Thinking about starting a business in Craig, Colorado? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Craig.
Are You Ready for Entrepreneurship?
An entrepreneurial life is demanding, much harder than working as an employee. Are you sure you have the stamina and skills to succeed on your own?
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 Craig. Listen closely to their experiences and see if you think you too can be successful.
- 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. 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.
Craig, Colorado Demographic Information
Craig has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Craig demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Craig.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
3745 |
| 5-9 Employees |
1365 |
| 10-19 Employees |
615 |
| 20-49 Employees |
285 |
| 50-99 Employees |
105 |
| 100-249 Employees |
30 |
| 250-499 Employees |
30 |
| 500-999 Employees |
0 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Craig Businesses |
6175 |
As a new Craig entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Craig 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 |
| Animal (except Poultry) Slaughtering |
1 |
| Automotive Glass Replacement Shops |
2 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
2 |
| Automotive Transmission Repair |
1 |
| Beauty Salons |
1 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
3 |
| Bituminous Coal Underground Mining |
1 |
| Bottled Water Manufacturing |
1 |
| Bowling Centers |
2 |
| Cable and Other Program Distribution |
1 |
| Car Washes |
1 |
| Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services |
1 |
| Caterers |
1 |
| Child and Youth Services |
1 |
| Child Day Care Services |
4 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
3 |
| Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners |
2 |
| Collection Agencies |
1 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
1 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
1 |
| Construction Sand and Gravel Mining |
1 |
| Convention and Visitors Bureaus |
1 |
| Couriers |
1 |
| Credit Unions |
1 |
| Custom Computer Programming Services |
1 |
| Discount Department Stores |
1 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
2 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
3 |
| Electric Power Distribution |
1 |
| Electrical Contractors |
5 |
| Engineering Services |
3 |
| Environmental Consulting Services |
1 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
2 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
2 |
| Floor Covering Stores |
2 |
| Florists |
2 |
| Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation |
2 |
| Framing Contractors |
1 |
| Freight Transportation Arrangement |
1 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
15 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
1 |
| Furniture Stores |
2 |
| General Automotive Repair |
5 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
3 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
1 |
| General Warehousing and Storage |
1 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
3 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
1 |
| Graphic Design Services |
1 |
| Home Centers |
1 |
| Home Health Care Services |
3 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
2 |
| Human Rights Organizations |
1 |
| Hunting and Trapping |
1 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
7 |
| Investment Advice |
1 |
| Janitorial Services |
4 |
| Landscaping Services |
3 |
| Lessors of Other Real Estate Property |
2 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
5 |
| Livestock Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Logging |
1 |
| Machine Shops |
2 |
| Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers |
1 |
| Marketing Consulting Services |
1 |
| Masonry Contractors |
1 |
| Meat Processed from Carcasses |
2 |
| Mobile Food Services |
1 |
| Motion Picture and Video Production |
1 |
| Motorcycle Dealers |
1 |
| Natural Gas Distribution |
1 |
| New Car Dealers |
3 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
1 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
1 |
| Office Administrative Services |
2 |
| Office Supplies and Stationery Stores |
2 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
4 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
7 |
| Offices of Dentists |
5 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
5 |
| Offices of Other Holding Companies |
1 |
| Optical Goods Stores |
1 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
1 |
| Payroll Services |
1 |
| Pet and Pet Supplies Stores |
1 |
| Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals |
2 |
| Public Relations Agencies |
1 |
| Radio Stations |
1 |
| Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing |
2 |
| Real Estate Credit |
2 |
| Recreational Goods Rental |
1 |
| Recreational Vehicle Dealers |
1 |
| Residential Property Managers |
1 |
| Residential Remodelers |
2 |
| Securities Brokerage |
1 |
| Septic Tank and Related Services |
1 |
| Shoe Stores |
1 |
| Siding Contractors |
1 |
| Sign Manufacturing |
1 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
4 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
2 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
5 |
| Television Broadcasting |
1 |
| Temporary Help Services |
1 |
| Temporary Shelters |
1 |
| Tire Dealers |
2 |
| Title Abstract and Settlement Offices |
1 |
| Tobacco Stores |
1 |
| Tortilla Manufacturing |
1 |
| Truss Manufacturing |
1 |
| Used Merchandise Stores |
2 |
| Veterinary Services |
3 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
1 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
2 |
| Window Treatment Stores |
1 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
2 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing |
1 |
What About Buying an Existing Craig Business?
If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in Colorado. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Craig.
Before buying a business, be sure to read this article: Buying a Business.
Naming the Company
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.
Pick a company name that isn't too generic. If you do a search engine search for your proposed name and a billion results come up, you may want to reconsider the name. It's much easier to come up in the search engines when your name is fairly unique.
Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Naming a Business.
As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are starting a business in Craig, it's critical that you ensure that no other Colorado company is using the business name you want to use.
Raising Funding for Your Venture
Getting your Craig business the capital it needs to succeed is very difficult due to the ongoing business credit crunch. If you don't have a rich uncle to fund you, you'll need to be creative in how you approach your fundraising efforts.
Take advantage of our many articles on raising capital, such as Getting a Small Business Loan.
For Craig entrepreneurs who want to raise money for a new venture, you'll want to take a look at our List of Colorado Angel Investors and our List of Colorado Venture Capital Firms.
Improving Your Entrepreneurial Skillset
Successful entrepreneurs recognize that they don't know everything.
With your business being located in Craig, Colorado, you will want to take advantage of the learning programs at local Colorado educational institutions. It's also wise to see if there are any Craig networking organizations.
Never Give Up
As an entrepreneur in Craig, you won't be working for the boss anymore. You are the boss.
Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.
This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Craig 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 Craig, Colorado
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Craig.
Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in Colorado
Starting a Business in Cortez
Starting a Business in Crested Butte
Browse All
Business Startup Guides for Colorado
