Opening a Business in Brighton, Colorado

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

What Type of Business Should You Start?

An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. To help you decide on a business type, we encourage you to read Finding Your Niche in Life.

For step-by-step instructions on starting a variety of business types, visit the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our How to Start an Ethnic Jewelry Retail Business guide or our How to Start a Paving Consultants Business guide.

Remember that you are starting a business in Brighton. The business you want to start may already be well-represented in Brighton. Don't forget to review Brighton demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.

Brighton, Colorado Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size	# of Businesses
1-4 Employees	11795
5-9 Employees	3339
10-19 Employees	1953
20-49 Employees	1218
50-99 Employees	525
100-249 Employees	231
250-499 Employees	42
500-999 Employees	0
1000+ Employees	0
All Brighton Businesses	19103

As a new Brighton entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Brighton 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
Adhesive Manufacturing	1
Advertising Agencies	1
Animal (except Poultry) Slaughtering	1
Architectural Services	1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops	4
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores	4
Automotive Transmission Repair	3
Beauty Salons	11
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores	6
Bowling Centers	1
Business Associations	1
Car Washes	1
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services	2
Caterers	2
Child and Youth Services	2
Child Day Care Services	6
Civic and Social Organizations	2
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners	1
Collection Agencies	1
Commercial Lithographic Printing	1
Commercial Screen Printing	2
Computer Systems Design Services	6
Construction Machinery Manufacturing	1
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining	2
Continuing Care Retirement Communities	2
Convenience Stores	1
Custom Computer Programming Services	8
Direct Title Insurance Carriers	1
Discount Department Stores	1
Drilling Oil and Gas Wells	1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)	6
Drywall and Insulation Contractors	14
Electric Power Distribution	2
Electrical Contractors	21
Electronic Computer Manufacturing	1
Electronic Shopping	1
Elementary and Secondary Schools	5
Employment Placement Agencies	1
Engineering Services	4
Exam Preparation and Tutoring	1
Family Clothing Stores	1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	1
Fats and Oils Refining and Blending	1
Finish Carpentry Contractors	15
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers	5
Flooring Contractors	7
Florists	2
Food (Health) Supplement Stores	2
Food Service Contractors	2
Footwear and Leather Goods Repair	1
Framing Contractors	4
Fruit and Vegetable Markets	1
Full-Service Restaurants	24
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services	2
General Automotive Repair	18
General Freight Trucking, Local	10
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	1
General Rental Centers	2
General Warehousing and Storage	2
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores	1
Glass and Glazing Contractors	2
Golf Courses and Country Clubs	1
Graphic Design Services	2
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers	1
Hardware Stores	1
HMO Medical Centers	1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores	1
Home Health Equipment Rental	1
Homes for the Elderly	3
Household Appliance Stores	3
Industrial Sand Mining	1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages	20
Interior Design Services	3
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting	1
Investigation Services	1
Investment Advice	2
Iron and Steel Mills	1
Janitorial Services	6
Jewelry Stores	2
Kidney Dialysis Centers	1
Land Subdivision	1
Landscape Architectural Services	2
Landscaping Services	25
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property	1
Libraries and Archives	1
Limited-Service Restaurants	32
Local Messengers and Local Delivery	1
Locksmiths	2
Machine Shops	2
Mail-Order Houses	2
Marketing Consulting Services	1
Masonry Contractors	9
Meat Markets	2
Meat Processed from Carcasses	1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers	2
Motor Vehicle Towing	1
Nail Salons	2
Natural Gas Distribution	1
New Car Dealers	4
Newspaper Publishers	1
Nursing Care Facilities	2
Offices of Certified Public Accountants	4
Offices of Chiropractors	2
Offices of Dentists	10
Offices of Lawyers	8
Offices of Optometrists	2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers	2
Paint and Wallpaper Stores	1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors	8
Parking Lots and Garages	1
Passenger Car Rental	1
Payroll Services	1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals	2
Pharmacies and Drug Stores	4
Photography Studios, Portrait	2
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas	1
Private Mail Centers	1
Public Relations Agencies	1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing	3
Real Estate Credit	3
Residential Property Managers	1
Residential Remodelers	8
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair	1
Roofing Contractors	4
Sales Financing	1
Savings Institutions	2
Securities Brokerage	3
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing	1
Shoe Stores	2
Siding Contractors	6
Sign Manufacturing	1
Site Preparation Contractors	8
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars	4
Solid Waste Collection	2
Sporting Goods Stores	2
Sports and Recreation Instruction	1
Tax Preparation Services	2
Temporary Help Services	3
Temporary Shelters	1
Testing Laboratories	2
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors	3
Tire Dealers	4
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices	2
Tobacco Stores	1
Travel Agencies	1
Travel Trailer and Camper Manufacturing	1
Used Car Dealers	2
Used Household and Office Goods Moving	1
Vending Machine Operators	2
Veterinary Services	4
Video Tape and Disc Rental	2
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters	1
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems	1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers	5
Wired Telecommunications Carriers	2

Should You Franchise?

Visit the business district of Brighton and you'll conclude that many business owners have opted to buy a franchise, rather than starting a business on their own. But is franchising the right option for you?

We highly recommend you evaluate the possibility of your buying a franchise opportunity. This site has dozens of articles on franchising, such as Evaluating Franchise Opportunities. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.

You can find franchise opportunities by browsing our Franchise Opportunities Directory.

Representative franchise opportunities include Boloco Inspired Burritos and Homewatch Caregivers. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Seafood Restaurant Franchises and Baby Franchises.

Note on Brighton Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Brighton.

Choosing a Business Name

A good company name can give a big boost to a new startup. It might seem like an easy thing to do, but there are many things to consider when naming a business.

We strongly advocate that you make sure the ".com" domain name is available for your company name. Every business needs a strong Web presence these days, and having a non ".com" domain means somebody else may outrank you in the search results for your own company name.

To get up to speed on what makes for a good company name, we encourage you to read this useful article: Naming a Company.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are starting a business in Brighton, it's very important that you make sure your company name has not already been claimed by another Colorado business.

Company Formation in Brighton, Colorado

It's essential that you form your business as a legal structure. Without a legal structure for the business, you can be held personally liable for the actions, debts and obligations of your company.

When forming a company, you will select one of many company types, such as a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.

Incorporating is a very common way to legally create a business entity. Of course, you have to decide which type of corporation to form and where to incorporate. Just because you are starting a business in Colorado, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Colorado. As it turns out, you are allowed to incorporate in the state of your choosing. For example, it's very popular to incorporate in Delaware, and incorporating in Nevada has become very trendy as well. Don't forget, though, that you will have to register as a foreign entity in all states that you do business in.

There's a lot to know about forming a company. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Avoiding Personal Liability in Business. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Brighton, Colorado, our web page covering Incorporating in Colorado may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Colorado.

Marketing Your New Startup

Whether your goal is to attract Brighton customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you need a solid marketing plan.

There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Promoting an Online Business is a good read to get your marketing juices flowing. That's just one of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

Building Up Your Sales

Being able to sell is a key enabler to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Brighton or are selling to customers throughout Colorado, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.

So what does it take to bring in more prospects and close more business? The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.

Compensating Sales People offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

Next Steps

You have a dream -- starting a business in Brighton. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.

Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.

We are here to help Brighton businesses to be successful. 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 Brighton, Colorado

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

• Resources for Brighton, Colorado Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Brighton entrepreneurs.
• Colorado Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Colorado.
• Colorado Small Business Development Center - The Colorado Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network is dedicated to helping small businesses throughout Colorado achieve their goals by providing free confidential counseling and various training programs.
• Brighton, Colorado Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Brighton, Colorado newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Brighton area.

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Starting a Business in Broomfield

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