Contemplating starting a business in Claremont, California? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Claremont.
Is Becoming an Entrepreneur Right for You?
Most startup ventures don't make it, in part because the entrepreneur did not have the entrepreneurial skills and traits needed to succeed. So, before jumping into the world of entrepreneurship, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.
Here are three things we recommend you do before you fully commit to starting a new business of your own.
- Speak with other entrepreneurs in Claremont. Get their take on what it's really like to be an entrepreneur.
- You should read Business Failure. It's a good read for those who are thinking about becoming an entrepreneur.
- Involve a spouse, family member or trusted friend in the decision. That's the best way to get a truly objective assessment as to whether others think you have what it takes.
Claremont, California Demographic Information
Claremont has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Claremont demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Claremont.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
9751 |
| 5-9 Employees |
3374 |
| 10-19 Employees |
1932 |
| 20-49 Employees |
1281 |
| 50-99 Employees |
609 |
| 100-249 Employees |
231 |
| 250-499 Employees |
126 |
| 500-999 Employees |
42 |
| 1000+ Employees |
21 |
| All Claremont Businesses |
17367 |
As a new Claremont entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Claremont 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 |
| Architectural Services |
5 |
| Baked Goods Stores |
1 |
| Beauty Salons |
14 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
3 |
| Boat Dealers |
1 |
| Book Stores |
1 |
| Building Inspection Services |
1 |
| Business Associations |
1 |
| Business to Business Electronic Markets |
1 |
| Cable and Other Program Distribution |
1 |
| Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services |
1 |
| Caterers |
1 |
| Charter Bus Industry |
1 |
| Child and Youth Services |
1 |
| Child Day Care Services |
9 |
| Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores |
3 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
4 |
| Commercial Photography |
1 |
| Commercial Screen Printing |
1 |
| Computer and Software Stores |
1 |
| Computer Facilities Management Services |
1 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
8 |
| Continuing Care Retirement Communities |
2 |
| Couriers |
1 |
| Court Reporting and Stenotype Services |
1 |
| Credit Unions |
1 |
| Custom Computer Programming Services |
5 |
| Dance Companies |
1 |
| Discount Department Stores |
1 |
| Document Preparation Services |
1 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
1 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
2 |
| Educational Support Services |
1 |
| Electrical Contractors |
10 |
| Electronic Connector Manufacturing |
1 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
5 |
| Emergency and Other Relief Services |
1 |
| Employment Placement Agencies |
2 |
| Engineering Services |
9 |
| Environmental Consulting Services |
2 |
| Exam Preparation and Tutoring |
2 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
1 |
| Facilities Support Services |
1 |
| Family Planning Centers |
1 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
3 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
4 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
4 |
| Flooring Contractors |
1 |
| Florists |
4 |
| Food (Health) Supplement Stores |
1 |
| Food Service Contractors |
5 |
| Formal Wear and Costume Rental |
1 |
| Freight Transportation Arrangement |
2 |
| Frozen Specialty Food Manufacturing |
1 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
36 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
1 |
| General Automotive Repair |
1 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
1 |
| General Rental Centers |
1 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
7 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
1 |
| Grantmaking Foundations |
4 |
| Graphic Design Services |
4 |
| Hardware Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
3 |
| Home Health Care Services |
8 |
| Homes for the Elderly |
10 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
1 |
| Industrial Building Construction |
2 |
| Industrial Launderers |
1 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
19 |
| Investment Advice |
4 |
| Janitorial Services |
3 |
| Jewelry Stores |
7 |
| Landscape Architectural Services |
3 |
| Landscaping Services |
3 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
17 |
| Logging |
1 |
| Machine Shops |
2 |
| Marketing Consulting Services |
3 |
| Masonry Contractors |
1 |
| Men's Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Miscellaneous Intermediation |
1 |
| Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers |
4 |
| Motion Picture and Video Production |
1 |
| Musical Groups and Artists |
1 |
| Musical Instrument Manufacturing |
1 |
| Nail Salons |
2 |
| New Car Dealers |
3 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
1 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
1 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
3 |
| Office Administrative Services |
9 |
| Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Office Supplies and Stationery Stores |
3 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
15 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
5 |
| Offices of Dentists |
26 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
49 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
3 |
| Offices of Podiatrists |
1 |
| Offices of Real Estate Appraisers |
1 |
| Optical Goods Stores |
1 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
1 |
| Parking Lots and Garages |
1 |
| Payroll Services |
2 |
| Periodical Publishers |
1 |
| Pet and Pet Supplies Stores |
2 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
2 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
6 |
| Political Organizations |
1 |
| Portfolio Management |
3 |
| Private Mail Centers |
1 |
| Professional Employer Organizations |
2 |
| Public Relations Agencies |
2 |
| Real Estate Credit |
4 |
| Record Production |
1 |
| Residential Property Managers |
8 |
| Residential Remodelers |
6 |
| Retail Bakeries |
1 |
| Savings Institutions |
3 |
| Securities Brokerage |
7 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
1 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
8 |
| Software Publishers |
1 |
| Sports and Recreation Instruction |
2 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
4 |
| Taxi Service |
1 |
| Telephone Answering Services |
1 |
| Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters |
2 |
| Title Abstract and Settlement Offices |
1 |
| Tobacco Stores |
1 |
| Translation and Interpretation Services |
1 |
| Travel Agencies |
3 |
| Used Car Dealers |
2 |
| Veterinary Services |
2 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
3 |
| Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
3 |
| Water Supply and Irrigation Systems |
1 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
2 |
| Wineries |
1 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
1 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
3 |
| Zoos and Botanical Gardens |
1 |
What About Buying an Existing Claremont Business?
An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in California. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Claremont.
If you are serious about buying a business, you may want to read this article: Buying a Business.
Selecting a Name For Your Startup
Making the right decision when choosing a company name is very important. There are many decisions you'll make now that you can change later, but changing a company name years down the road is not very easy. So, choose a good company name at the outset.
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.
As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are starting a business in Claremont, it's imperative that you check now that no other California company is using the business name you want to use.
The Role of the Business Plan
A business plan is critical in maximizing the prospects of your new company. Indeed, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Starting a business without a business plan is a recipe for disaster.
If writing a business plan is on your to-do list, be sure to read Business Plan Contests. A great resource for business planning assistance is the free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in California.
How to Sell
Mastering the art of selling is priority one if you want your new Claremont business to do well.
So what does it take to bring in more prospects and close more business? Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.
The Art of Customer Referrals is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.
Moving Forward
Most new Claremont businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.
Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Claremont and throughout the United States . We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Claremont entrepreneur who is just getting started or you are already up and running with your new venture.
More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Claremont, California
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Claremont.
- Resources for Claremont, California Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Claremont entrepreneurs.
- California Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in California.
- Fresno, California Small Business Development Center - The UC Merced SBDC Regional Network assists Central California entrepreneurs and small business owners through counseling, training and business information.
- Los Angeles, California Small Business Development Center - The Los Angeles Regional Small Business Development Center Network (LA SBDC Network) is part of the national, U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) effort to provide free one-on-one customized consulting services and low-cost training workshops to growing businesses and start-up businesses.
- Sacramento, California Small Business Development Center - As Northern California continues to grow demographically and economically, the Northeastern California Small Business Development Center (NECSBDC) at CSU, Chico is committed to helping communities prepare and plan for future growth.
- San Diego, California Small Business Development Center - The Small Business Development & International Trade Center (SBDITC) at Southwestern College is part of the California SBDC San Diego and Imperial Regional Network. The SBDITC provides no-cost business assistance to start-up & existing businesses.
- San Francisco, California Small Business Development Center - The Northern California Network of Small Business Development Centers helps individuals start, manage and grow their businesses.
- Santa Ana, California Small Business Development Center - The Tri-County Lead Small Business Development Center (SBDC) in the Santa Ana District provides oversight and support for SBDCs located in the Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. The Santa Ana SBDC Network is a leader in providing consulting, training, and technical assistance to the small business community.
- Claremont, California Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Claremont, California newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Claremont area.
- Claremont, California Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Claremont, California area radio stations.
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