California Business Startup Guides

Open a Business in Lake Forest, California

Need help starting a business in Lake Forest, California? We've got the information you need to open a business in Lake Forest.

Do You Have Entrepreneurial Drive and Passion?

Before you get too far along in the process, take inventory of your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.

While entrepreneurship has become a popular career choice, we recommend you do the following before you take the plunge:

  • Speak with other entrepreneurs in Lake Forest. Get their candid feedback on what it takes to start a successful business.
  • You should read The Entrepreneurial Personality. It's a good read for those who are thinking about becoming an entrepreneur.
  • Reach out to a trusted acquaintance. A support network of family and friends can be a great sounding board for good advice before you decide for sure to go into business.

Lake Forest, California Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
8862
5-9 Employees
2799
10-19 Employees
2151
20-49 Employees
1737
50-99 Employees
486
100-249 Employees
288
250-499 Employees
90
500-999 Employees
9
1000+ Employees
27
All Lake Forest Businesses
16449

As a new Lake Forest entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Lake Forest 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
5
Ambulance Services
1
Amusement Arcades
1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
1
Architectural Services
5
Art Dealers
1
Automobile Driving Schools
2
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
2
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
1
Automotive Transmission Repair
2
Baked Goods Stores
2
Barber Shops
3
Beauty Salons
19
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
6
Book Stores
1
Bowling Centers
1
Business Associations
1
Cafeterias
3
Car Washes
5
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
3
Caterers
3
Cement Manufacturing
1
Child and Youth Services
2
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
1
Civic and Social Organizations
2
Collection Agencies
3
Commercial Bakeries
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
4
Commercial Screen Printing
2
Commodity Contracts Dealing
2
Computer Facilities Management Services
1
Computer Systems Design Services
19
Computer Training
2
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining
1
Consumer Lending
4
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
2
Convenience Stores
2
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Couriers
3
Credit Unions
3
Custom Computer Programming Services
29
Dental Laboratories
1
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
1
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
1
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
1
Display Advertising
1
Document Preparation Services
2
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
6
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
8
Educational Support Services
1
Electrical Contractors
23
Elementary and Secondary Schools
3
Employment Placement Agencies
7
Engineering Services
35
Environmental Consulting Services
2
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
4
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
2
Family Clothing Stores
3
Finish Carpentry Contractors
7
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
6
Floor Covering Stores
5
Flooring Contractors
5
Florists
4
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
2
Footwear Merchant Wholesalers
3
Framing Contractors
3
Freight Transportation Arrangement
2
Full-Service Restaurants
47
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
1
Furniture Stores
5
General Automotive Repair
24
General Freight Trucking, Local
3
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
4
Glass and Glazing Contractors
4
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
2
Graphic Design Services
3
Hand and Edge Tool Manufacturing
1
Hardware Manufacturing
1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
2
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
3
Home Health Care Services
5
Home Health Equipment Rental
3
Homes for the Elderly
4
Household Appliance Stores
5
Industrial Design Services
1
Industrial Mold Manufacturing
1
Interior Design Services
2
International Trade Financing
1
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
2
Internet Service Providers
4
Investigation Services
2
Investment Advice
10
Janitorial Services
8
Land Subdivision
3
Landscape Architectural Services
5
Landscaping Services
21
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
5
Limited-Service Restaurants
59
Limousine Service
1
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
3
Machine Shops
4
Mail-Order Houses
5
Manifold Business Forms Printing
1
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
2
Marketing Consulting Services
9
Masonry Contractors
9
Meat Markets
2
Metal Stamping
1
Mineral Wool Manufacturing
1
Miscellaneous Intermediation
2
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
26
Motion Picture and Video Production
5
Motor Vehicle Towing
5
Motorcycle Dealers
2
Nail Salons
9
Nonresidential Property Managers
3
Nursing Care Facilities
2
Office Administrative Services
9
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
4
Office Machinery Manufacturing
1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
3
Offices of Chiropractors
12
Offices of Dentists
42
Offices of Lawyers
19
Offices of Optometrists
11
Offices of Other Holding Companies
1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
4
One-Hour Photofinishing
1
Ophthalmic Goods Merchant Wholesalers
1
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Paint and Coating Manufacturing
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
14
Parking Lots and Garages
1
Passenger Car Rental
2
Periodical Publishers
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
5
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
11
Photography Studios, Portrait
2
Portfolio Management
7
Prepress Services
1
Professional Employer Organizations
2
Public Relations Agencies
1
Quick Printing
9
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
2
Real Estate Credit
18
Real Estate Investment Trusts
1
Remediation Services
1
Residential Remodelers
16
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
1
Roofing Contractors
5
Sales Financing
2
Satellite Telecommunications
1
Savings Institutions
6
Securities Brokerage
6
Shoe Stores
7
Sign Manufacturing
3
Site Preparation Contractors
5
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
14
Soap and Other Detergent Manufacturing
2
Software Publishers
7
Solid Waste Collection
1
Sports and Recreation Instruction
4
Tax Preparation Services
7
Telecommunications Resellers
1
Telemarketing Bureaus
1
Temporary Help Services
10
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
2
Tire Dealers
5
Toilet Preparation Manufacturing
2
Translation and Interpretation Services
2
Travel Agencies
4
Used Merchandise Stores
5
Vending Machine Operators
1
Veterinary Services
9
Video Tape and Disc Rental
4
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
26
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
3
Women's Clothing Stores
4

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Lake Forest Business?

We've created a handy website page for those who want to Buy a Business in California. Follow that link and you might discover several good businesses for sale in Lake Forest.

For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: Hold Harmless Agreements When Buying Businesses.

Naming the Business

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.

Company names need to be easy to spell, easy to pronounce, and easy to remember.

For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Branding Advice.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are starting a business in Lake Forest, it's very important that you make sure no other California company is using the business name you want to use.

Marketing Your New Business

Whether your goal is to attract Lake Forest customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you need a solid marketing plan.

You can learn a ton about marketing on our site. Customer Loyalty 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.

How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Abilities

Successful business owners recognize that they don't know everything.

Given that you are starting a business in Lake Forest, California, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby California universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also wise to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Lake Forest entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.

Now It's Up To You

You have a dream -- starting a business in Lake Forest. 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 Lake Forest 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 Lake Forest, California

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

Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in California

Starting a Business in Lake Arrowhead
Starting a Business in Lake Hughes

Browse All Business Startup Guides for California
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