Contemplating starting a business in Lake Placid, Florida? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Lake Placid.
Is Becoming an Entrepreneur Right for You?
Most new companies do not succeed, in part because the founder did not have the perseverance and abilities that are necessary to succeed. So, before you open a business, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.
Because entrepreneurship is not for everyone, we recommend you do the following to help you assess whether you should move forward with starting a business:
- Talk to other entrepreneurs in Lake Placid. Get their take on what it's really like to be an entrepreneur.
- 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. That's the best way to get a truly objective assessment as to whether others think you have what it takes.
What Business to Start
There are many businesses that you can start. How do you know which type of business is right for you? You might get some good ideas about what kind of business to start by reading Good Business Ideas.
If you still are not sure what type of business to start, peruse the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Opening a Correctional Institutions Business guide or our How to Start a Courier & Delivery Services Business guide.
Always keep in mind that you are opening your new business in Lake Placid. The business you want to start may already be well-represented in Lake Placid. A critical consideration is whether Lake Placid demographics mesh well with your startup concept.
Lake Placid, Florida Demographic Information
Lake Placid has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Lake Placid demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Lake Placid.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
1666 |
| 5-9 Employees |
462 |
| 10-19 Employees |
324 |
| 20-49 Employees |
150 |
| 50-99 Employees |
12 |
| 100-249 Employees |
24 |
| 250-499 Employees |
0 |
| 500-999 Employees |
0 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Lake Placid Businesses |
2638 |
As a new Lake Placid entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Lake Placid 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 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
4 |
| Automotive Transmission Repair |
1 |
| Barber Shops |
1 |
| Beauty Salons |
3 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
3 |
| Boat Dealers |
3 |
| Bowling Centers |
1 |
| Building Inspection Services |
1 |
| Business Associations |
2 |
| Canvas and Related Product Mills |
1 |
| Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services |
1 |
| Child and Youth Services |
1 |
| Child Day Care Services |
5 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
3 |
| Commercial Lithographic Printing |
2 |
| Computer Systems Design Services |
1 |
| Cotton Ginning |
1 |
| Court Reporting and Stenotype Services |
2 |
| Curtain and Drapery Mills |
1 |
| Drilling Oil and Gas Wells |
1 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
2 |
| Electric Power Distribution |
1 |
| Electrical Contractors |
5 |
| Elementary and Secondary Schools |
2 |
| Engineering Services |
1 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
2 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Farm Labor Contractors and Crew Leaders |
2 |
| Farm Management Services |
2 |
| Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers |
1 |
| Fertilizer (Mixing Only) Manufacturing |
1 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
3 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
2 |
| Floor Covering Stores |
1 |
| Flooring Contractors |
2 |
| Florists |
2 |
| Food (Health) Supplement Stores |
1 |
| Framing Contractors |
4 |
| Freight Transportation Arrangement |
1 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
11 |
| Funeral Homes and Funeral Services |
1 |
| Furniture Stores |
1 |
| General Automotive Repair |
5 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
4 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
1 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
2 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
4 |
| Hardware Stores |
2 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
1 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
7 |
| Interior Design Services |
3 |
| Internet Service Providers |
1 |
| Janitorial Services |
2 |
| Landscaping Services |
12 |
| Lessors of Other Real Estate Property |
3 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
7 |
| Livestock Merchant Wholesalers |
2 |
| Mail-Order Houses |
1 |
| Marinas |
1 |
| Marketing Consulting Services |
1 |
| Masonry Contractors |
2 |
| Meat Markets |
2 |
| Medical Laboratories |
1 |
| Museums |
1 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
1 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
2 |
| Nursing Care Facilities |
1 |
| Office Administrative Services |
2 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
6 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
2 |
| Offices of Dentists |
6 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
7 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
1 |
| Offices of Podiatrists |
1 |
| Optical Goods Stores |
1 |
| Outdoor Power Equipment Stores |
1 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
2 |
| Payroll Services |
1 |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services |
2 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
2 |
| Portfolio Management |
1 |
| Recreational Vehicle Dealers |
2 |
| Residential Remodelers |
7 |
| Roofing Contractors |
5 |
| Securities Brokerage |
1 |
| Sewage Treatment Facilities |
2 |
| Siding Contractors |
2 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
9 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
1 |
| Solid Waste Collection |
1 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
1 |
| Tax Preparation Services |
3 |
| Tile and Terrazzo Contractors |
4 |
| Tire Dealers |
2 |
| Title Abstract and Settlement Offices |
1 |
| Used Car Dealers |
2 |
| Used Household and Office Goods Moving |
1 |
| Used Merchandise Stores |
2 |
| Veterinary Services |
1 |
| Video Tape and Disc Rental |
2 |
| Water Supply and Irrigation Systems |
1 |
| Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
2 |
| Wineries |
1 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
2 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
1 |
Have You Considered Buying an Existing Lake Placid Business?
An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Florida. Follow that link and you can assess several good businesses for sale in Lake Placid.
If you are headed down the path of buying a business, you may want to read this article: Buying a Business.
Raising Capital for Your Startup
Getting your Lake Placid business the capital it needs to succeed requires strong organization skills and perseverance. The reality is that there is very little funding available for new small businesses, and you have to explore every possible alternative.
Take advantage of our many articles on securing funding, such as Business Incubators.
For Lake Placid entrepreneurs who want to raise money for a new venture, check out our List of Florida Angel Investors and our List of Florida Venture Capital Firms.
Marketing Your New Startup
To grow your Lake Placid business, you need a excellent marketing plan.
You can learn plenty about marketing on our site. How to Be an Effective Networker discusses marketing strategy and tactical marketing in a way that should get you thinking about how to creatively promote your business. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.
Moving Forward
Most new Lake Placid businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
From this point on, you control your own destiny.
We are here to help Lake Placid businesses to be successful. 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 Placid, Florida
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Lake Placid.
- Resources for Lake Placid, Florida Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Lake Placid 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.
- Lake Placid, Florida Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Lake Placid, Florida newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Lake Placid area.
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