Pennsylvania Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in Pottstown, Pennsylvania

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

What Type of Business Should You Start?

Choosing a business that is right for you is very important. To stir your creative juices on what kind of business to start, take a look at Free Business Ideas.

For in-depth how-to guides on how to start specific businesses, browse our Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Starting a Cocktail Mixes Business guide or our Opening a Plastic Molding Machinery Business guide.

Remember that you are opening your new business in Pottstown. Some businesses will do better in Pottstown than others. Don't forget to review Pottstown demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.

Pottstown, Pennsylvania Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
2264
5-9 Employees
969
10-19 Employees
594
20-49 Employees
399
50-99 Employees
153
100-249 Employees
75
250-499 Employees
15
500-999 Employees
3
1000+ Employees
3
All Pottstown Businesses
4475

As a new Pottstown entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Pottstown 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
2
Ambulance Services
1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
2
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
9
Automotive Transmission Repair
1
Baked Goods Stores
1
Barber Shops
1
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers
1
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
8
Boat Dealers
1
Book Stores
4
Building Inspection Services
1
Business Associations
1
Cable and Other Program Distribution
2
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
1
Car Washes
3
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
3
Caterers
1
Cemeteries and Crematories
3
Child and Youth Services
3
Child Day Care Services
18
Civic and Social Organizations
14
Claims Adjusting
1
Clothing Accessories Stores
2
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
4
Collection Agencies
2
Commercial Lithographic Printing
4
Commercial Photography
3
Community Food Services
2
Computer and Software Stores
3
Computer Systems Design Services
9
Computer Training
2
Confectionery and Nut Stores
2
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining
1
Consumer Lending
2
Convenience Stores
5
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
2
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Credit Unions
3
Crop Harvesting, Primarily by Machine
1
Custom Compounding of Purchased Resins
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
4
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
1
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
4
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
1
Direct Mail Advertising
2
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
1
Discount Department Stores
2
Drafting Services
4
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
1
Educational Support Services
2
Electrical Contractors
16
Electronic Shopping
1
Elementary and Secondary Schools
7
Engineering Services
17
Environmental Consulting Services
3
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
3
Family Clothing Stores
7
Family Planning Centers
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
3
Fine Arts Schools
2
Finish Carpentry Contractors
4
Fish and Seafood Markets
1
Floor Covering Stores
4
Flooring Contractors
6
Florists
4
Folding Paperboard Box Manufacturing
1
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
3
Food Product Machinery Manufacturing
1
Food Service Contractors
5
Framing Contractors
3
Freight Transportation Arrangement
1
Full-Service Restaurants
31
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
2
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
2
Furniture Stores
8
General Automotive Repair
24
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
2
General Warehousing and Storage
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
6
Glass and Glazing Contractors
2
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Grantmaking Foundations
2
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Heating Oil Dealers
4
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
2
Home Centers
3
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
1
Home Health Care Services
2
Home Health Equipment Rental
2
Industrial Building Construction
1
Industrial Design Services
1
Industrial Launderers
1
Industrial Mold Manufacturing
1
Industrial Pattern Manufacturing
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
16
Investigation Services
1
Janitorial Services
9
Jewelry Stores
9
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Land Subdivision
1
Landscape Architectural Services
1
Landscaping Services
36
Libraries and Archives
1
Limousine Service
1
Machine Shops
10
Mail-Order Houses
1
Marketing Consulting Services
2
Marking Device Manufacturing
1
Masonry Contractors
11
Materials Recovery Facilities
1
Medical Laboratories
1
Men's Clothing Stores
2
Motion Picture and Video Production
1
Motorcycle Dealers
4
Musical Groups and Artists
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
1
Musical Instrument Manufacturing
1
New Car Dealers
6
New Housing Operative Builders
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nuclear Electric Power Generation
1
Nursing Care Facilities
7
Office Administrative Services
6
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
2
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
9
Offices of Chiropractors
9
Offices of Dentists
28
Offices of Lawyers
24
Offices of Optometrists
6
Offices of Other Holding Companies
1
Offices of Podiatrists
4
Optical Goods Stores
9
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
2
Paging
2
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
3
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
5
Payroll Services
2
Periodical Publishers
2
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
2
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
8
Photography Studios, Portrait
5
Plastics Plumbing Fixture Manufacturing
1
Portfolio Management
1
Precision Turned Product Manufacturing
2
Private Mail Centers
1
Professional Employer Organizations
1
Professional Organizations
1
Public Relations Agencies
1
Quick Printing
1
Radio Stations
1
Real Estate Credit
1
Residential Property Managers
2
Residential Remodelers
18
Roofing Contractors
4
Savings Institutions
4
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Secondary Market Financing
1
Securities Brokerage
4
Septic Tank and Related Services
3
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
2
Shoe Stores
5
Siding Contractors
3
Sign Manufacturing
1
Site Preparation Contractors
12
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
13
Solid Waste Landfill
1
Sporting Goods Stores
7
Sports and Recreation Instruction
3
Tax Preparation Services
4
Temporary Help Services
6
Testing Laboratories
1
Thread Mills
1
Tire Dealers
6
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
4
Tobacco Stores
1
Travel Agencies
2
Truck Trailer Manufacturing
1
Truss Manufacturing
1
Used Car Dealers
5
Used Merchandise Stores
6
Vending Machine Operators
2
Veterinary Services
5
Video Tape and Disc Rental
5
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
3
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
10
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
6
Women's Clothing Stores
6

Should You Franchise?

As you drive around Pottstown, it becomes clear that purchasing a franchise is a common way to get started as an entrepreneur. But is franchising the right option for you?

We highly recommend you consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as Credit and Franchise Purchasing. 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.

Representative franchise opportunities include Spherion Corporation and CFO Today / Ledger Plus. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Wedding Franchises and Hardware Store Franchises.

Note on Pottstown Franchise Opportunities: To find out if a franchise you are interested in is available in Pottstown, you will need to get in direct contact with the franchisor.

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Pottstown Business?

An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Pennsylvania. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Pottstown.

Before buying a business, be sure to read this article: How to Buy a Business.

Forming a Company in Pottstown, Pennsylvania

A critical step is ensuring that you are forming a legal entity that operates independently from you. Among other things, forming a legal entity for the business limits your liabilities.

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

Incorporation is a very popular way to form a business. Of course, you have to decide which type of corporation to form and where to incorporate. If you are starting a business in Pennsylvania, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in Pennsylvania. In fact, you can incorporate in any state you would like to. 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 are many nuances to forming a company. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Incorporating Online. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, our information on Incorporating in Pennsylvania may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Pennsylvania.

How to Sell

Mastering the art of selling is priority one if you want your new Pottstown business to do well.

Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.

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.

Next Steps

Most new Pottstown businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.

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

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Pottstown, Pennsylvania

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

More Startup Articles for Pennsylvania Cities

Starting a Business in Port Royal
Starting a Business in Pottsville

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