Maryland Business Startup Guides

Opening a Business in Rockville, Maryland

Contemplating starting a business in Rockville, Maryland? We walk you through the process of opening a business in Rockville.

What Business Are You Starting?

There are many businesses that you can start. How do you know which type of business is right for you? We recommend that you read Finding Your Niche in Life.

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 an Accounts Receivable Loan Business guide or our How to Start a Cargo Surveyors Business guide.

Remember that starting a business in Rockville has some implications. Some businesses will do better in Rockville than others. A critical consideration is whether Rockville demographics mesh well with your startup concept.

Rockville, Maryland Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
70688
5-9 Employees
23256
10-19 Employees
16896
20-49 Employees
12504
50-99 Employees
5232
100-249 Employees
3408
250-499 Employees
672
500-999 Employees
240
1000+ Employees
120
All Rockville Businesses
133016

As a new Rockville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Rockville 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
4
Aluminum Foundries (except Die-Casting)
1
Amusement Arcades
1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
4
Architectural Services
24
Art Dealers
6
Automobile Driving Schools
1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
6
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
15
Automotive Transmission Repair
2
Baked Goods Stores
5
Barber Shops
5
Beauty Salons
56
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
17
Book Publishers
3
Book Stores
3
Books Printing
1
Building Inspection Services
3
Business Associations
15
Business to Business Electronic Markets
2
Cable and Other Program Distribution
4
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
3
Car Washes
5
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
13
Caterers
17
Cemeteries and Crematories
3
Charter Bus Industry
1
Child and Youth Services
5
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
3
Civic and Social Organizations
11
Claims Adjusting
2
Clothing Accessories Stores
3
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
3
Collection Agencies
4
Commercial Bakeries
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
12
Commercial Photography
3
Commercial Screen Printing
3
Commodity Contracts Dealing
2
Community Food Services
1
Computer and Software Stores
11
Computer Facilities Management Services
21
Computer Training
5
Confectionery and Nut Stores
1
Construction Machinery Manufacturing
1
Consumer Lending
2
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
3
Convenience Stores
20
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
10
Couriers
2
Court Reporting and Stenotype Services
3
Credit Unions
7
Curtain and Drapery Mills
2
Custom Computer Programming Services
79
Deep Sea Freight Transportation
1
Dental Laboratories
6
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
5
Digital Printing
2
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
7
Direct Mail Advertising
4
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
12
Directory and Mailing List Publishers
1
Discount Department Stores
1
Document Preparation Services
8
Drafting Services
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
4
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
9
Educational Support Services
13
Electric Power Distribution
1
Electrical Contractors
43
Electronic Shopping
6
Elementary and Secondary Schools
13
Employment Placement Agencies
8
Engineering Services
73
Environmental Consulting Services
7
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
8
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
4
Family Clothing Stores
7
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fine Arts Schools
9
Finish Carpentry Contractors
16
Fish and Seafood Markets
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
24
Floor Covering Stores
23
Florists
9
Flour Milling
1
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
3
Food Service Contractors
15
Footwear and Leather Goods Repair
4
Footwear Merchant Wholesalers
1
Framing Contractors
6
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
2
Full-Service Restaurants
108
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
4
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
5
Furniture Stores
42
General Automotive Repair
79
General Freight Trucking, Local
5
General Rental Centers
3
General Warehousing and Storage
2
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
6
Glass and Glazing Contractors
3
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
6
Grantmaking Foundations
13
Graphic Design Services
15
Hazardous Waste Treatment and Disposal
1
Heating Oil Dealers
1
HMO Medical Centers
2
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
6
Home Centers
1
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
9
Home Health Care Services
7
Household Appliance Stores
5
Human Rights Organizations
1
Industrial Launderers
1
Institutional Furniture Manufacturing
2
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
96
Interior Design Services
9
International Trade Financing
1
Internet Service Providers
5
Investigation Services
3
Investment Advice
23
Janitorial Services
64
Jewelry Stores
15
Kidney Dialysis Centers
3
Land Subdivision
6
Landscaping Services
39
Language Schools
5
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
3
Libraries and Archives
1
Limited-Service Restaurants
159
Limousine Service
6
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
4
Luggage and Leather Goods Stores
1
Luggage Manufacturing
1
Machine Shops
5
Mail-Order Houses
6
Manifold Business Forms Printing
1
Marketing Consulting Services
30
Marking Device Manufacturing
1
Meat Markets
1
Media Buying Agencies
1
Medical Laboratories
7
Men's Clothing Stores
4
Miscellaneous Intermediation
3
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
35
Motion Picture and Video Distribution
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
3
Museums
4
Musical Groups and Artists
2
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
2
Nail Salons
17
Natural Gas Distribution
1
New Car Dealers
11
News Dealers and Newsstands
1
Newspaper Publishers
10
Nonresidential Property Managers
24
Nursing Care Facilities
6
Office Administrative Services
39
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
9
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
7
Offices of Chiropractors
17
Offices of Dentists
138
Offices of Lawyers
291
Offices of Optometrists
9
Offices of Other Holding Companies
10
Offices of Podiatrists
13
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
12
Open-End Investment Funds
1
Optical Goods Stores
14
Packaging and Labeling Services
1
Paint and Coating Manufacturing
2
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
5
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
44
Parking Lots and Garages
30
Payroll Services
9
Periodical Publishers
11
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
6
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
6
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
16
Photography Studios, Portrait
7
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas
1
Portfolio Management
14
Precision Turned Product Manufacturing
2
Prepress Services
1
Private Mail Centers
4
Professional Employer Organizations
5
Professional Organizations
14
Public Relations Agencies
8
Radio Networks
1
Radio Stations
13
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
3
Real Estate Credit
38
Real Estate Investment Trusts
11
Recreational Goods Rental
1
Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage
4
Residential Property Managers
27
Residential Remodelers
83
Retail Bakeries
4
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
7
Roofing Contractors
11
Rooming and Boarding Houses
1
Sales Financing
6
Savings Institutions
14
Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation
1
Secondary Market Financing
1
Securities Brokerage
15
Security Guards and Patrol Services
4
Shoe Stores
3
Siding Contractors
10
Site Preparation Contractors
7
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
17
Software Publishers
14
Solid Waste Collection
2
Sound Recording Studios
1
Special Needs Transportation
2
Sporting Goods Stores
16
Tax Preparation Services
11
Telecommunications Resellers
4
Telemarketing Bureaus
2
Telephone Answering Services
2
Temporary Help Services
39
Temporary Shelters
5
Testing Laboratories
3
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
10
Tire and Tube Merchant Wholesalers
1
Tire Dealers
8
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
45
Tobacco Stores
1
Tour Operators
1
Tradebinding and Related Work
1
Travel Agencies
29
Used Car Dealers
2
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
15
Used Merchandise Stores
11
Vending Machine Operators
7
Veterinary Services
9
Video Tape and Disc Rental
9
Voluntary Health Organizations
5
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
18
Window Treatment Stores
2
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
14
Women's Clothing Stores
9
Wood Office Furniture Manufacturing
2

Is a Franchise Opportunity Right For You?

As you drive around Rockville, 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?

Most business experts recommend that you investigate buying a franchise. This site has dozens of articles on franchising, such as Before Buying a Franchise. Gain a solid understanding of franchising by scanning all of our Articles on Franchising.

You can review hundreds of franchise opportunities by browing our Franchise Directory.

Representative franchise opportunities include Seekers Coffee House & Cafe and IntelliTurf. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Auto Parts and Tools Franchises and Landscaping Franchises.

Note on Rockville Franchise Opportunities: You will need to contact franchisors directly to see if their franchises are available in Rockville.

What About Buying an Existing Rockville Business?

If you have some capital to play with, you may want to Buy a Business in Maryland. Follow that link and you might discover several good businesses for sale in Rockville.

For anybody who wants to buy a business, we recommend reading this useful article: How to Buy a Business.

Company Formation in Rockville, Maryland

It's very important that you form your business as a legal structure. Doing so will protect you from personal liability for business debts and obligations.

The entity you form can be a traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.

Incorporating 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. Just because you are starting a business in Maryland, you don't necessarily have to incorporate in Maryland. As it turns out, you are allowed to incorporate wherever you want. However, if you do incorporate in another state, you'll have to register as a foreign corporation in your home state.

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 Why Incorporate in Delaware. You may also want to seek the advice of an attorney. Finally, if you are starting a business in Rockville, Maryland, our information on Incorporating in Maryland may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Maryland.

Where to Get Money to Start a Company

Getting your Rockville business the capital it needs to succeed is a difficult chore. In fact, financing your new business may be the hardest challenge you ever face.

To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as Getting a Small Business Loan.

For Rockville entrepreneurs with great ambition but a shortage of investment capital, we have assembled a List of Maryland Angel Investors and our List of Maryland Venture Capital Firms.

Moving Forward

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

Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.

We are here to help Rockville businesses to be successful. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Rockville 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 Rockville, Maryland

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

More Startup Articles for Maryland Cities

Starting a Business in Princess Anne
Starting a Business in Salisbury

Browse All Business Startup Guides for Maryland
Starting a Business Guides for Other States

 

 

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