Start a New Business in Kentucky

​Kentucky Business One Stop will guide you through turning your ideas and concepts into a business plan and connect you to resources that will help you know what to expect on the path ahead. The entire site provides resources to not only help you start your business, but also manage your business, expand your business, and move your business to Kentucky.

• Research: Improve your chances of success with good planning, preparation, and insight. One of the first steps in starting a new business is adequate research and planning.

• Mentoring: Business mentors have the experience of operating on their own, and you can benefit from their experience. This section provides a wealth of resources in Kentucky, and they’re all provided at no cost.

• Write a Business Plan: A good business plan acts as a road map that allows you to look at your business objectively and see where the strengths and weaknesses are before opening, and then every step along the way. It is also a key part of any financial documentation package that gives lenders and investors a clear picture of your ideas.

Kentucky Business One Stop website

The Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development supports the state’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, leading the way for small business development by bringing together partners, backers, programs, opportunities, and stakeholders from across the United States.

The Cabinet connects small businesses with resources such as:

• Access To Capital

• Business Mentoring

• Expanding Markets

• Business Advocacy

• Training Incentives

Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development
Old Capitol Annex
300 West Broadway
Frankfort, Kentucky 40601
Phone: 502 - 564 - 7670

Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development website

The Kentucky SBA is supported by a district office in Louisville. It provides services including funding programs, counseling, federal contracting, certifications, and disaster recovery. They can also connect you to partner organizations, lenders, and other community groups that help small businesses succeed.

This location serves all 120 Kentucky counties.

Examples of educational programs and events include How to Market Your Business in 30 Minutes Per Day, Elevating Your Food Business, Veteran Business Q&A, and Strategically Leveraging Debt to Build Your Small Business.

600 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Place
Suite 188
Louisville, Kentucky 40202
Phone: 502-582-5971

Kentucky Small Business Administration SBA website

The Women's Business Center of Kentucky helps women entrepreneurs, especially those who are economically or socially disadvantaged, start and grow businesses in the state of Kentucky.

In an effort to “level the playing field” for women in business, its mission is to empower, support, encourage, and equip women entrepreneurs and business owners for success through training, workshops, counseling services, and networking opportunities.

WBC of Kentucky services include:

• Quality Business Education

• Access to Micro and Small Business loans and loan package preparation

• One-on-one Business Technical Assistance

• Business Development Planning and Marketing Strategies

• Networking Opportunities

• Training programs for new and emerging businesses

1450 North Broadway
Lexington, Kentucky 40505
Phone: 502-992-9495

Women’s Business Center of Kentucky website

Women's Business Enterprise Council Ohio River Valley (WBEC ORV) provides WBENC certification to women-owned companies in Ohio, Kentucky, and West Virginia.

While certifying women-owned businesses is the foundation of its mission, WBEC ORV also offers:

• development opportunities to scale businesses to compete in the marketplace.

• connect with corporations’ leading supplier diversity departments for real-time business opportunities.

• network with other WBEs for partnering and purchasing opportunities.

3458 Reading Road
Cincinnati, Ohio 45229
Phone: 513-559-5582

WBEC ORV Women’s Business Enterprise Council Ohio River Valley website

The Kentucky Small Business Development Center network provides business services that empower entrepreneurs with practical information, skills, and strategies. Let the experienced coaches at the Kentucky SBDC walk with you through the process of:

• developing your business plan.

• preparing budgets and financial projections.

• performing market research.

• developing business models.

• preparing marketing plans.

• analyzing the feasibility of an idea.

• creating investor presentations.

• preparing a loan package.

Kentucky SBDC in Lexington serves Bourbon, Boyle, Fayette, Garrard, Harrison, Jessamine, Mercer, Nicholas, Scott and Woodford counties.

Berea SBDC serves Clark, Estill, Powell, Madison, and Jackson counties.

Bowling Green SBDC serves Allen, Barren, Butler, Edmonson, Hart, Logan, Metcalfe, Monroe, Simpson and Warre counties.

Covington SBDC serves Boone, Campbell, Gallatin, Grant, Kenton and Pendleton counties.

Eastern Kentucky SBDC serves Boyd, Breathitt, Floyd, Greenup, Johnson, Knott, Lawrence, Lee, Magoffin, Martin, Owsley, Pike, and Wolfe counties.

Elizabethtown SBDC serves Breckinridge, Grayson, Green, Hardin, Larue, Marion, Meade, Nelson, Taylor and Washington counties.

Frankfort SBDC serves Anderson, Franklin, Henry, Owen, Shelby, and Spencer counties.

Louisville SBDC serves Bullitt, Carroll, Jefferson, Oldham, and Trimble counties.

Morehead SBDC serves Bath, Bracken, Carter, Elliott, Fleming, Lewis, Mason, Menifee, Montgomery, Morgan, Robertson and Rowan counties.

Owensboro SBDC serves Christian, Daviess, Hancock, Henderson, Hopkins, McLean, Muhlenberg, Ohio, Todd, Union and Webster counties.

Paducah SBDC serves Ballard, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Crittenden, Fulton, Graves, Hickman, Livingston, Lyon, Marshall, McCracken, and Trigg counties.

Southeastern Kentucky SBDC serves Adair, Bell, Casey, Clay, Clinton, Cumberland, Harlan, Jackson, Knox, Laurel, Leslie, Letcher, Lincoln, Madison, McCreary, Perry, Pulaski, Rockcastle, Russell, Wayne and Whitley counties.

330 East Main Street
Suite 210
Lexington, Kentucky 40507
Phone: 888-414-7232

Kentucky Small Business Development Center KSBDC website

The Frankfort First Foundation promotes, supports, undertakes, and encourages education, workforce, community development, and business development initiatives in Frankfort and the surrounding areas.

Frankfurt Area Chamber of Commerce resources include a Business Start-Up Checklist - a great tool for acquainting new business owners with the critical steps in opening the doors of a new business.

484 Chenault Road
Frankfort, Kentucky 40601
Phone: 502-223-8261

Frankfort Area Chamber of Commerce

NAWBO Kentucky serves Kentucky, the Southern Indiana and Cincinnati, Ohio areas. Its mission is to help connect women to the resources, people, information, and organizations that can help them achieve their personal and business goals.

By combining the knowledge, networks, and expertise of its diverse membership, NAWBO Kentucky works to:

• Strengthen the wealth-creating capacity of members and promote economic development.

• Create innovative and effective changes in business culture.

• Build strategic alliances, coalitions, and affiliations.

• Transform public policy and influence opinion makers.

614 West Main Street
Suite 6000
Louisville, Kentucky 40202

NAWBO National Association of Women Business Owner’s Kentucky Chapter website

Community Ventures provides access to working capital and financial education and training to help business owners reach their goals. Whether you are starting a new business or growing an existing business, Community Ventures can help you make it the best it can be.

As the largest CDFI in the state of Kentucky and a certified U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) lender, Community Ventures is a recognized leader in small business lending and a trusted nonprofit resource for small businesses in Kentucky.

Over the past 40 years, Community Ventures has helped more than 8,600 entrepreneurs start or expand their businesses, providing nearly 100K hours of training and over $62M to entrepreneurs.

1450 North Broadway
Lexington, Kentucky 40505
Phone: 859-231-0054

Community Ventures Kentucky website

The Mountain Association’s Business Support program connects businesses and organizations with consultants who can give you the support and customized training you need. This includes:

• Website development and training

• Strategic marketing, including social media

• One-on-one accounting training

• Business coaching

• Financial training and planning

• Strategic planning

• Plant production and process efficiencies

• Energy efficiency and solar projects

433 Chestnut Street
Berea, Kentucky 40403
Phone: 859-986-2373

Mountain Association website

SCORE is a nonprofit association dedicated to educating entrepreneurs and helping businesses start, grow, and succeed across the state of Kentucky.

SCORE volunteers offer entrepreneurs confidential business counseling services at no charge and sponsor local workshops and events to connect all business owners with the people and information they need to reach success in the business world.

SCORE Kentucky provides:

• volunteer mentors who share their expertise across many industries.

• free, confidential business mentoring in person, via email, or by video.

• free business tools, templates, and tips.

• inexpensive or free business workshops and webinars.

Kentuckiana Main Office:
614 West Main Street
Suite 6000
Louisville, Kentucky 40202
Phone: 502-888-4543

SCORE Kentucky website

SCORE Greater Cincinnati
3700 Park 42 Drive
Suite 140A
Cincinnati, Ohio 45241
Phone: 513-549-0818

SCORE Greater Cincinnati serves nineteen counties in Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, and Southeast Indiana.

The U.S. Small Business Administration helps small businesses get the funding they need. Funding resources include:

• Loans: Start or expand your business with loans guaranteed by the SBA.

• Investment capital: Find an investor for your business. Investors make both debt and equity investments.

• Disaster assistance: Get help after a disaster with low-interest disaster loans.

• Surety bonds: Protect your work and your client with an SBA-guaranteed surety bond.

• Grants: Look for government grants that help businesses do scientific research and development.

United States Small Business Administration SBA website

Mountain Association is a Community Development Financial Institution and a nonprofit—not a bank. This means loans can offer greater flexibility than those available with a traditional lender.

Whether you are just getting started with your business idea, or you are an established business or nonprofit needing a loan to expand your impact, Mountain Association can find the right kind of affordable financing for you.

They also offer a number of other services including the Business Support program that can also pay for all the costs of a consulting project for your business or organization – from marketing support to QuickBooks training, and more. The Energy team can also conduct a free energy audit of your building to help you find energy savings.

Loans range from $1,000 to over $1 million.

Mountain Association website

433 Chestnut Street
Berea, Kentucky 40403
Phone: 859-986-2373

420 Main Street
Hazard, Kentucky 41701
Phone: 606-439-0170

268 East Friend Street
Suite 101
Prestonsburg, Kentucky 41653
Phone: 606-264-5910

Whether you are an early stage company that needs start-up funding or a regional firm that would like some additional funds to establish your expansion location, the staff at Commerce Lexington can help you determine if you are eligible for a variety of funding options including:

• Kentucky Business Incentives and Financial Programs

• Access Loan Programs

• Angel Investment

330 East Main Street
Suite 205
Lexington, Kentucky 40507
Phone: 859-254-4447

Commerce Lexington website

Through teaching, research, and outreach, Gatton College of Business and the University of Kentucky not only support economic growth, but have a direct, tangible influence on the lives of Kentucky’s citizens and people around the world.

The mission of the University of Kentucky's Von Allmen Center for Entrepreneurship (VACE) is to strengthen Kentucky’s economy through entrepreneurship and small business outreach in the Commonwealth. VACE serves students, staff, faculty, and community entrepreneurs with the goal to help launch their startup dreams.

The Center fosters entrepreneurial education through workshops, online accelerator programming, and public events. VACE also connects entrepreneurs with mentors and Kentucky Angel Investors, and provides free access to downloadable books and templates.

550 South Limestone
Lexington, Kentucky 40506
Phone: 859-257-8936

University of Kentucky Gatton College of Business and Economics website

The Forcht Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Louisville College of Business offers a comprehensive suite of programs that develop and nurture entrepreneurial skills, experiences, and opportunities.

Their programs are designed for working professionals who need to lead innovative corporate teams to new product, service, and technology breakthroughs; students who want to discover the pathways to creating new, successful ventures that expand the marketplace; and scholars whose research may inspire and guide future entrepreneurs.

110 W Brandeis Avenue
Louisville, Kentucky 40208
Phone: 502-852-6440

University of Louisville College of Business website

The Thomas Moore University Zembrodt Center for Entrepreneurship offers programs that provide outstanding cooperative education opportunities with companies across the tri-state region.

The Zembrodt Center combines experiential opportunities with a liberal arts education to foster creativity, critical thinking, and entrepreneurial thinking. Opportunities include:

• Pitch competitions

• One-to-One mentorships

• Speaker Series

• Networking opportunities with entrepreneurs, business leaders, and start-ups

• Entrepreneurship and innovation classes – open for all students of all majors

• Entrepreneurship and innovation minor – open for all students of all majors

• Off campus visits to businesses and start-ups in the entrepreneurship eco-system

333 Thomas More Parkway
Crestview Hills, Kentucky 41017
Phone: 859-344-3621

Thomas More University Plaster College of Business website

Kentucky’s only statewide business magazine, The Lane Report is a monthly magazine covering business news in the Central Kentucky region and across the state. It reach top leaders in business, economic development, and public policy, who depend on The Lane Report to keep them informed of the latest business news.

The Lane Report also publishes three annual magazines – the Market Review of Greater Louisville, the Market Review of Central Kentucky, and the Market Review of Northern Kentucky – that provide an in-depth look at the commonwealth’s largest economic drivers.

The Lane Report
465 East High Street
Suite 124
Lexington, Kentucky 40507
Phone: 859-244-3500

The Lane Report website

Louisville Business First is the leading source for business news, data, and networking for the Greater Louisville area. It gathers all the information, insights, and connections you need to succeed in business.

462 South 4th Street
Suite 450
Louisville, Kentucky 40202
Phone: 502-498-1976

Louisville Business First website