Dorchester Times: So You Want To Start A Small Town Business?

Sunday, February 28, 2016

So You Want To Start A Small Town Business?

We all know individuals who have told us they'd love to start their own business in our community or reinvigorate downtown Dorchester. From services, to housing, to retail, we've heard dozens of great ideas. But making those ideas reality takes tough work and a stomach for risk. There is help out there, such as the Nebraska Business Development Center or the Nebraska Dept. of Economic Development. But you need to have a game plan first.

In an effort to encourage more would-be entrepreneurs, we searched a number of websites and publications and found several common themes that need to be considered by those who want to start their own operation in a small town, as well as those who are already in business. Here are some key tips:

Be realistic, then be prepared. Only 50% of small businesses survive the first year of operation. As many as 80% to 90% fail by the end of the tenth year. Most of these failures could have been prevented by if the business owners had been more conscious and had a better game plan. Most potential business owners know the product or procedures in producing what will be sold but very little about the day to day operation of the business. You will also need a solid plan to request financial aid from banks or investors. They are going to want to know how you plan to make the business a success. Then it will be vital to revise your business plan on a regular basis.

Talk to others who have opened businesses recently. What challenges have they faced? What works and what does not? What appeals to community members and what does not? Our suggestion: Do your research with business owners and potential customers.

If nobody has opened a business for awhile, dig deeper. Maybe there is no market. Or maybe they're just waiting for you to arrive. Sometimes a new business can generate demand. Our suggestion: Questions to ponder are: What are people willing to drive to Dorchester from Crete, Seward or Lincoln for? What can you do in Dorchester that will also allow you to market your services or goods online?

Make a great first impression. Promotion isn't hard in a small town. Ten minutes after you've opened, everyone will know. Your first impression will linger a long time -- good or bad.

Uncover the town's market and memory. Whether a business in Dorchester closed a year ago or 20 years ago, it seems everyone miss it now. That's where a wonderful opportunity exists.

Prepare to do most of the work yourself. In a small town, you can have trouble finding good help. The local work ethic may surprise you -- in either direction. Our suggestion: Most well-planned small businesses can make enough money to be successful if they don't go overboard with labor costs or become overly dependent on the local workforce.

Know your community. Enough said.

Build relationships. If you can attract a town leader, you'll draw a following. Conversely, if you inadvertently alienate a key player, you'll be miserable. And in a small town, business owners are expected to be super citizens. Prepare for all sorts of requests to donate time, materials and money.

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Dorchester: A Good Little Family Town

Dorchester, Nebraska (est. population 630) is located in northern Saline county. Close in proximity to Interstate 80, Dorchester is only 25 minutes from the state capital of Lincoln (est. population 250,000) and about 55 minutes from Omaha (metro population 725,000).

Dorchester's median resident age is 37 years. In 2005, Dorchester had a median family income of approximately $35,600. The median house value was about $63,000. About 95 percent of Dorchester residents commute to work via Interstate and highways.

The village has a quality public school, which received a $4.1 million expansion and modernization in 2008; it offers a small classrooms and individualized attention. Total enrollment of grades K-12 is around 230-250 students.

Ancestries of the Dorchester area are primarily German (42.4%), Czech (24.9%), Irish (12.5%), English (5.4%), and Dutch (4.9%).

Dorchester Historical Facts

* On July 4, 1871, the railroad reached Dorchester.
* Incorporated in 1881, Dorchester's population grew from 200 to 500 by 1882.
* In 1882, Dorchester had 90 buildings, 35 of which were businesses or public facilities. Brick buildings lined both sides of Washington Avenue for two blocks.
* Dorchester's longest-running newspaper was The Dorchester Star, which was published until the late 1940s.
* By 1889, Dorchester's population is said to have reached 800, while the town housed an opera house, a two-story brick schoolhouse with a bell tower, and four churches.
* By the 1910s, Dorchester had electricity, a water tower and a fire department.
* Dorchester's main arteries, Highways 6 and 33, were graveled in the 1940s.
* Dorchester's first irrigation well was drilled on Chris Weber's farm and rural electrification was finished following WWII.

A Village with History

Dorchester is one of the "alphabet towns" on the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad line built west from Lincoln. The town site was selected for its pleasant location in the northern part of Saline County, about eight miles west of Crete. This situation is an attractive one, being on the level prairie land, midway between the West Blue River and Turkey Creek. The first named stream is three miles north, and the latter about the same distance south from the town. Dorchester was platted in 1870 and incorporated in 1881. The name "Dorchester" came from either for a suburb of Boston by that name or a town in England. No one is sure. Two of the very first settlers were James Seely and Edward McIntyre, who both made Dorchester their permanent home.

Dorchester: In The Beginning

Here is a look at Dorchester around 1890, less than a decade after its official incorporation, as documented by Andreas' History of the State of Nebraska:
* POPULATION: "About 300, and is made up of a substantial and progressive class of citizens, who are moral and industrious. ... The town grew but very little until the year 1879, for the reason that Pleasant Hill, on Turkey Creek, a short distance south, was the county seat and naturally drew a trade for quite a large scope of country."
* BUSINESS: "The business and professional interests of the town are represented by three general merchandise stores, two drug, one grocery, one furniture, two hardware, and two millinery stores, one bank, two restaurants, two hotels, three livery stables, a post office, one newspaper office, two elevators, two lumber yards, two coal yards, two blacksmith shops, two lawyers and four physicians."
* SCHOOL: "The schoolhouse is a good one. The schoolhouse was built in 1872, since which time the public schools have been continually kept up. The present schoolhouse is 24' x 40' in size, two stories high. The school is graded and consists of three departments. The house is found too small, and arrangements will soon be made to increase its size."
* CHURCHES: "There are three substantial churches."
* HOMES: "The residence portion of the village is made up of neat houses of different styles of architecture, but none of them very large."
* NEWSPAPER: "The Dorchester Star, which was established August 21, 1881, by H. C. Bittenbender, who edited it until January 19, 1882, when he sold it to Ryerson & Bullock, the present proprietors. The Star is a bright weekly paper, five-column quarto, in size, and is Republican in politics."