As an entrepreneur, Matthew Goodchild can honestly say that Atlanta is one of the finest, if not the finest, city for startups within any industry.
Matthew says that “Of all the cities I’ve had the pleasure of advising up-and-coming entrepreneurs in, Atlanta appears to have the most to offer.” He added, “It’s not only from a financial perspective but it’s the whole culture of the city that is warm and welcoming to newcomers.”
Perhaps what Matthew is referring to is the fact that several highly ranked universities have campuses here, notwithstanding the Georgia Institute of Technology that keeps Atlanta on the cutting edge of all things tech. With students flooding in from every area around the globe to attend Georgia Tech, Emory University, and Georgia State, to name a few, you can imagine the academic pull this one city has.
There are several other aspects of launching a business in Atlanta that have attracted his attention. “One thing I would like to say is that it is easy and quite cost-effective to rent office space here. There are many areas of the country where the rents are double and even triple what they are here and that’s a definite plus for an entrepreneur on a limited budget.”
Mathew says that one of the most appealing aspects of finding office suites to rent is that there are several shared office spaces for rent. This gives startups an office from which to operate at a fraction of the cost it would take if they had signed an exclusive lease to office space.
“I find that it makes it ideal for anyone in the telecom or services industry. They really don’t need exclusive office space, at least when starting out. The money they save can be better spent growing their business. Unless they are in the manufacturing field, there really isn’t any reason to invest heavily in a business space. It doesn’t make sense to do so.”
He also notes that Georgia’s minimum wage is lower than many states around the nation so for startups, which is another way to save money when hiring. “You will want to pay your top talent accordingly, but for installers and other hourly workers, by offering them a wage higher than the state average but lower than the minimum in states like California or Washington, you can keep your staff happy and well paid for the area.”