Florida Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in Key Largo, Florida

Are you starting a business in Key Largo, Florida? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Key Largo.

Which Business to Choose?

An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. To stir your creative juices on what kind of business to start, take a look at Free Business Ideas.

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 Stone Carving Business guide or our How to Start an Internet Marketing Services Business guide.

Remember that you are starting a business in Key Largo. The business you want to start may already be well-represented in Key Largo. Make sure you fully understand Key Largo demographics before you lock in on your business idea.

Key Largo, Florida Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
1213
5-9 Employees
351
10-19 Employees
195
20-49 Employees
105
50-99 Employees
24
100-249 Employees
6
250-499 Employees
0
500-999 Employees
3
1000+ Employees
0
All Key Largo Businesses
1897

As a new Key Largo entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Key Largo 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
Art Dealers
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
1
Baked Goods Stores
1
Beauty Salons
7
Bed-and-Breakfast Inns
1
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
3
Boat Building
1
Book Stores
1
Building Inspection Services
1
Business Associations
1
Cafeterias
1
Canvas and Related Product Mills
2
Car Washes
3
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Child Day Care Services
4
Civic and Social Organizations
2
Claims Adjusting
1
Clothing Accessories Stores
1
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
1
Commercial Gravure Printing
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
1
Consumer Lending
2
Convenience Stores
1
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
1
Curtain and Drapery Mills
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
1
Deep Sea Freight Transportation
1
Deep Sea Passenger Transportation
1
Discount Department Stores
1
Drafting Services
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
2
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
2
Electrical Contractors
6
Elementary and Secondary Schools
1
Engineering Services
2
Facilities Support Services
1
Family Clothing Stores
3
Fine Arts Schools
1
Finfish Fishing
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
5
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
5
Flooring Contractors
1
Florists
1
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
2
Full-Service Restaurants
32
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
1
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
1
Furniture Stores
3
General Freight Trucking, Local
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
8
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Graphic Design Services
1
Home Centers
1
Household Appliance Stores
2
Inland Water Passenger Transportation
1
Interior Design Services
5
Investment Advice
1
Janitorial Services
5
Jewelry Stores
4
Land Subdivision
2
Landscaping Services
9
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
1
Limousine Service
1
Locksmiths
1
Mail-Order Houses
2
Marinas
6
Marketing Consulting Services
2
Masonry Contractors
3
Media Representatives
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
2
Motor Vehicle Towing
2
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
1
New Car Dealers
1
New Housing Operative Builders
2
Nonresidential Property Managers
1
Office Administrative Services
2
Offices of Chiropractors
3
Offices of Dentists
6
Offices of Lawyers
5
Offices of Optometrists
2
Offices of Podiatrists
1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
3
Packaging and Labeling Services
1
Payroll Services
1
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
3
Port and Harbor Operations
1
Portfolio Management
1
Private Mail Centers
1
Radio Stations
1
Recreational Goods Rental
6
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
2
Residential Property Managers
4
Residential Remodelers
5
Roofing Contractors
1
Savings Institutions
1
Shellfish Fishing
1
Shoe Stores
4
Sign Manufacturing
1
Site Preparation Contractors
2
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
1
Software Publishers
1
Solid Waste Collection
1
Sports and Recreation Instruction
1
Tax Preparation Services
1
Temporary Shelters
1
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
1
Tire Dealers
2
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
3
Tobacco Stores
1
Travel Agencies
1
Used Merchandise Stores
2
Veterinary Services
2
Video Tape and Disc Rental
1
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
1
Voluntary Health Organizations
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
5
Women's Clothing Stores
1
Zoos and Botanical Gardens
1

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.

Before you decide on a company name, run it by some prospective customers and see what they think. If they don't like it, it's probably a good idea to go back to the drawing board.

For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Naming a Business.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are opening a business in Key Largo, it's very important that you make sure no other Florida company is using the business name you want to use.

Company Formation in Key Largo, Florida

A critical step is ensuring that you choose the right legal structure for your new entity. Doing so will insulate you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.

The entity you form can be a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.

Incorporating is a very common way to legally create a business entity. Of course, you have to decide which type of corporation to form and where to incorporate. Just because you are starting a business in Florida, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Florida. In fact, you are allowed to incorporate wherever you want. 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. To learn the fundamentals of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as ESOP Formation. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Key Largo, Florida, our information on Incorporating in Florida may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Florida.

Raising Money for Your New Venture

Getting your Key Largo business the capital it needs to succeed requires strong organization skills and perseverance. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.

Fortunately, this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled Microlending as a Small Business Funding Source.

For Key Largo entrepreneurs with great ambition but a shortage of investment capital, check out our List of Florida Angel Investors and our List of Florida Venture Capital Firms.

Bring in Revenues

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

Why should customers buy from you instead of buying from competitors? Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.

Good Sales Strategies offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

Learning More About Entrepreneurship

Good business owners know that they don't know everything.

Given that you are starting a business in Key Largo, Florida, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Florida universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also beneficial to see if there are any networking organizations for Key Largo entrepreneurs.

Moving Forward

You have a dream -- starting a business in Key Largo. 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.

We are here to help Key Largo businesses to be successful. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Key Largo, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Key Largo, Florida

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

  • Resources for Key Largo, Florida Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Key Largo entrepreneurs.
  • Florida Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Florida.
  • Florida Small Business Development Center - The Florida Small Business Development Center Network (FSBDCN) is a statewide economic development partnership between higher education and other stakeholder organizations dedicated to providing entrepreneurs and established businesses with the assistance needed to start, grow and succeed, contributing to the Florida economy.

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Starting a Business in Key West

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