Prepare to start your business

Why you should start a business in Canberra

Although Canberra is known for the public service, two in every three jobs in Canberra are in the private sector.

There are many opportunities to start a thriving business in Canberra. Whether it's in the trades, hospitality, real estate, accounting or retail. With a small geographic area, the connected nature of our city and its networks are a great base for your business. For instance, Canberra has a passionate hospitality industry you could join with your food business.

Canberra's strong economy and public sector employment base provides stability for small businesses looking to start up. It has the highest average income and highest employment rate in the country.

With a strong sense of community, there are many programs and networks available to support business across all industries.

See why you should start a business in Canberra

Analyse and research your business idea

When starting any new business, you must be prepared. Work out your idea's potential and potential risks.

You should check:

• the demand for your product or service
• your business's financial viability
• all potential competitors
• IP and idea protection
• all the possible risks involved.

If you're thinking of turning your hobby into a business, you may know a lot of this already. But it’s still important to know how to turn it into a full business. You should still do a cost analysis to make sure it will be profitable.

Calculate your start-up costs using a template from business.gov.au

Develop a business plan

Creating a business plan can help you define your goals, values, market, growth options and potential risks.

Your business plan is something you can refer to at different stages to help you meet your goals. Update it as your business changes or you expand. You can also use it if you’re seeking finance or looking for investors. It'll show why it’s worth investing in your business.

Create your business plan using a template from business.gov.au

Create a marketing plan

Businesses use marketing and advertising to promote their goods and services and attract new customers. If you decide to do either, it will depend on your business, budget and goals. Creating a marketing plan will give you a clear picture of who you want to reach and how.

Depending on your audience, you might like to use social media, radio, television or print advertising to reach them. Or you can use mailing lists to send your customers the latest updates about your business. Your plan should identify who your audience is, and how best to reach them.

Marketing plans can also include research, which is a great way to help understand your customers better. You can do your own research or use research that is already publicly available. For example, the City Renewal Authority's Place Experience & Marketing Action Plan [PDF 4.6MB] has information on Canberra's customer types you might find useful.

You can also use data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics to help you research and develop a marketing plan. Data covers numbers in areas like socio-economics, labour hire and trade.

Create your marketing plan using a template from business.gov.au.