Pennsylvania Business Startup Guides

Open a Business in Ephrata, Pennsylvania

Need help starting a business in Ephrata, Pennsylvania? We've got the information you need to open a business in Ephrata.

Ephrata, Pennsylvania Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
2394
5-9 Employees
1050
10-19 Employees
846
20-49 Employees
510
50-99 Employees
210
100-249 Employees
120
250-499 Employees
30
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
12
All Ephrata Businesses
5172

As a new Ephrata entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Ephrata 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
Ambulance Services
1
Architectural Services
2
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
6
Baked Goods Stores
1
Beauty Salons
22
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
3
Boat Dealers
1
Book Publishers
1
Book Stores
2
Bowling Centers
1
Building Inspection Services
3
Business Associations
1
Car Washes
4
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Caterers
1
Cemeteries and Crematories
5
Charter Bus Industry
1
Child and Youth Services
1
Child Day Care Services
4
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
2
Commercial Lithographic Printing
3
Commercial Screen Printing
2
Computer and Software Stores
2
Computer Systems Design Services
1
Confectionery and Nut Stores
2
Confectionery Merchant Wholesalers
1
Consumer Lending
1
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
3
Convenience Stores
2
Credit Unions
1
Curtain and Drapery Mills
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
4
Cut Stock, Resawing Lumber, and Planing
1
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
1
Discount Department Stores
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
3
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
6
Educational Support Services
2
Electric Power Distribution
1
Electrical Contractors
18
Employment Placement Agencies
1
Engineering Services
4
Environmental Consulting Services
2
Farm Product Warehousing and Storage
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
4
Fertilizer (Mixing Only) Manufacturing
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
4
Floor Covering Stores
1
Flooring Contractors
4
Florists
2
Formal Wear and Costume Rental
1
Framing Contractors
2
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
3
Full-Service Restaurants
18
Furniture Stores
6
General Automotive Repair
26
General Freight Trucking, Local
4
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
3
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Hardware Stores
1
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
1
Home Health Care Services
2
Homes for the Elderly
2
Household Appliance Stores
2
Industrial Building Construction
2
Institutional Furniture Manufacturing
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
14
Janitorial Services
6
Jewelry Stores
1
Land Subdivision
2
Landscaping Services
8
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
1
Libraries and Archives
1
Limited-Service Restaurants
25
Machine Shops
3
Mail-Order Houses
1
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
1
Marketing Consulting Services
1
Masonry Contractors
4
Mattress Manufacturing
1
Motion Picture and Video Distribution
1
Motor and Generator Manufacturing
1
Motor Vehicle Body Manufacturing
2
Motorcycle Dealers
1
Museums
2
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
2
Nail Salons
1
New Car Dealers
4
Newspaper Publishers
2
Nonwoven Fabric Mills
1
Office Administrative Services
2
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
2
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
1
Offices of Chiropractors
9
Offices of Dentists
10
Offices of Optometrists
3
Offices of Podiatrists
1
Optical Goods Stores
1
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
2
Outerwear Knitting Mills
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
3
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
6
Payroll Services
1
Periodical Publishers
2
Perishable Prepared Food Manufacturing
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
2
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
4
Photography Studios, Portrait
2
Precision Turned Product Manufacturing
1
Public Relations Agencies
1
Radio Stations
1
Real Estate Credit
1
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
1
Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage
2
Residential Property Managers
1
Retail Bakeries
3
Roofing Contractors
3
Sales Financing
1
Savings Institutions
3
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Securities Brokerage
3
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
3
Siding Contractors
1
Sign Manufacturing
2
Site Preparation Contractors
11
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
10
Solid Waste Collection
2
Special Needs Transportation
1
Sporting Goods Stores
3
Tax Preparation Services
1
Telephone Answering Services
1
Temporary Help Services
7
Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters
2
Tire Dealers
1
Travel Agencies
1
Truss Manufacturing
1
Used Merchandise Stores
3
Veterinary Services
3
Video Tape and Disc Rental
5
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
1
Voluntary Health Organizations
1
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
1
Weft Knit Fabric Mills
1
Women's Clothing Stores
1
Wood Window and Door Manufacturing
1

Is Franchising a Better Option?

As you drive around Ephrata, you'll conclude that many business owners have opted to buy a franchise, rather than starting a business on their own. Should you be giving franchising serious consideration?

Our recommendation is that you investigate buying a franchise. We have many articles on franchises, such as Franchisees Versus Licensees. Get a thorough education on franchising by browsing all of our Articles on Franchising.

To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.

Sample franchise opportunities include Atlantic City Sub Shops and Frullati Cafe & Bakery. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Travel and Leisure Franchises and Child Safety Franchises.

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

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Ephrata Business?

If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in Pennsylvania. Follow that link and you might discover several good businesses for sale in Ephrata.

If you are serious about buying a business, you may want to read this article: Buying a Business.

Startup Financing Basics

Getting your Ephrata business the capital it needs to succeed will be harder than you might expect. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.

To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as Getting a Small Business Loan.

For Ephrata entrepreneurs who need startup capital, check out our List of Pennsylvania Angel Investors and our List of Pennsylvania Venture Capital Firms.

Getting the Word Out About Your New Venture

To rise above the crowd in Ephrata and build your business, you need a solid marketing plan.

We have some helpful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Buying Radio Ads is a good read to get your marketing juices flowing. That's just a sampling of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

The Art of Selling

Being able to sell is essential to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Ephrata or are selling to customers throughout Pennsylvania, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.

Not knowing how to sell can result in lost customers and minimal market share. The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.

Why Salespeople Fail is worth reading, as it may give you some good ideas on how to sell your products or services. We have many more good articles on selling that you may enjoy reading.

Now It's Up To You

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

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 Ephrata and throughout the United States . We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Ephrata, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Ephrata, Pennsylvania

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

More Business Startup Guides for Pennsylvania

Starting a Business in Emporium
Starting a Business in Erie

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

 

 

Share this article


Additional Resources for Entrepreneurs

Lists of Venture Capital and Private Equity Firms

Franchise Opportunities

Contributors

Business Glossary