Out-Of-Towners You can start a business anywhere. Just make sure you know what you're getting into when you go there.

The heady economy and Internet speed of the new millennium aregiving rise to the belief that you can start a high-tech company ina low-tech farmland; start a hot catalog house in cool and remoteMaine; or launch a global cable television network far from thecanyons of New York City or Los Angeles. In fact, it's beendone more than once (see "Hall of Fame," on page 180C).But if you hope to succeed at launching your business in anunlikely place, be prepared to scale obstacles--and don't tryto go it alone.

"If you take the broadest examples of BIZ Experiencesship, youcan start a business anywhere," says Andrew Zacharakis,professor of BIZ Experiencesship at Babson College in Wellesley,Massachusetts. "Landscaping, housecleaning and restaurants areall businesses you can start practically wherever you choose. Butmost specialized businesses are more likely to succeed in placeswhere there's infrastructure to support them." He pointsout that Gateway Computers is a great example because the companystarted in a Midwestern cow pasture.

Still, the success of such businesses is not an accident. To setup a sophisticated and high-potential business in an unlikelyplace, you should follow eight basic rules:

1. Visit the area before making the move and starting yourbusiness. This is especially true for those who move to placesthey consider paradise. If it's far away and you've longdreamed of going there, the experts say you should overcome fantasywith at least one scouting trip. Iris Hallaran, a SCORE counselorin Honolulu, says she recently dealt with a couple mainlandentrepreneurs who dreamed of starting a restaurant in Hawaii. Theypurchased the property from the mainland without doing duediligence. Turns out it was on the wrong side of the street fortraffic flow. Visitors would have to drive around a block to get tothe restaurant. "They thought they could build a reputation,but that's not easy to do," Hallaran says. "Customersdon't usually like going to a business that's out of theirway. We helped them as they struggled. They put in a lot of work,but eventually failed because they hadn't done theirhomework."

2. As you leave your old job, make strong connections withtalented people whose skills you may need in your new business.While you're still working, find marketing, sales, humanresources, IT and other executives who could become your mentorsafter you leave. Talk to them about your dream business before youmake the move. If you do go to an unusual location, you'llprobably have to rely on these colleagues for business advice."If you've started networking with them before you move,they'll likely return your phone calls when you're at adistance," says William Bygrave, a Babson College professorand author of The Portable MBA in BIZ Experiencesship (Wiley).

3. Examine your business dream in the context of yourpersonal financial system. Bygrave says there are four specificstages of life during which you must consider issues besides thebusiness itself (see "Anywhere, Yes. But When?" on page180B). Understanding which stage applies to you can keep you fromstumbling.

4. If your business requires traffic, research and find asspecific a location as possible before you move. Consider thesituation with the Hawaiian restaurant on the wrong side of thestreet. "Even if you ignore broader geographical questions,you can never be too cavalier about location," says Bygrave,who has a house in Biddeford, Maine, near a crossroads whereseveral bookstores are located. "There's no reason for anyone of them to be in that spot. But they found each other, and thathas created a good business environment for all of them."

The bookstores sell a variety of used books and new bestsellers,and their proximity to one another creates a center where booklovers are drawn from miles around. They compete with one another,but they also form a big draw much like the myriad auto dealershipsalong the business strips of many small towns.

5. Write a business plan that addresses all the things thatcan go wrong in the new location. Submit your plan to bankersfamiliar with the area where you plan to launch the business; theycan help you estimate the risk. Typical "go wrong" pointsinclude: zoning problems, lack of street access, environmentalrules and unadvertised telephone-company problems (such as poorconnections that interfere with computer links).

6. Examine the network of people and resources available inthe new location. Peter Adler and his wife, Cathy, have run aproperty-evaluation business in upstate New York for 14 years, andPeter says the couple's business dried up suddenly when thesmall network of banks that fed them customers started to turnelsewhere for business. "Your customer pool can dry up quicklyin a remote region," he says. "You really have tounderstand what's feeding business into the market." TheAdlers had to scurry in search of new sources, including banks fromoutside the local community.

7. Understand how long you will have to go without incomebefore your new business starts to generate cash flow. "Arestaurant typically starts to bring in cash within three to sixmonths," says Zacharakis. "But it might take a yearbefore you can open the doors of a large networking company."This also involves understanding the future of taxes, shippingcosts and other charges that might rise in a particular geographicarea while you're trying to get your business up andrunning.

8. Practice using small-business technology. Ifyou're used to having an IT department at work, set up and useyour new office before you actually go it alone. Web access in yourcorporate office is probably based on a high-speed network. Move toa home office or a remote office and such speed may not beavailable. Telephone services available in populated areas--such ascaller ID or call tracing--may also be unavailable in ruralareas.

Surprisingly, few remote-living BIZ Experiencess have access togreat technology. U.S. Department of Agriculture demographer CalvinBeale, who has been watching a move by urban professionals toremote rural locations since the 1970s, believes few of them findthe best technology in their chosen paradise. "A recentWashington University study indicated that about 3 percent of thosewho migrate to rural areas are in computer-related fields,"Beale says.

Other anecdotal evidence indicates that a large number of thosewho decide to go back to their urban roots do so because theycan't handle the intricacies of communications from a remotelocation. "Many of them are unprepared for the difficultiesthey encounter simply in networking--finding the people and thetechnology services it takes to run a business," Bealeexplains.

But what if you decide to throw caution to the wind and move toyour personal paradise before figuring out how you'll make yourliving? While experts don't recommend it, sometimes it doeswork.

Nancy and Anthony Costa, 34 and 38, respectively, lived in NewYork City and took frequent trips north through the Hudson Valleyand across the Harlem Valley of New York into the BerkshireMountains of Massachusetts. As their three children got older, theCostas decided they wanted out of the rat race and they headed toUnion Vale, New York, in 1993. "We wanted better schools forour kids and woods for them to play in," Nancy recalls."Anthony commuted to work in New York City and I raised thechildren."

Just two years ago, in the midst of a series of snowstorms,Anthony was unable to get into the city several times, and thecouple found themselves skidding across the countryside in thefamily car almost daily. "We practically lived in the car washin town, because the car was always salty and dirty," Nancysays.

That gave the couple the idea of building a car wash in theirnew neighborhood. They searched for land and found a perfect parcelthat belonged to the town. "It was available at a greatprice," Nancy says. "But the town had to hold areferendum to sell it."

The vote was 764 to 200 in favor of the land deal. The Costaspurchased the land and built a car wash with an adjoining oil andlube center.

"I'm glad we didn't start the business right away."We couldn't have found the right location or the rightbusiness if we hadn't experienced life in the country first.You really can start a business anywhere, but you'd better bethere first when you do."

Dennis Eskow is a writer who lives in his own paradise inHopewell Junction, New York

Hall Of Fame

Five great companies that started anywhere:

Wal-Mart ($137.6 billion sales): The Benton, Arkansas,consumer goods giant makes suppliers come to them.

Gateway ($2.3 billion sales): The PC maker with the cowon the box was born in Sioux City, South Dakota.

Wendy's ($1.9 billion sales): The Dublin, Ohio,hamburger chain shows there ain't no reason to goelsewhere.

LL Bean ($1.1 billion sales): Freeport, Maine, is home tothis catalog clothing giant, which makes downeasterners mightyproud.

CNN ($201 million operating revenue): Started in Atlanta,far from the media capitals of New York; Washington, DC; LosAngeles; and Chicago.

Contact Sources

William Bygrave, bygrave@babson.edu

Economy Research Service, (202) 694-5416, cbeale@econ.ag.gov

Service Corps of Retired Executives, (808) 522-8130,http://www.score.org

Andrew Zacharakis, (781) 239-4497, zacharakis@babson.edu