Hialeah is now ranked as a top city to start a business. Here’s why
When Nana’s Baby Boutique was ready to make the move to a bigger space, Hialeah was top of mind for store owner Arelis Guillen.
She knew where she wanted to open the new location for her apparel store. Right in the city she was born.
Since first opening in Hialeah 13 years ago, the family-owned business has become a favorite for shoppers in the city, many who like to follow a custom of bringing babies home from the hospital in fine clothing.
“When you shop at a small business, you get something nobody else has,” said Guillen, 44, of her store. She is proud of the customer service that customers get, and the clothing options that come from as far as Italy.
Nana’s story fits in with why Hialeah has just been ranked the fourth-best place in the United States to start a business.
Guillen, for example, met Hialeah Mayor Bryan Calvo at a Hialeah Chamber of Commerce mixer for small business owners, and he told her that he would be at her new location’s grand opening. On June 15, the mayor was there — and Guillen knew she made the right decision of moving to a larger location at 6500 W. Fourth Ave.
MORE: From dairy farms to a commercial hub: How Hialeah’s 49th Street evolved over 60 years
Nextiva, an Arizona-based tech company, released the rankings, using information from the U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. Small Business Administration. The study looked at factors including the average amount of Small Business Administration loans entrepreneurs get in a city and the cost of rent per square foot.
Hialeah was the only Florida city to rank in the Top 10. St. Petersburg came in at 23rd, followed by Fort Lauderdale at 24.
On average, Hialeah’s entrepreneurs get Small Business Association loans of $331,000. Business people can find retail rent of around $21 a square foot in the city. In comparison, storefront rent in trendy neighborhoods like Wynwood can be $100 per square foot., and the average retail rent in Miami-Dade County is about $40 to $50.
Augusta, Georgia, ranked as the top city on the list to start a small business, has an average SBA loan amount of $849,400. Retail rent in the city is $16 per square foot.
“The city treats entrepreneurs as partners in growth,” Hialeah Mayor Calvo said of businesses like Nana’s. “Our residents have built a dense network of family‑owned shops, manufacturers, logistics firms, and service providers, and city hall is focused on making it easier for them to open, expand, and hire.”
In 2026, Hialeah launched the Palm Centre Business Opportunity initiative, which offers small business owners free rent for up to a year in a city-owned building. That crucial one-year period is often when small businesses aren’t profitable yet and are still building their clientele, Calvo said.
The mayor said Hialeah is also streamlining permitting and business tax set-ups to make it easier for new businesses to get up and running.
“Word travels quickly in the small business community, and that is what you are seeing in Hialeah today,” he said.
Hialeah was also ranked fourth on a WalletHub list of 10 best cities to start a small business that was released in April. Those rankings focused on city business environment, business resources and business costs. Miami was ranked 10th.
%20Cropped.jpg)