Washington Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Shelton, Washington

Thinking about starting a business in Shelton, Washington? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Shelton.

Shelton, Washington Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
3615
5-9 Employees
1242
10-19 Employees
774
20-49 Employees
333
50-99 Employees
117
100-249 Employees
54
250-499 Employees
27
500-999 Employees
18
1000+ Employees
0
All Shelton Businesses
6180

As a new Shelton entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Shelton 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
Architectural Services
1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
6
Automotive Transmission Repair
1
Baked Goods Stores
1
Beauty Salons
4
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
1
Book Stores
2
Bowling Centers
1
Business Associations
2
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Casinos (except Casino Hotels)
1
Cemeteries and Crematories
1
Child and Youth Services
2
Cigarette Manufacturing
1
Civic and Social Organizations
6
Claims Adjusting
1
Coffee and Tea Manufacturing
1
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
1
Commercial Screen Printing
1
Community Food Services
1
Computer and Software Stores
1
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining
1
Convenience Stores
5
Couriers
2
Credit Unions
2
Custom Computer Programming Services
1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
1
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
10
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
2
Electrical Contractors
14
Elementary and Secondary Schools
1
Engineering Services
3
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
1
Family Planning Centers
1
Finfish Fishing
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
4
Fish and Seafood Markets
1
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
5
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
4
Flooring Contractors
2
Florists
1
Flour Milling
1
Framing Contractors
7
Fresh and Frozen Seafood Processing
2
Full-Service Restaurants
21
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
2
General Automotive Repair
13
General Freight Trucking, Local
3
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
2
Hardware Stores
1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
1
Home Centers
1
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
1
Homes for the Elderly
2
Household Appliance Stores
1
Industrial Mold Manufacturing
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
12
Janitorial Services
3
Jewelry Stores
1
Landscaping Services
6
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
4
Limited-Service Restaurants
16
Limousine Service
1
Logging
9
Mail-Order Houses
2
Marketing Consulting Services
2
Masonry Contractors
2
Meat Markets
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
2
Motor Vehicle Towing
2
Museums
1
Nail Salons
1
Navigational Services to Shipping
1
New Car Dealers
2
New Housing Operative Builders
2
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
2
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
6
Offices of Chiropractors
2
Offices of Dentists
13
Offices of Lawyers
13
Offices of Optometrists
3
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Packing and Crating
1
Periodical Publishers
2
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
6
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
3
Photography Studios, Portrait
4
Plate Work Manufacturing
1
Private Mail Centers
2
Professional Organizations
1
Quick Printing
1
Radio Stations
1
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
1
Residential Property Managers
2
Residential Remodelers
12
Retail Bakeries
1
Roofing Contractors
6
Securities Brokerage
2
Security Guards and Patrol Services
1
Septic Tank and Related Services
3
Shellfish Fishing
4
Site Preparation Contractors
9
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
8
Soap and Other Detergent Manufacturing
1
Sporting Goods Stores
1
Support Activities for Forestry
3
Tax Preparation Services
1
Temporary Shelters
1
Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters
1
Tire Dealers
1
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
1
Used Car Dealers
1
Used Merchandise Stores
2
Veterinary Services
2
Video Tape and Disc Rental
2
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
2
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
2
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
2
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
2

Should You Buy an Existing Shelton Business?

An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Washington. Follow that link and you might discover several good businesses for sale in Shelton.

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

Company Formation in Shelton, Washington

It's very important that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. The principal advantage of forming your new business as a legal entity is that it separates your business liabilities from your personal 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. A key decision is whether to form and S-Corp or a C-Corp, and you also must decide in which state you will incorporate. Just because you are starting a business in Washington, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in Washington. As it turns out, 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. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Where to Incorporate. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Shelton, Washington, our information on Incorporating in Washington may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Washington.

Don't Forget to Create a Business Plan

A business plan is vital to the health of your new business. Simply put, a business plan is a written description of the future you envision for your business. Failure to write a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

If you want more information on writing business plans, we recommend reading Business Plan Contests. You should also take advantage of free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in Washington.

Getting the Word Out About Your New Business

To rise above the crowd in Shelton and build your business, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your succeeding.

There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Marketing Versus Sales is an article that will stimulate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.

Improving Your Entrepreneurial Skillset

Successful entrepreneurs know that they need to continually improve.

As an entrepreneur who lives in Shelton, Washington, you will want to take advantage of the learning programs at local Washington educational institutions. It's also wise to see if there are any Shelton networking organizations.

Next Steps

As an entrepreneur in Shelton, you won't be working for the boss anymore. You are the boss.

If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Shelton and throughout the United States . 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 Shelton, Washington

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

More Business Startup Guides for Washington

Starting a Business in Sequim
Starting a Business in Shoreline

Browse All Business Startup Guides for Washington
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