California Business Startup Guides
Starting a Business in Fontana, California
Thinking about starting a business in Fontana, California? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Fontana.
What Business to Start
Choosing a business that is right for you is very important. We recommend that you 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 Opening a Computer Terminal Manufacturers Business guide or our Starting a Scanning & Plotting Equipment, Service, & Supplies Business guide.
Remember that starting a business in Fontana has some implications. Some businesses will do better in Fontana than others. Only by spending some time analyzing Fontana demographics can you decide if there will be strong demand for your business idea.
Fontana, California Demographic Information
Fontana has an active business community that includes small businesses, mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Fontana demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Fontana.
Businesses
As a new Fontana entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Fontana 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.
Businesses
What About Buying an Existing Fontana Business?
If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in California. Follow that link and you can review several good businesses for sale in Fontana.
For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: Buying a Business.
Choosing a Company Name
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.
Even if the name doesn't do it by itself, many naming experts believe there should be a story behind the name that ties into your company mission.
Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Naming a Company.
On a final note, given that you are opening a business in Fontana, it's critical that you ensure that your company name has not already been claimed by another California business.
Company Formation in Fontana, California
It's very important that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. Doing so will shield you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.
When forming a company, you will choose from many company types, such as a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.
Incorporation is a very popular way to form a business. A key decision is whether to form and S-Corp or a C-Corp, and you also must decide in which state you will incorporate. Just because you are starting a business in California, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in California. As it turns out, you can 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 Subchapter S Corporations. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. On a final note, since you will be starting a business in Fontana, California, our web page covering Incorporating in California may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in California.
Make Sure You Have a Business Plan
A business plan is vital in maximizing the prospects of your new company. In effect, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.
To learn more about business plans, read Expert Advice on Business Plans. You should also take advantage of free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in California.
Promoting Your New Company
To rise above the crowd in Fontana and accelerate your business, you'll need to have a good marketing plan.
There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Getting Publicity is an article that will stimulate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. That's just one of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.
Next Steps
As an entrepreneur in Fontana, 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.
Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Fontana and throughout the United States . We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Fontana 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 Fontana, California
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Fontana.
- Resources for Fontana, California Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Fontana 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 Center (SBDC) at Southwestern College serves entrepreneurs and small businesses in San Diego and Imperial Counties. The SBDC 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.
- Orange County Small Business Development Center - The Orange County SBDC is a leader in providing consulting, training, and technical assistance to the small business community.
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