Starting a Business Guide 2 Starting a Business Guide Prepared by: Tourism & Economic Development’s Thunder Bay & District Entrepreneur Centre P.O. Box 800, 111 Syndicate Avenue South Victoriaville Civic Centre, 2nd Floor Thunder Bay, Ontario P7C 5K4 Contact: Lucas Jewitt Development Officer Entrepreneur Centre Telephone: (807) 625-3972 Toll Free: 1-800-668-9360 Fax: (807) 623-3962 Email:
[email protected] Website: www.ThunderBay.ca 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Are you an Entrepreneur? Introduction 4 Finding a Business Idea Chapter One 5 The Feasibility Analysis Chapter Two 7 The Business Plan Chapter Three 11 Financing Chapter Four 15 Legal/Regulatory Information Chapter Five 28 City/Municipal Policies and Regulations 28 Provincial Policies and Regulations 34 Federal Policies and Regulations 45 Other Administrative Questions 46 Agency and Organizational Contacts to Assist with Your Start-up Chapter Six 50 Local Agencies and Organizations (Thunder Bay) 50 Provincial Agencies and Organizations 57 Federal/National Agencies and Organizations 57 Quick Reference Telephone List for Thunder Bay 61 Quick Reference Telephone List for Unorganized Townships 62 Organizational and Informational Websites 63 4 INTRODUCTION: ARE YOU AN ENTREPRENEUR? Starting a business can be very rewarding, but also time- consuming and labour-intensive. Before you start researching, obtaining sources of funding, finding a location and completing all of the other tasks necessary to open a business, you’ll probably want to know if you possess the typical characteristics of successful entrepreneurs. Of course, there are many variables in determining entrepreneurial success, but knowing that you fit the profile is an important first step (as well as a confidence booster!) in getting your business off the ground.