, and with the Oconee Economic Alliance to support free business counseling in the community. In fact, TCEDC joins with area partners to lead a free Business Start-Up Workshop on a monthly basis. TCEDC also operates a local business incubator in Walhalla called the Oconee Business Center. For more on TCEDC, visit this page, or contact Dave Eldridge at 727.422.4459.
The Clemson Regional Small Business Development Center (SBDC)
Like TCEDC, the Clemson Regional SBDC is a critical business training and counseling resource for prospective and existing businesses in the area. Through personal and confidential consultation, SBDC consultants provide free one-on-one management and technical assistance to small business owners who wish to start, grow or maintain their businesses. The SBDC offers marketing analysis, business plan preparation, financial feasibility studies, and other valuable resources to the entrepreneur at little to no cost. SBDC also holds free and low-cost training seminars on a variety of topics throughout the region. For more information, visit the Clemson SBDC website, or contact:
Clemson Area Office
413 Sirrine Hall
Clemson, SC 29634
Phone: 864.710.4717
E-Mail: bennys@clemson.edu
Tri-County Technical College (TCTC)
Tri-County Technical College in nearby Pendleton, SC offers an impressive variety of small business-focused courses. In fact, both the TCEDC and Clemson SBDC (described above) work with TCTC to provide a free Business Start-Up Workshop on a monthly basis. The workshop addresses the early steps involved in starting a business, but it is also available for those who are already in business but need to supplement their skills. The free evening program is three hours and length and typically begins at 5:00 p.m. or 5:30. For more information, class schedules, or to register visit www.tctc.edu/smallbusiness or contact:
Tri-County Technical College – Pendleton Campus
7900 Highway 76, Pendleton, SC
Phone: 864.646.1700 or 1.866.269.5677, ext. 1700
The U.S. Small Business Administration On-Line Learning Center
Take advantage of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s free On-Line Learning Center. The Learning Center includes over 125 free on-line classes, videos, and archived educational chat sessions. Topics include business start-up, management, finance, marketing, and government contracting. This website offers as much business start-up and management training material as any on the web and is an extremely valuable free resource.
The South Carolina Manufacturing Extension Partnership (SCMEP)
SCMEP is an outstanding private, non-profit resource for small to mid-size South Carolina businesses. It helps small to mid-size companies improve their competitiveness. It provides a great deal of hands-on consulting and training services, but the core of its business improvement services is the no cost, one-day “Competitiveness Review”. Visit www.scmep.org.
Business Compliance Info
Local Government Compliance in Oconee County
For the easiest way to learn about local permitting, zoning, and licensing processes, download the Oconee County Business Start-Up Guide. It contains the important local contacts and information you will need. This guide provides good State and Federal compliance information as well.
State of SC Compliance
Whether filing with the SC Secretary of State, the SC Department of Revenue, the SC Employment Security Commission, the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control, or the SC Department of Consumer Affairs, there are several areas of compliance which businesses must satisfy. Fortunately, there is a single website for completing the paper work and paying the fees: South Carolina Business One Stop (SCBOS). The following SC SBDC informational flyer (SC BOS Overview Content from SC SBDC) explains just how much an entrepreneur can accomplish on SC BOS.
Another great resource for South Carolina business requirements is the official website of the state government: www.SC.gov. Clicking on the “Business” tab of this website opens the door to a highly comprehensive reference point on the rules and regulations that pertain to South Carolina businesses.
Federal Government Compliance
Take time to review the SC SBDC Checklist for Starting a New Business for topics like applying for Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN). In matters of tax compliance and the legal structure of your business, consult with a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a licensed attorney to set your business up in the right way. Remember, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure. Investing in professional help on the front end prevents entrepreneurs from making costly mistakes in the long-run.
Business Capital
It is difficult to find money to start a new business. Securing capital for your new business is going to require resourcefulness and good business planning. As you develop your financial plan, please see the following resources:
Contact the Tri-County Entrepreneurial Development Corporation and/or the Clemson Region Small Business Development Center. Both of these local partners provide expert training and mentorship on a variety of business topics, including business capital.
TCEDC Contact:
Dave Eldridge: 727.422.4459
SBDC Contact:
Clemson Area Office
413 Sirrine Hall
Clemson, SC 29634
Phone: 864.710.4717
E-Mail: bennys@clemson.edu
Consult the Oconee County Capital Matrix (download here). This locally customized matrix serves as a directory to both local and regional capital resources, including local commercial lenders, regional SBA lenders, regional Angel and Venture Capital, and more. The document also includes information on free hands-on local training and educational references.
Educate yourself through the SC Small Business Development Center website. Before you walk into a bank, educate yourself. Under the “Start a New Business” tab, click on “Financial Aspects”. You will find the following helpful documents, plus more:
— Funding Sources for Small Businesses
— What to Know and Do before Applying for a Loan
— Types of Equity Funding Sources
— Lender Requirements for Start-Ups
— Payroll Taxes, Workers Comp, and SC DEW
— Credit Scores
Learn how SBA financing works on the U.S. Small Business Administration website. Check out these videos and training exercises on financing in the SBA Learning Center. While it is never easy to secure a commercial loan, SBA participation in a bank loan package can sometimes get tough-to-approve applications over the hump.
Other Business Planning Tools
See these following SBA and SBDC web links for business planning.
— The SBA.gov webpage on how to write a business plan.
— A 30-minute on-line class and a 3-minute video from the SBA on How to Write a Business Plan.
— A calendar of nearby SBDC business training seminars in the region.
— Archived Transcripts of SBA chat sessions on Starting a Business.
Below are two useful templates for writing a business plan.
— The SBA Build Your Business Plan Tool allows you to develop each section of your plan on a 100% secure website and to save your work as you go. The tool provides tips and resources for each section of your plan. For example, business plans should begin with an “executive summary”. Would you like to know what an executive summary is? Would you like to see examples? These resources are available inside the Tool, so that you can both learn and write your business plan in the same place. In order to begin, you must register with the SBA website (provide name, email address, etc.).
— A Template Business Plan provided by the SC SBDC. This Microsoft Word document is a standard business plan outline that allows you to fill in your own business information, section by section, until your plan is complete.