Washington Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Bainbridge Island, Washington

Thinking about starting a business in Bainbridge Island, Washington? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Bainbridge Island.

Are You Ready for the Challenges of Being an Entrepreneur?

Being an entrepreneur is difficult, much harder than working as an employee. Are you positive you want to start a business?

Before you move forward with starting a business, be sure to do these three things:

  • Talk to other entrepreneurs in Bainbridge Island. Listen closely to their experiences and see if you think you too can be successful.
  • We recommend reading Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
  • Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. Ask them directly: Do I have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Listen carefully to their answer, as they presumably know your strengths and weaknesses.

What Business to Start

An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. If you are struggling with what type of business to start, read Finding Your Niche in Life.

For in-depth how-to guides on how to start specific businesses, browse our Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Starting a Cold Storage Warehouses Business guide or our Opening an Excavation Contractors Business guide.

Always keep in mind that your new startup will be located in Bainbridge Island. Think about what needs are currently being underserved in Bainbridge Island. Make sure you fully understand Bainbridge Island demographics before you lock in on your business idea.

Bainbridge Island, Washington Demographic Information

Bainbridge Island has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.

To give you a better feel for Bainbridge Island demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Bainbridge Island.

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
1694
5-9 Employees
434
10-19 Employees
276
20-49 Employees
129
50-99 Employees
18
100-249 Employees
18
250-499 Employees
0
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
0
All Bainbridge Island Businesses
2569

As a new Bainbridge Island entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Bainbridge Island for each business category. By looking at this chart, you can get a general sense for how much competition there is in the business niche that you are pursuing.

Business Type
# of
Businesses
Advertising Agencies
3
Ambulance Services
1
Art Dealers
3
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
2
Baked Goods Stores
1
Barber Shops
1
Beauty Salons
7
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
1
Boat Dealers
1
Book Stores
4
Breweries
1
Building Inspection Services
1
Business Associations
1
Canvas and Related Product Mills
1
Caterers
1
Child and Youth Services
2
Civic and Social Organizations
3
Commercial Lithographic Printing
1
Commercial Photography
3
Computer and Software Stores
3
Computer Facilities Management Services
1
Computer Systems Design Services
6
Computer Training
1
Convenience Stores
1
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
1
Credit Unions
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
13
Deep Sea Freight Transportation
2
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
1
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
1
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
4
Educational Support Services
1
Electrical Contractors
8
Electronic Shopping
3
Elementary and Secondary Schools
4
Emergency and Other Relief Services
1
Employment Placement Agencies
1
Environmental Consulting Services
8
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
1
Family Clothing Stores
3
Fine Arts Schools
4
Finfish Fishing
3
Finish Carpentry Contractors
2
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
2
Floor Covering Stores
1
Flooring Contractors
5
Florists
1
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
1
Footwear Merchant Wholesalers
1
Framing Contractors
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
3
Furniture Stores
3
General Automotive Repair
8
General Freight Trucking, Local
1
General Rental Centers
1
General Warehousing and Storage
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
5
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
2
Graphic Design Services
2
Hardware Manufacturing
1
Hardware Stores
1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
2
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
2
Homes for the Elderly
1
Household Appliance Stores
1
Industrial Design Services
2
Inland Water Freight Transportation
2
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
9
Interior Design Services
3
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
1
Internet Service Providers
3
Investment Advice
2
Land Subdivision
6
Landscape Architectural Services
2
Landscaping Services
22
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
1
Libraries and Archives
1
Limited-Service Restaurants
6
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
1
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
1
Marinas
2
Marketing Consulting Services
8
Media Representatives
1
Miscellaneous Intermediation
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
4
Motion Picture and Video Production
4
Museums
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
1
Navigational Services to Shipping
4
New Housing Operative Builders
4
Nonresidential Property Managers
4
Nursing Care Facilities
3
Office Administrative Services
4
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
4
Offices of Chiropractors
3
Offices of Dentists
16
Offices of Lawyers
18
Offices of Optometrists
1
Offices of Other Holding Companies
1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
3
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
3
Parking Lots and Garages
1
Periodical Publishers
1
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
3
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
3
Portfolio Management
2
Public Relations Agencies
6
Radio Stations
1
Real Estate Credit
1
Real Estate Investment Trusts
1
Remediation Services
1
Residential Property Managers
2
Retail Bakeries
1
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
1
Roofing Contractors
1
Rooming and Boarding Houses
1
Savings Institutions
2
Securities Brokerage
8
Septic Tank and Related Services
1
Shellfish Fishing
3
Shoe Stores
3
Site Preparation Contractors
3
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
8
Software Publishers
4
Solid Waste Collection
1
Sound Recording Studios
1
Sports and Recreation Instruction
3
Tax Preparation Services
3
Taxi Service
1
Television Broadcasting
1
Temporary Help Services
1
Testing Laboratories
2
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
1
Travel Agencies
2
Used Merchandise Stores
2
Veterinary Services
2
Video Tape and Disc Rental
1
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
1
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
4
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
9
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
1
Women's Clothing Stores
3

Getting Money to Start a Business

Getting your Bainbridge Island business the capital it needs to succeed is not an easy task. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.

Fortunately, this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled 504 Loans.

For Bainbridge Island entrepreneurs who need startup capital, we have assembled a List of Washington Angel Investors and our List of Washington Venture Capital Firms.

Promoting Your New Company

Whether your goal is to attract Bainbridge Island customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you need a great marketing plan.

There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Six Tips for Getting Customer Testimonials is an article that will generate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. That's just one of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

Bring in Revenues

Do you know how to sell? In order to attract customers to your new Bainbridge Island business, you need to focus on sales.

Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.

Anticipating Prospect Responses offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

Never Give Up

As an entrepreneur in Bainbridge Island, you won't be working for the boss anymore. You are the boss.

If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.

This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Bainbridge Island and elsewhere to achieve real success. We have a wealth of experience in business start-ups, financing, marketing, sales and more...and we've made all of our knowledge available to you.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Bainbridge Island, Washington

Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Bainbridge Island.

Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in Washington

Starting a Business in Auburn
Starting a Business in Battle Ground

Browse All Business Startup Guides for Washington
Starting a Business Guides for Other States

 

 

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