Thinking about starting a business in Del Mar, California? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Del Mar.
Are You Sure You Want to Do This?
Before quitting your day job, consider your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.
Here are three things we recommend you do before you fully commit to starting a new business of your own.
- Talk to other entrepreneurs in Del Mar. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
- We recommend reading Should You Become an Entrepreneur?. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
- Have a candid conversation with friends and family. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.
Del Mar, California Demographic Information
Del Mar has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Del Mar demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Del Mar.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
1570 |
| 5-9 Employees |
309 |
| 10-19 Employees |
225 |
| 20-49 Employees |
126 |
| 50-99 Employees |
48 |
| 100-249 Employees |
27 |
| 250-499 Employees |
0 |
| 500-999 Employees |
3 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Del Mar Businesses |
2308 |
As a new Del Mar entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Del Mar 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 |
4 |
| Architectural Services |
7 |
| Art Dealers |
3 |
| Beauty Salons |
9 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
1 |
| Book Stores |
1 |
| Broadwoven Fabric Mills |
1 |
| Business and Secretarial Schools |
1 |
| Cable and Other Program Distribution |
1 |
| Charter Bus Industry |
1 |
| Cheese Manufacturing |
1 |
| Child Day Care Services |
7 |
| Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
3 |
| Clothing Accessories Stores |
1 |
| Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners |
2 |
| Collection Agencies |
1 |
| Commercial Bakeries |
1 |
| Commodity Contracts Brokerage |
1 |
| Computer and Software Stores |
1 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
3 |
| Consumer Lending |
2 |
| Convenience Stores |
1 |
| Convention and Trade Show Organizers |
2 |
| Court Reporting and Stenotype Services |
2 |
| Custom Computer Programming Services |
8 |
| Drafting Services |
1 |
| Electrical Contractors |
2 |
| Electronic Shopping |
2 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
1 |
| Emergency and Other Relief Services |
1 |
| Engineering Services |
10 |
| Exam Preparation and Tutoring |
3 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
4 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
1 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
3 |
| Floor Covering Stores |
1 |
| Florists |
3 |
| Food Service Contractors |
1 |
| Freight Transportation Arrangement |
1 |
| Fruit and Vegetable Markets |
1 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
32 |
| Furniture Stores |
4 |
| General Automotive Repair |
4 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
3 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
1 |
| Grantmaking Foundations |
3 |
| Graphic Design Services |
4 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
1 |
| Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Home Health Care Services |
1 |
| Homes for the Elderly |
2 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
14 |
| Interior Design Services |
10 |
| Investigation Services |
1 |
| Investment Advice |
7 |
| Janitorial Services |
1 |
| Jewelry Stores |
5 |
| Kidney Dialysis Centers |
1 |
| Land Subdivision |
5 |
| Landscape Architectural Services |
2 |
| Landscaping Services |
7 |
| Libraries and Archives |
2 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
10 |
| Luggage and Leather Goods Stores |
1 |
| Mail-Order Houses |
1 |
| Marketing Consulting Services |
10 |
| Masonry Contractors |
1 |
| Men's Clothing Stores |
2 |
| Miscellaneous Intermediation |
3 |
| Mobile Food Services |
1 |
| Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers |
5 |
| Motion Picture and Video Production |
3 |
| Motor Vehicle Towing |
1 |
| Motorcycle Dealers |
1 |
| Nail Salons |
5 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
2 |
| News Syndicates |
1 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
2 |
| Nonresidential Property Managers |
6 |
| Office Administrative Services |
7 |
| Office Supplies and Stationery Stores |
1 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
2 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
10 |
| Offices of Dentists |
15 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
13 |
| Offices of Real Estate Appraisers |
1 |
| Optical Goods Stores |
2 |
| Paint and Wallpaper Stores |
1 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
1 |
| Parking Lots and Garages |
5 |
| Periodical Publishers |
1 |
| Pet and Pet Supplies Stores |
2 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
1 |
| Portfolio Management |
8 |
| Private Mail Centers |
3 |
| Professional Employer Organizations |
1 |
| Public Relations Agencies |
2 |
| Quick Printing |
1 |
| Racetracks |
1 |
| Radio Networks |
2 |
| Radio Stations |
1 |
| Real Estate Credit |
4 |
| Residential Property Managers |
5 |
| Residential Remodelers |
8 |
| Retail Bakeries |
1 |
| Savings Institutions |
2 |
| Secondary Market Financing |
2 |
| Securities Brokerage |
3 |
| Shellfish Fishing |
1 |
| Ship Building and Repairing |
1 |
| Shoe Stores |
1 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
2 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
6 |
| Software Publishers |
4 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
6 |
| Sports and Recreation Instruction |
3 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
2 |
| Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters |
1 |
| Tobacco Stores |
1 |
| Travel Agencies |
3 |
| Used Merchandise Stores |
2 |
| Veterinary Services |
5 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
1 |
| Voluntary Health Organizations |
1 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
11 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
10 |
Have You Considered Franchising?
As you drive around Del Mar, you'll notice that many local entrepreneurs have gone the franchising route. But is franchising the right option for you?
We highly recommend you consider franchising as an option. To help you learn more about franchising, we've gathered a ton of articles on franchising, including How to Get More Franchisees. Get a thorough education on franchising by browsing all of our Articles on Franchising.
A comprehensive list of franchisors is available via our List of Franchise Opportunities.
Sample franchise opportunities include Mr. Handyman and Charley's Grilled Subs. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Auto Parts and Tools Franchises and Landscaping Franchises.
Note on Del Mar Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Del Mar.
Is Buying an Existing Del Mar Business a Good Strategy?
An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in California. Follow that link and you might discover several good businesses for sale in Del Mar.
Before buying a business, be sure to read this article: How to Buy 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.
Companies like Starbucks, Apple, Target, Microsoft and Intuit all have strong company names that are easy to remember and have become well-loved brands. Wouldn't it be nice if your new company name got on a similar track?
To get up to speed on what makes for a good company name, we encourage you to read this useful article: Naming a Business.
As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are opening a business in Del Mar, it's very important that you make sure no California company has already registered the company name you have selected.
The Art of Selling
Being able to sell is essential to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Del Mar or are selling to customers throughout California, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.
Clever sales techniques can transform any business from good to great. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.
Anticipating Prospect Responses 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 Del Mar. 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.
This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Del Mar 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 Del Mar, California
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Del Mar.
- Resources for Del Mar, California Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Del Mar 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.
- Del Mar, California Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Del Mar, California newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Del Mar area.
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