Cd'A among nation's best for business

Considering a startup? You’re in the right place.

This is Small Business Week, and Coeur d’Alene should be celebrating. It’s one of America’s best places to have one.

That’s according to the latest report from financial reporting site WalletHub. In its 2024 Best Small Cities to Start a Business, WalletHub compared 1,300 cities with fewer than 100,000 residents across 18 key metrics. Cedar City, Utah, was ranked first, but ranking 10 out of 1,300 means Coeur d’Alene isn’t just in the top 10%; it’s in a much more elite top 1% of similarly sized cities with a pro-small business climate.

Three cheers for city officials, staff and the supportive community that keeps doors open by choosing local. The Lake City must be doing right by small business — the backbone of the American economy.

Twenty percent of new businesses fail within the first year, with the state of Idaho on track with the national average, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In Coeur d’Alene, net growth in total number of small businesses is a lot better, ranking 18th.

Coeur d’Alene ranks well in most categories examined by WalletHub researchers, with even its lower positions still well above average, for the most part (1 = best; 667 = average):

• Startups per capita, rank: 1

• Starting a business, overall rank: 10

• Job growth: 132 (15%)

• Affordable office space: 153

• Commute: 205 (19 minutes)

• Revenue growth: 246

• Working-age population growth: 268

• Labor costs: 466

• Variety of industries: 412

• Corporate taxes: 522

• Cost of living: 588

In a few areas, Coeur d’Alene ranked lower than average but didn’t stray far from the middle. Three focus on employees: Human resource availability (745), hours worked weekly (841, or 38 hours) and having an educated workforce (856). 

The average annual small business revenue in Coeur d’Alene is lower than average (rank of 863), but still impressive enough to motivate startups at $2.9 million.

Small businesses in big cities may have a bigger potential customer base, but they also face stiff competition. According to WalletHub analysts, the benefits of small cities for startups include lower overhead and labor costs, stronger relationships and easier word-of-mouth marketing. 

Smaller cities also tend to offer funding initiatives for businesses under certain conditions or have resources which are easier to navigate with a more personal touch.

See the full report at https://wallethub.com/edu/best-small-cities-to-start-a-business/20180.

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Sholeh Patrick, J.D. is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network. Email sholeh@cdapress.com.