Looking to start a business, but not sure if you're in the right spot to succeed?
There's good news for Western New York entrepreneurs -- we have a small business hot spot right here in our corner of the country.
A WalletHub analysis of the best small cities to start a business reveals Tonawanda as the fourteenth choice on 2017's list.
The analysis compared more than 1,200 small-sized cities, focusing on places with a population between 25,000 and 100,000 people.
The study also took a look at things like the average growth of small businesses, investor access and labor costs. Each metric of the analysis was given a value on a 100-point scale, with 100 points representing the most ideal conditions for starting a business. The analysis was broken down as follows:
Business Environment - Total Points: 50, Each metric worth about 8.33 points
- Average length of work week (in hours)
- Average growth in number of small businesses
- Number of startups per capita
- Average revenue per business
- Average growth of business revenues
- Industry variety
Access to Resources - Total Points: 25, Each metric worth about 4.17 points
- Financing accessibility -- Calculated as follows: Total Annual Value of Small-Business Loans / Total Number of Small Businesses
- Investor access
- Human-Resource availability -- Calculated as follows: Number of Unemployed Residents - Number of Job Openings
- Higher-Education assets -- This measures the average university rank (based on U.S. News & World Report's Best Colleges Rankings) and the number of students enrolled per 1000 residents
- Workforce educational attainment -- This measures the percentage of the population with at least a bachelor's degree
- Working-Age population growth -- This population focuses on ages 16-64
Business Costs - Total Points: 25, Each metric worth about 6.25 points
- Office-Space affordability -- This measures the per-square-foot cost of commercial office space
- Labor costs -- This measures the median annual income
- Corporate Taxes
- Cost of living
Based on these measurements, Tonawanda received a total score of 48.56, not far behind the number one spot, Holland, Michigan, which received a score of 50.22.
Click here for WalletHub's full report.
