According to the Small Business Association Office of Advocacy veterans make up approximately 9.1% of business owners. Veterans have a long standing history of leaving or retiring from military service and venturing out as small business owners and entrepreneurs.

Today there are more opportunities for Americans to start their own business than ever before. There are a multitude of ways that you can start your own business from franchises and licensing opportunities to buying into existing businesses and sales distribution markets, just to name a few. Starting a home-based-business is also always an option and many people exercise this option with varying results. The reasons for business failure are varied but one thing that helps ensure success is a good business model and sound business planning.

Many opportunities touted in the “sharing economy” and in the world of multi level marketing (MLM) promise great financial futures but the statistical reality is that few people who embark in these ventures ever make the income they dreamed of making when they started. These kinds of business “opportunities” have been in the news again with the public commitment of Uber to bring 50,000 vets onboard. You can read about what is going on with that here. 

If you want to avoid the pitfalls of becoming another statistic in these markets you can mitigate your risk. Take your time, and research the business you are getting into. If a business opportunity sounds too good to be true, conventional wisdom dictates that it probably is. However, no harm comes from doing your homework and researching opportunities. Entrepreneur magazine has some great advice on how to research a business opportunity. You can find their informative article here. 

Veterans who wish to go down the road of entrepreneurship have a lot of opportunities today to learn, get mentored and find proven methods of business success. If you are interested in joining the ranks of veterans who own their own business then you will definitely be interested in some of the outstanding opportunities available to you right now. Many of these opportunities are free for veterans! While many of these opportunities are in the San Antonio area we encourage veterans to look into their local Chamber, SBA, and university locations to find out if programs like this are being offered in their location.

We posted a while back that the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce is “re-booting” their entrepreneurial boot-camp for military veterans. You can learn more about that here.

Veterans who want to join the SBA and start down the track of entrepreneurship should check out the latest article on the San Antonio Business Journal site. The SBA is extending their fee waiver program for veterans through 2015!

Veterans and transitioning military interested in starting their own business should also check out the San Antonio Small Business Development Center at UTSA. This program offers a number of benefits including special veterans assistance.

Forward March Inc. has an outstanding relationship with our customer Fred Astarie Dance Studios. You owe it to yourself to check out our previous post to learn more about the outstanding opportunities for employment and even franchise ownership with them.

For veterans who want to learn a new skill, or expand on a skill-set should check out the fine folks over at Workforce Solutions Alamo and Alamo Colleges are collaborating to offer short-term skills development programs in the areas of Information Technology, the Manufacturing Industry and Aerospace. Learn more here. 

Don’t forget, that if you are a veteran or transitioning military and you are looking for employment or a career change make sure you check out our FREE Veteran Employment Transition Networking Event on November 17th. Details can be found here. 

If you represent a company, organization, or educational institution this VET Networking Event is free for you as well.  Forward March Inc. is committed to continuing our 35+ year history of bringing veterans and companies together to make careers happen! Details can be found here. Make sure you check out or Corporate to Camouflage Conference where we teach businesses and organizations the art of finding, attracting, hiring and retaining veteran talent.