Start a New Business in Maine

The Maine Small Business Advocate’s top priority is to represent small businesses that face the challenging task of understanding and complying with Maine’s extensive and often complex regulatory requirements. As an appointee of Maine’s Secretary of State, the Advocate serves as an independent, accountable and appropriate check on the state’s efforts to regulate Maine businesses. This position is the first of its kind in the state and the nation, demonstrating the state’s commitment to ensuring that small businesses take root and prosper.

Small Business Advocate
Office of the Secretary of State
148 State House Station
Augusta, Maine 04333-0148
Phone: 207-626-8401

Maine Small Business Advocate website

Get answers to all of your questions about starting or growing your business in Maine including Starting a Business, Business Licensing, Corporate Resources, Business Taxes, and Employer Resources.

You can also learn more about Maine’s location, workforce, and training programs in Industry, Economic Development, Laws and Regulations, Resources by Profession, and Procurement and Vendor Information.

State of Maine Business Services website

The Maine SBA is supported by a district office in Augusta and two additional locations in Bangor and Portland. They provide services including funding programs, counseling, federal contracting, certifications, and disaster recovery. They can also connect you to partner organizations, lenders, and other community groups that help small businesses succeed.

The Augusta office serves Androscoggin, Franklin, Kennebec, Knox, Lincoln, Oxford, Sagadahoc, and Somerset counties.

The Bangor location serves Aroostook, Hancock, Penobscot, Piscataquis, Waldo, and Washington counties.

The Portland location serves Cumberland and York counties.

Examples of educational programs and events include Unlock Your Brand Brilliance, Business Growth Through Short Form Video, Hiring Best Practices, and the Tax Practitioner Institute.

Main district office:
68 Sewall Street
Room 512
Augusta, Maine 04330
Phone: 207-622-8551

Maine Small Business Administration SBA website

Additional locations:
202 Harlow Street
Suite 21250
Bangor, Maine 04401
Phone: 207-945-2021

312 Fore Street
Suite 104
Portland, Maine 04101
Phone: 207-248-9040

SCORE Maine’s mentors provide free services virtually, on the phone, or in-person. They offer free and low-cost business education workshops on a wide range of topics, from planning and financing to website and social media marketing.

SCORE Maine is the official presenter of two annual educational programs that provide tax preparers, enrolled agents, CPAs and legal professionals with updated information about annual changes in Maine and Federal tax laws. The Tax Practitioner Institute (TPI) and the Maine Tax Forum (MTF) both provide continuing education credits.

Southern Maine:
22 Rear Free Street
Portland, Maine 04101
Phone: 207-772-1147

Central Maine:
125 Manley Road
Auburn, Maine 04210
Phone: 207-782-3708

Northern Maine:
202 Harlow Street
Bangor, Maine 04401
Phone: 207-772-1147

SCORE Maine website

The Maine SBDC program helps build and strengthen small businesses through business advising, training and educational resources. Certified business advisors provide guidance on topics such as business feasibility, business plan development, capital acquisition, financial management, marketing and sales, e-commerce, customer service, personnel management, small business strategic planning and more.

For 40 years, the Maine SBDC has provided individualized business assistance to tens of thousands of clients. Even more individuals have received management training through Maine SBDC-conducted seminars, workshops, and courses.

55 Exeter Street
Portland, Maine 04102
Phone: 207-780-4420

Maine Small Business Development Center SBDC website

New Ventures Maine helps people all over the state venture in new directions by offering tuition-free programs for career, business, and financial education. Its mission is to help Maine people succeed in the changing economy and achieve economic security for themselves and their families.

Classes and workshops, offered at no cost, are open to all Maine adults, with in-person and online options as well as one-to-one coaching. They offer programs that encourage and empower those thinking about making a change to take the next step towards financial security, a new career, or a new business.

Additional locations are available in Central Maine in Augusta, Midcoast Maine in Brunswick, North Central/Downeast Maine in Bangor, Northern Maine in Presque Isle, Southern Maine in South Portland, and Western Maine in Lewiston.

Administrative office:
University of Maine at Augusta (UMA)
5th Floor of UMA’s Handley Hall
331 Water Street
Augusta, Maine 04330
Phone: 800.442.2092

New Ventures Maine website

The CEI Women’s Business Center is a home for women who want to start or grow their own business in Maine.

The team will help you build and hone your business skills and confidence from developing your business idea, to accessing capital, making strong management decisions based on a deep understanding of your financials, and more.

The Women’s Business Center offers courses, cohorts, workshops, and events which encourage peer-to-peer learning and community building, as well as business advising support.

30 Federal Street
Suite 100
Brunswick, Maine 04011
Phone: 207-504-5900

Coastal Enterprises Women’s Business Center website

The Maine Center for Entrepreneurs empowers and enables Maine’s most promising entrepreneurs.

• Top Gun: Top Gun is the organization’s most widely known program aimed at helping Maine entrepreneurs accelerate their business growth.

• Food Accelerators: MCE offers two unique Food Accelerator Programs that support Maine food and beverage companies.

• BioStartup: BioStartup provides Maine biotech, digital health, life sciences and medical device entrepreneurs with the resources they need to accelerate their business.

• Visionary Leadership: The Visionary Leadership Program is focused on assisting emerging Maine business leaders to overcome the challenges they face as they grow.

• Compass: Compass provides Maine's outdoor industry entrepreneurs with the programming they need to advance their business.

• FoodTech Maine: FoodTech Maine focuses on the growth and innovation of food technology solutions.

New England Ocean Cluster
68 Commercial Street
Building C
Portland, Maine 04101
Phone: 207-400-2560

Maine Center for Entrepreneurs website

The U.S. Small Business Administration helps small businesses get the funding they need. Funding resources include:

• Loans: Start or expand your business with loans guaranteed by the SBA.

• Investment capital: Find an investor for your business. Investors make both debt and equity investments.

• Disaster assistance: Get help after a disaster with low-interest disaster loans.

• Surety bonds: Protect your work and your client with an SBA-guaranteed surety bond.

• Grants: Look for government grants that help businesses do scientific research and development.

U.S. Small Business Administration Funding Sources website

Maine Angel's helps entrepreneurs by investing in and mentoring early stage companies. They are always looking for promising ideas with a good team behind them. Investment criteria:

• Scalable business with plans to address growing markets

• An intent to exit with an achievable exit strategy

• Provide the potential for high returns to compensate for investment risk and illiquidity

• Emerging or established market for the product

• The potential addressable market should be of sufficient size to make a profitable exit possible

• Differentiated product or service

• Preference for East Coast/New England deals within range of a site visit

• Attractive deal terms

• Management capable of executing the plan

Maine Angels website

MaineStream Finance is a non-profit organization dedicated to economic development by providing credit, capital, and financial services that are often unavailable from traditional financial institutions.

These services are delivered through lending, savings products, classes, and advisory support. MaineStream Finance offers a variety of loan products to small businesses who may have trouble finding credit. Amount minimum $500 – Up to $200,000 / Term: Up to 20 years.

Purpose:

• Purchase/upgrade of inventory, equipment, computers, real estate

• Building renovations and improvements

• Business acquisitions

The Bangor headquarters serves southern Penobscot as well as Washington-Hancock/Downeast counties. The Dover location serves Northern Penobscot and Piscataquis counties. The Rockland location serves Knox, Lincoln, and Waldo counties.

Bangor:
262 Harlow Street
Bangor, Maine 04401
Phone: 207-973-3500

Dover:
50 North Street
Dover-Foxcroft, Maine 04426
Phone: 207-974-2476

Rockland:
315 Main Street
#205
Rockland, Maine 04841
Phone: 207-802-3058

MaineStream Finance website

To meet the financing needs of Maine’s business community, FAME offers a wide array of business assistance programs, ranging from traditional loan insurance programs for both small and larger businesses, to investment tax credits. FAME has also established taxable and tax-exempt bond financing programs that allow strong, creditworthy firms in Maine to access capital at favorable rates and terms. Financing programs include Direct Loan Programs, Bond Programs, Equity Capital, and Tax Credits.

FAME’s Business Roadmap outlines key steps in the business planning and financing process, along with the tools, resources, and trusted partners that can help you along the way.

5 Community Drive
Augusta, Maine 04330
Phone: 207-623-3263 or 800-228-3734

Finance Authority of Maine FAME website

Maine Business School undergraduate, graduate, and professional learners master core business principles and explore the unique courses and concentrations that will shape them into passionate, strategic thinkers able to adapt to any field in the business world.

Maine Business School
5723 DP Corbett Business Building
Orono, Maine 04469
Phone: 207-581-1968

University of Maine Business School website

Husson Online’s undergraduate degree in business administration offers the foundational business skills you need achieve success at every level of any organization — accounting, operations, management, marketing, finance and more. Plus, you can tailor your online program to your career goals with concentrations for:

• Management — leadership skills to manage teams, departments, organizations and more

• Marketing Management — leverage social channels, build brand loyalty and boost sales

Build your own area of emphasis with electives in entrepreneurship, leadership, innovation or other relevant field of business.

Husson University
1 College Circle
Bangor, Maine 04401
Phone: 207-941-7000

Husson University College of Business website

Mainebiz that delivers statewide news and opinion from Maine's business community to readers from Fort Kent to Kittery. Smart, informed, engaging, and irreverent - readers turn to Mainebiz to find out what makes the state's business scene tick.

In addition to 24 bi-weekly issues, they publish four special publications: Fact Book, Book of Lists, Giving Guide and Meeting & Event Planning Guide.

Mainebiz topics include, Real Estate, Tourism and Recreation, Banking and Finance, Manufacturing, Technology, Fisheries and Marine, Healthcare, Forest Products, Agriculture, Nonprofits, Energy and Utilities, and Transportation.

Regions include Greater Portland, Greater Bangor, Lewiston-Auburn, and Augusta-Waterville.

15 Franklin Street
Portland, Maine 04101
Phone: 207-761-8379

Mainebiz website

hrough OneVoice Maine, the Maine State Chamber of Commerce seeks to recognize and honor the contributions that Maine businesses and Maine business leaders make to Maine’s economy, workforce, and communities.

Those contributions, as well as the businesses and leaders behind them, add to the quality of life and quality of place that help make Maine a unique and vibrant place to live and work.

128 State Street
Suite 101
Augusta, Maine 04330
Phone: 207-623-4568

OneVoice Maine Magazine website