Call for entries now open; ranking highlights the often unrecognized 16.5 million U.S. home-based businesses

SAN FRANCISCO and REDMOND, Wash., Aug. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- StartupNation (http://www.startupnation.com) and Microsoft Office Live Small Business (http://www.smallbusiness.officelive.com) have launched the second annual 'Home-Based 100' to find the top home-based businesses in the country. Home-based businesses interested in making the list can submit their business profile at http://www.startupnation.com/homebased100, with results to be announced in November.

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According to the Small Business Administration, over half of all U.S. businesses are based out of an owner's home, and home-based businesses contribute more than $530 billion to the U.S. economy each year. With more than 19 million entrepreneurs currently running a business from home, most experts believe this trend is at an all-time high.

'2008 is the year of the home-based business. While home businesses have long been the backbone of the U.S. economy -- surpassing more than half of all businesses -- this year's economic pressures have accelerated this trend and fueled a new crop of home-based entrepreneurs,' said Rich Sloan, co-founder of StartupNation LLC and one of the country's leading small-business experts. 'Our 2008 ranking of home-based businesses will showcase these unsung heroes of entrepreneurship and demonstrate that home is not only where the heart is, but also where passion, drive and tomorrow's business success stories live.'

The StartupNation Home-Based 100 is composed of 10 top-10 lists making it not just an ordinary business list. Including the grungiest, the most innovative and the best financial performers, the unique and diverse list highlights the home-based businesses that are often unrecognized, but which still play a vital role in the economy today. The 10 categories for 2008 follow:

    --  Best Financial Performers
    --  Most Innovative
    --  Boomers Back in Business
    --  Greenest
    --  Yummiest
    --  Wackiest
    --  Grungiest
    --  Recession Busters
    --  Most Slacker-Friendly
    --  Most Glamorous

'Home-based businesses are a growing and vital force in the U.S.