Business Resources
Business Assistance
One of the most promising economic development strategies is supporting the people and businesses who are already here, employing our residents, investing in our Community, and contributing to the local economy.
Some of these creative and inventive people have started and built unique and interesting businesses. They have provided transportation to royalty, entertainment to dignitaries and celebrities, support to the movie industry, and food to the world.
But having your own business is challenging as well as rewarding and Grow Clay County would like to assist you in reducing the challenges so that it can be even more rewarding. We would be happy to discuss your goals and assist you in identifying the resources that can help you address your challenges. You can contact us to arrange a meeting or check out the website for information.
Business Plan
Before writing a business plan, conduct a feasibility study to take a realistic look at your business idea and the market to determine the viability of the business idea. The feasibility study answers the question: will the idea work and should I proceed with it. The Small Business Development Center provides no-cost services to help with a feasibility study.
Once you determine that the idea is feasible, expand upon it in a written business plan to market your idea to potential funding sources. The plan helps you to improve your business concept in order to achieve your desired goals; to save your money by identifying problems before they get too far; to keep you focused, and to improve your chances of success.
For the do-it-yourselfer, the Small Business Administration provides a template to write your own business plan and Network Kansas provides a step-by-step guide to starting a business.
Training Assistance
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Small Business Development Center - Washburn
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Access checklists for how to start a business, feasibility, hiring employees, and marketing as well as a business plan template.
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Network Kansas provides resources and referrals for starting or growing your business.
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SCORE provides online workshops, templates, tools, and mentoring either in person or via email.
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The Kansas Business Center Wrong link. Please use this one Business Center One Stop | Kansas One Stop Business Information
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The official state resource for information, filings, and personal assistance to start or maintain your Kansas business. Click here to for the Kansas Business Startup Guide
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Kansas Secretary of State's Business Services Filing Center
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Customers can file documents and search records twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week for business name availability, file Annual Reports, obtain a Certificate of Good Standing, or conduct a trademark or service-mark search.
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Other Resources
Business Help
Innovate Kansas helps connect businesses to suppliers, partners, capital, and resources. Make sure you are listed so that other businesses needing your services can find you.
Inventors
Have you discovered something that you think might be patentable or otherwise protectable? It could be an apparatus, process or composition of matter that is useful and unique. If you have, contact the Kansas State University Research Foundation to complete an invention disclosure form and receive their assistance.
Patent Acquisition
The Kansas State University Institute for Commercialization is dedicated to the start-up and expansion of technology-based, high-growth enterprises and enabling the commercialization of university and under-utilized corporate intellectual property. Their organization provides opportunity assessment; strategic partnership design; technology acquisition, management and licensing; business development; and technology transfer support activities for entrepreneurs to commercialize intellectual property emanating from basic research at Kansas State University and other intellectual property portfolios.
Agribusiness
The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism provides assistance to agritourism businesses and to those exploring the possibilities.
Historical
The Kansas Historical Society will assist business owners with applying for the National and State Historic Registers.
Kansas Made Products
If you’re a Kansas producer or agritourism operator who would like to display the Simply Kansas logo on your product or experience, contact From the Land of Kansas to learn more about it. In addition to utilizing their logo, you’ll have access to a searchable database of Kansas products, educational opportunities and marketing grants.
Transitioning
The Redefine Your Retirement program, nicknamed Red Tire, will match business school graduates who want to own a business with business owners who may be looking for an exit.
Veterans assistance
If you are a veteran or service-disabled veteran, SBA has resources to help you start and grow your small business. From creating a business plan to finding your first customer, they are there to help you succeed.
Kansas Women's Business Center
The Women’s Business Center offers a host of services to women entrepreneurs at all stages of business development. These services are designed to enhance our client’s entrepreneurial and general business knowledge.
Manufacturing
If you have a new product, new service offering, or are entering a new market, Advanced Manufacturing Institute, (AMI) can help you allocate resources, better understand the market you are competing in, and plan your strategy.
Mid-America Manufacturing Technology Center (MAMTC) helps manufacturing businesses improve competitiveness and profitability through world-class techniques including Lean Enterprise, Product Development, and Testing, Quality, Human Resources, Environment Compliance, Business Planning, Technology and Automation, Plant Layout, Marketing, and Growth Services.
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Exporting
Wichita State University's Business in Motion provides classes and assistance to expand your business through exports, government contracts, franchises, new products, new markets, or on the web.
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Kansas Department of Commerce Export Assistance and Marketing provides individualized counseling and expertise to Kansas companies expanding their export markets. Their staff works with you to help assess your company's export readiness, research potential export markets, and explain the export process.
Export.gov combines the information from each of its Partner Agencies to provide U.S. companies with one central location for finding export information. The site contains lots of articles and webinars on marketing, financing, licensing, logistics, and more as well as links to each of the Partner Agencies' sites.
USDA
Provides an easy checklist to assist new and experienced exporters in all the stages necessary for getting their food related products out to their desired market and offers a variety of valuable tools and services to assist users in advertising their products overseas, finding foreign buyers for their products, and participating in trade shows.