The state’s unemployment rate was 4.8% as of July, compared to the national average of 5.3%, and 193,000 jobs have been created in Virginia since the 2008 recession, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Meanwhile, average hourly earnings of private-sector workers have risen by 1.9% over the past year, outpacing a nationwide increase of 1.3%, according to the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee.
Business incentives include state tax credits for recycling old equipment; economic and infrastructure development grants; reimbursement for recruiting and training services; and economic development loan funds and grants.
To pinpoint where small business are thriving in Virginia, NerdWallet examined 112 communities with populations of at least 5,000.
Entrepreneurs looking to start a small business in Virginia will find resources in NerdWallet’s Small Business Guide. For financing, take a look at NerdWallet’s comparison of small-business loans for a variety of needs.

Key takeaways

Strong local economy. The top 10 places have an average unemployment rate of 3.9%, well below the state and national average, and nine of the top 10 have median incomes above the national median income of $43,880, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Washington, D.C., suburbs dominate. Six communities in the top 10 list are located within 50 miles of the nation’s capital: Tysons Corner, Fairfax, Warrenton, Falls Church, Vienna and Merrifield. Of those six places, five are in or directly adjacent to Fairfax County.
Popular spot for corporate headquarters. Many large companies call Fairfax County home, including Booksfree.com, Capital One Financial, Freddie Mac and Northrop Grumman. Meanwhile, the town of Vienna is home to Navy Federal Credit Union.

NerdWallet’s rankings

In our analysis of 112 places in Virginia with populations of at least 5,000, we considered six metrics in two categories — business environment and the local economy — to assess each location. For more details, see the methodology section at the end of this article.

Best places to start a business in Virginia

1. Tysons Corner

The unincorporated Tysons Corner area serves as Fairfax County’s central business district; it’s home to 26.4 million square feet of office space. Tysons Corner’s businesses have an average annual revenue of $11.4 million, which is tops on our list and three times higher than any other place in our survey. Nearly 45% of Tysons Corner businesses have paid employees, and its 23.9 businesses per 100 people ranks second highest among all Virginia communities. Top employers include the Boeing Co., Booz Allen Hamilton and Hilton Worldwide. The area is also home to Tysons Corner Center, the largest shopping mall in Virginia.

2. Fairfax

The city of Fairfax has 25.3 businesses per 100 people, the highest number in the state, and its 4% unemployment rate is lower than both the state and national average. Among top employers are the city itself and Fairfax Nursing Center. Local businesses are served by the Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce, which offers monthly networking events, educational workshops, marketing opportunities and leadership training.

3. Warrenton

The town of Warrenton, about an hour west of D.C. near Shenandoah National Park, has 21.2 businesses per 100 people, fourth highest among Virginia communities, and 40.1% of its businesses have paid employees. The Greater Warrenton Chamber of Commerce offers a business assistance team whose mission is to “support and educate local businesses towards sustained profitability and success.” The chamber provides free professional guidance, expertise and resources to its members.

4. Abingdon

The town of Abingdon has one of the lowest median monthly housing costs on our list, at $663, and has 19 businesses per 100 people. Nestled in the Blue Ridge Highlands region of southwestern Virginia, Abingdon is an outdoor lover’s dream. The town is home to or near several historic and recreational trails, including the 34-mile Virginia Creeper Trail and the Appalachian Trail. Local businesses are served by theWashington County Virginia Chamber of Commerce.

5. Falls Church

Falls Church, a 20-minute drive from downtown D.C., cracks our top 10 because of its high percentage of businesses with paid employees (44%), its 13.2 businesses per 100 people and its $91,932 median annual income. Although median monthly annual housing costs are high at $2,149, the city’s unemployment rate is a low 3.8%. Local businesses can turn to the Falls Church Chamber of Commerce for networking and promotional opportunities.

6. Forest

Forest, near Lynchburg, has a high number of businesses per 100 people (11.1) and low median monthly housing costs of $943. More than 45% of its businesses have paid employees, the fifth-highest rate in our survey. Forest is home to Poplar Forest, which was Thomas Jefferson’s plantation house and now operates as a historic home and museum. Local businesses are supported by the Bedford Area Chamber of Commerce.

7. Vienna

Located 17 miles west of downtown D.C., the town of Vienna has 16.3 businesses per 100 people, a high median annual income of $83,125, and a 2.1% unemployment rate, the second lowest of all the communities in our survey. The town’s ranking is hampered a bit by high median monthly housing costs of $2,254. The top three employers in the area include Navy Federal Credit Union, Fairfax County Public Schools and Contemporary Electrical Services Inc. The Vienna Business Association offers networking and promotion for its members.

8. Merrifield

The Merrifield area of Fairfax County ranks in our top 10 thanks in part to its high percentage of businesses with paid employees (43.7%) and its $75,569 median annual income. The Mosaic District, a collection of boutiques, restaurants and a movie cineplex, has made Merrifield a retail and entertainment destination in Fairfax County.

9. Hollins

Hollins, a suburb of Roanoke, ranks high in part because its businesses bring in an average annual revenue of $2.3 million each, and 51.2% of its businesses have paid employees, which is tops in the state. Hollins also has an unemployment rate of 3.3%, well below the state and national average. Hollins is home to Hollins University, a private women’s college with undergraduate enrollment of 550.

10. Ashland

Ashland, 18 miles north of Richmond, is the smallest place in our top 10, with a population of 7,231. But the town benefits from a high average annual revenue of $2.25 million per business, an impressive 45.4% of businesses with paid employees and a low median monthly housing cost of $902. Ashland is home to Randolph-Macon College, a private liberal arts and sciences college with total enrollment of nearly 1,400 undergraduates. Popular restaurants include O’Bank’s Cafe & Grill, Virginia Barbeque, Homemades by Suzanne and Thai Gourmet Restaurant. Read more: Nerd Wallet


Chamber Best practices: Best Places to Work in Kentucky 2016


Eligibility
Click here to register!
To be eligible for consideration, companies must meet the following criteria:
  • Be a for-profit or not-for-profit business or government entity
  • Be a publicly or privately held business
  • Have a facility in the state of Kentucky
  • Employ a minimum of 15 full-time or part-time associates working in the
        state of Kentucky* (1)
  • Must be in business a minimum of 1 year
*Winners are categorized based upon the number of U.S. employees, but only employees based in Kentucky participate in the survey. For example, an employer with a sufficient number of U.S. employees to be categorized as a Large Company that only has 15 employees in Kentucky will be categorized as a Large Employer. Only the employees in Kentucky will be surveyed.
1) Companies surveying 15-24 employees must meet a minimum of 80% participation on the employee survey to be eligible for list consideration. Companies with over 25 employees must meet a minimum of 40%.
Temporary, per diem, PRN, seasonal, 1099 employees, independent contractors, non-employee real estate agents, consultants, interns and volunteers are not counted in the number of employees or included in the survey process. For staffing companies, employees that are placed with other organizations are not eligible. Remote employees that work from home or on the road outside of Kentucky that have a direct report to someone working in Kentucky are eligible. Registration Deadline for the 2016 program: October 23, 2015.

Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce gives neighborhood businesses a nudge


The Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce overhauled its Illinois Small Business Development Center and re-launched in July 2014 — the result of a survey of members who said they wanted a concerted focus on small business. The survey came at the direction of Theresa Mintle, who two years ago became the chamber’s new president and CEO.

Florence Hardy, the development center’s director, shares results from the first year and how it’s focusing on neighborhood storefronts.

Q. How did you refocus the SBDC?

A. We have two areas that we are distinguished from the others. The first is that we go out into communities and have office hours. Most of the other SBDCs wait for clients to come in, and that’s fine if they have that client base that knows they exist.

Even if there are more than a dozen SBDCs in the Chicagoland area, there are still neighborhoods untouched by the services. Those are business owners who wouldn’t necessarily come downtown or see the Chicagoland Chamber in particular as an organization that is for them.

We go to them through these office hours. We host them at universities, local incubators, accelerators, chambers of commerce, and in the coming months, we’re also going to aldermanic offices as well.

We’re developing a retail program so we can be seen as a place if you want to develop a storefront operation, that this is where you can come to get that information — particularly because we’re located on the Magnificent Mile where the hub of retail is, but we also understand that retail or even storefront businesses are what keeps neighborhoods going. That’s the niche we’re working toward. We’re not there yet, but we are starting some programming around that in the market. Read more: Chicago Tribune

Chamber issue: Transportation funding at a crossroads in Indiana, U.S.
Are you willing to spend $6.62 more a month in federal gasoline taxes to get the nation’s roads and bridges in good condition?
How about spending $5.50 a month more just to keep transportation infrastructure from deteriorating below its current “D” rating?
Or would you pay an extra $2.50 a month to get Indiana's gas tax back to the buying power it had when the tax was last raised in 2003?
The federal and state shortfall in transportation funding has been accelerating for years, and decision-makers are at a crossroads. The importance of the issue was driven home recently by the closure of 37 miles of I-65 because of an unstable bridge.
A blue ribbon panel created by Gov. Mike Pence to study the issue used phrases such as “grim picture” and “revenue is not sustainable” in its report last year.
Indiana, which already spends less per capita than most states on highways and transit, is not collecting enough gas taxes to adequately maintain its roads and bridges, much less pay for the new projects the state deems a priority. Read more: Indy Star


Chamber Best Practice: Lansing Regional Chamber: Executive Welcome


The Executive Welcome is a business leader's reception for executives new to the Greater Lansing Region. It presents invited participants with an opportunity to introduce themselves and their company to business decision makers throughout the region. Speakers are provided 5 minutes for remarks including information on your professional career, key highlights of economic investments your business is making in the region, community involvement and other information that would like to share about you or your business.

Invited Speakers:

- Mike Trevorrow, Regional Plant Manager, General Motors

- Daryl Adams, President & CEO, Spartan Motors

- Paula Cunningham, President & CEO, AARP of Michigan

- Rick Calk, President, Neogen Corporation

9/10/2015 From 8:00 AM until 10:00 AM

The University Club of Michigan State University
3435 Forest Rd
Lansing, Michigan 48910




Chamber collaboration: Lafayette School District Offers Specialty License Plates



Attention Lafayette Commodore fans! Did you know this year is the 50th anniversary of Lafayette School?

In celebration of this landmark anniversary the school has launched an exciting application drive for Lafayette Schools Specialty License Plates!

Organizers need a minimum of 300 car tags to get the new tags produced. The specialty plate is just $31, with $24 of coming straight back to Lafayette Schools to go toward continued technology needs and playground equipment. Leaders are trying to get as many applications in during the month of September as possible, so don’t delay!

The initial set up for your new Lafayette specialty license plate must be done through the school office this one time only. Each year after your initial set up you will renew through your normal tag renewal process, but the school STILL receives the $24 each year.


Participants must turn in the completed application plus the $31.00 fee by October 9. Applications and fees can be dropped Lafayette Schools Central Office, each individual school office, the Oxford-Lafayette County Chamber of Commerce (299 Jackson Avenue West) or Oxford Family Pharmacy (2209 South Lamar.) Read more: Hotty Toddy


Fox Cities Regional Partnership (Wisconsin) names vice president

 The Fox Cities Regional Partnership on Wednesday promoted Manny Vasquez as the organization's vice president.
Vasquez was the former vice president of existing industry services for the Regional Partnership.

 “Manny knows and understands the importance of building relationships in economic development,” said John F. Bergstrom, chairman and CEO of Bergstrom Corporation. “With both his relationships and his passion for putting the Fox Cities on the map, we have the right person in place to carry our mission forward and help tell our region’s story.”
Vasquez joined the Regional Partnership in May 2014 and managed its existing industry program by building relationships with corporate employers in the Fox Cities region, identifying and addressing their needs and working collaboratively with private, public and non-profit partners to foster local job creation.
“This is an exciting time for the Regional Partnership,” said Shannon Full, president/CEO of the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce. “We have made tremendous progress in the past three years and are poised to strengthen our region even more under Manny’s leadership. His collaborative work style and long-standing relationships with both the public and private sectors are a tremendous benefit.” Read more: PostCrescent.com


Famous Chamber of Commerce Quotation: (Attitude)

“People may hear your words, but they feel your attitude.” - John C. Maxwell