Internet Links - Business & Economy
For more resources, see our Business and Money Databases
Small Business Resources
Associations
- National Association of the Self-Employed - This site offers support and information for the self-employed and their families.
Business Plans
- Benefits of a Written Plan
- Preparing to Write a Business Plan
- Writing Your Business Plan
- Business Plans and Profiles Index - Alphabetical listing of various small businesses. Provides citations for business plans, profiles and books about each business type. Direct links to some sources.
Business Tools
- CCH Business Owner's Toolkit - Tools, templates, checklists and forms for small businesses. Includes balance sheet templates, sample compensation and benefits policies and more.
Classes & Workshops
- Kentucky Small Business Development Center - The SBDC offers free online classes on a variety of topics.
- Greater Louisville Small Business Development Center - The GLSBDC offers classes for a small fee on a variety of topics.
- SCORE- "Louisville SCORE's mission is to become the leading client-driven counselor service for new and established small business owners by providing managerial and operational support through counseling, seminars and workshops."
Entrepreneurship
- BizOffice.com - Small business and home-based business links.
- BizPlus - Internet Small Business Center.
Federal Government Information
- Business.gov - "Business.gov is a collaborative effort managed by the U.S. Small Business Administration." It provides information and links to all aspects of the small business and the U.S. government.
- SCORE:Counselors to America's Small Business - Formerly Service Corps of Retired Executives, SCORE aids the entrepreneur in all areas of developing a small business.
- SBA: Small Business Administration Home Page - Provides links to a variety of resources and tools. The SBA is a Federal Agency which helps entrepreneurs in all facets of starting a business.
- USA.gov - The Business and Nonprofits Gateway is a wonderful source of information on any topic relating to running a business or nonprofit.
Financing your Business
- SBA Financing your Business - Offers a variety of loan programs to start small businesses.
- Obtaining a Business Loan - From the Louisville Department of Economic Development.
- Small Business Guide to Government Grants and Loans
- Business Financing Solutions - Get help from the Community Venture Corporation with financing your small business.
Franchises
- Entrepreneur.com - Franchises & Opportunities - The Franchise 500 is located at this site.
- FranchiseGator - FranchiseGator is a directory of franchises organized by business category. It also lists businesses for sale.
- Franchise Opportunities.com - A directory of franchise opportunities around the world, it also includes franchise resources and current news about franchises.
- SmallBusinessFranchise.com - Find information about franchises, listed by industry. This site also includes links to small business organizations and consultants.
Legal Information
- Business.gov - "Business.gov guides you through the maze of government rules and regulations … and provides access to services and resources to help you start, grow, and succeed in business.
Louisville
- Community Ventures Corporation - "Founded in 1982, Community Ventures Corporation (CVC) is a community-based, non-profit organization that exists to improve the quality of life for urban and rural residents throughout central and northern Kentucky. CVC's central mission is to provide individuals and families with the skills, income, and assets, they need to achieve financial independence. CVC helps people increase income and build assets with three main strategies: small business ownership, home ownership, and job creation through business expansion."
- Center for Nonprofit Excellence - The Center for Nonprofit Excellence is a "nonprofit support management organization dedicated to being a resource for the success of the nonprofit sector in the Greater Louisville and Southern Indiana metro area."
- Greater Louisville Small Business Development Center - "The mission of the KSBDC (Kentucky Small Business Development Centers) network is to further economic development by fostering the creation and growth of viable small enterprises."
- Kentuckiana Minority Supplier Development Council - KMSDC's goal is to increase the amount and quality of business transacted with minority owned and controlled firms throughout the state of Kentucky and Southern Indiana.
- Louisville Community Development Bank - LCDB Enterprise Group's Enterprise Development Center provides business owners with a wide range of customized, on-site services to assist them in their company's day-to-day operations.
- Metro Business Resource Center - Located at The Nia Center the Center offers programs to assist new and expanding businesses.
- SBA Kentucky - Local office site includes workshop schedules.
- Big Talk on Small Business - This is a program on WKJK 1080-AM that focuses on small business. It runs 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. Monday - Friday.
- The West Louisville Initiative - The West Louisville Initiative is a program of Greater Louisville, Inc. and works to promote business in West Louisville.
Louisville Business Incubators
- FB3 Development LLC - "FB3 Development was started in 2006 to facilitate product development and manufacturing for a growing food and beverage industry. Our expertise will help you develop and manufacture innovative food and beverage products."
- Metacyte Business Lab - "Breaking free of the traditional health science incubator model, MetaCyte Business Lab actually creates launches and manages its portfolio companies. MetaCyte takes a hands-on, human capital intensive approach to company building."
Kentucky
- Kentucky Small Business Resource Guide - - From the SBA.
- Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development - "This website provides extensive information on the programs and services available to businesses including existing businesses, newly locating companies, start-ups, small and minority businesses and many others."
- The Secretary of State's Office - This site includes information essential to anyone wanting to start a business in Kentucky. Look here for corporate records, the land office, the uniform commercial code, notaries, apostille/authentication, trademarks/service marks, and more.
- Kentucky Small Business Profile - "The Small Business State Profiles provide an overview of the important role small businesses play in each state. They include baseline statistics on each state's small business economy - number of firms, small business income, industrial composition, job growth and data on minority and women-owned businesses."
- Kentucky Small Business Development Center - "Kentucky’s Small Business Development Centers have been assisting the Commonwealth’s small business community for more than 20 years. With 15 service centers statewide and an experienced and knowledgeable staff, KSBDC is a great resource for both existing business owners and potential entrepreneurs."
Magazines
- Black Enterprise Magazine
- Entrepreneur Magazine
- Fortune Small Business
- INC Magazine
- MBE Magazine
- Small Business Opportunities
- There are a number of periodicals available via our subscription databases. Try our Journal/Magazine/Newspaper search and type in "small business" to retrieve full-text articles online. For further resources, see our Newspapers or Magazines/Journals databases.
Professional Licensing
- Professional Licensing - Find information on state and local permits and licenses needed to start a business in Kentucky.
- Renewing Your License - "Get information about renewing your professional license or renew it online where available."
Small Business Centers
- Small Business Development Centers - SBDC's are educational and research resources providing data and analysis generally unavailable in the private sector. All 50 states as well as the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands have SBDC's.
Taxes
- C Corporations - C Corporations are a tax entity for regular corporations.
- Limited Liability - Limited Liability companies are a type of company whose owners and managers receive the limited liability and tax benefits of S Corporations without having to conform to S Corporation restrictions.
- S Corporations - S Corporations is a form of corporation for companies with less than 75 shareholders.
- Sole Proprietorships - Sole Proprietorships are a business structure where the owner and business are considered a single entity for tax purposes.
- Tax Information for Business - From the IRS.
- Income Taxes on Business Income in Kentucky
Women
- Women's Business Center - This site is run by the Small Business Administration and is designed to help women entrepreneurs start or expand their businesses.
- WomenBiz.gov - The Small Business Administration runs this site to help women-owned do business with the government. The site also includes a national database of women-owned businesses.
- Women Entrepreneurship in the 21st Century - This site is a "one-stop federal resource for targeted information, registration for online programs, and networking opportunities to help women entrepreneurs navigate the ever-changing business world and do what they do best: innovate, create jobs, and make a vital contribution to the strength of America." From the Small Business Administration.
- National Association of Women Business Owners Louisville Chapter - "National Association of Women Business Owners® (NAWBO®) is the voice of America's 10.6 million women-owned businesses . Since 1975, NAWBO has helped women evolve their businesses by sharing resources and providing a single voice to shape economic and public policy. National Association of Women Business Owners is the only dues-based national organization representing the interests of all women entrepreneurs across all industries."
Last Updated:
08/21/2008
