Top 5 cities to launch your startup business

Some cities bring to mind certain busienss sectors. New York is synonymous with Broadway and finance, Nashville is known for music and Hollywood is home to the film industry. 

In the same way, certain cities in the United States are better for startup businesses than others. Talent begets talent and some areas of the country are magnets for creative entrepreneurs starting businesses.

But  when a startup culture blossoms in one area, property values tend to grow with it. It can be hard to get in on the ground floor once the word is out. The good news: You don’t need to pay for office space in these hot cities with a virtual address or virtual mailbox service. These services give you a mailing address in metro areas with booming startup cultures, without the price of office space. 

Earth Class Mail offers virtual business addresses, ideal for startups looking to capitalize on the momentum of a startup city. While a virtual address is a real physical location in a city of your choosing, all mail sent to the address gets routed to our secure processing center where we sort and scan your mail.

It’s a win-win for you and your customers. You are able to lower startup costs by automating tasks, reducing overhead, and most importantly, growing your business. So where to start a business? Here is a list of the best cities for startups - and how you can get there virtually without using a home address.

Portland, Ore.

If you’ve ever seen the popular television show Portlandia you probably already know why this creative community is on the list of great startup scenes. Dubbed the “Silicon Forest” for its technology scene, Portland ranks as one of the top places for startup businesses. The city is known for more than just killer coffee these days with the likes of Adidas, Under Armor, and Columbia sports brands having hubs here. Nike, along with Earth Class Mail’s Operation Center, is also located in Beaverton just outside of Portland. Rich with co-working spaces and Certified B Corporations, businesses that balance purpose and profit, this region has great potential for those with a Stumptown zip code.

Earth Class Mail offers a physical address at its operations center in Beaverton (which also expedities mail delivery times) and a Portland P.O. box. 

Seattle, Wash.

With Starbucks, Amazon and Microsoft based here, Seattle is emerging as a new stronghold in the tech startup world. Seattle is a great place for Artificial Intelligence (AI), Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) jobs, and venture capitalist investments. Seattle startups brought in $3.2 billion in venture capital in the first three quarters of 2020, according to Pitchbook. That’s compared to the $3.6 billion that the city brought in in 2019 alone. 

Business Insider reports that 1.9 percent of all startup companies in Seattle receive VC funding, which means that a virtual mailbox here could help your startup go a long way. 

Raleigh, N.C.

Raleigh is the capital city and is part of the Research Triangle that also includes Durham and Chapel Hill in North Carolina. Home to Duke, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and North Carolina State, this region is rich with innovation, startups, and a highly educated workforce. 

NC State alone has launched more than 170 university startups generating $1.7 billion in VC funding, according to Forbes. Rich with creative co-working space and talent, it’s no surprise that startups are springing out of this region of the country. Startups looking to harness the sterling reputation of this region would do well to have a Raleigh zip code for their business. 

San Francisco, Calif.

San Francisco sits in the heart of the tech scene in Silicon Valley with the likes of Apple, Google, and Facebook. That, combined with having Stanford in its backyard, makes the area one of the hottest markets for startups looking to stand on the shoulders of the giants that came before them.

Silicon Valley has more than 15,000 people starting a business on any given day in a variety of different sectors. 

But as anyone in the tech industry knows, development work can happen anywhere. When you’re going before companies for funding or marketing your software as an essential tool for other applications, it can help to list an address where other tech giants do business. Considering the cost of office space in this area, a virtual mailbox is ideal for any innovative tech startup.  

An address on Market Street, a recognizable San Francisco thoroughfare, can give you that credibility. 

Denver, Colo.

Between the blue skies, Rocky Mountains and business-friendly environment, Denver is on the map for startups. The mile-high city is the state capital and experiencing explosive growth right now. Denver ranks as the top relocation city in America for skilled workers between the age of 25 and 44, according to Startup Savant. Tech companies such as the human resources startup Gusto have Denver hubs. In addition to an educated workforce and strong tech sector, Denver hosts a strong brewery scene and marijuana industry. Denver is a great location for a virtual address. 

What city to launch your startup in:

Do any of these cities pique your interest? Having a prestigious address in one of these startup hubs may be just the boost you need to launch your business, even if you live hundreds of miles away in a small town. Manage your mail the easy way, so you can focus on your business idea, workplace culture, and recruiting team members instead of your business mail. Find the plan that is right for you and pick your address.