Thinking about starting a business in Sitka, Alaska? This step-by-step guide walks you through the major decisions you should consider before opening a new business in Sitka.
Are You Sure You Want to Do This?
Most startup businesses do not succeed, in part because the entrepreneur did not have the tenacity and/or the skills to succeed. So, before you start your business, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.
Before you move forward with starting a business, be sure to do these three things:
- Reach out to other entrepreneurs in Sitka. Ask them candidly what it's like to run a business.
- Peruse Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. This is one of our more popular articles for folks who want to go into business for themselves.
- Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. The people who know you best are often in the best position to tell you bluntly whether you will be a good entrepreneur.
What Business to Start
Choosing a business that is right for you is very important. You might get some good ideas about what kind of business to start by reading Evaluating Your Idea.
For step-by-step instructions on starting a variety of business types, visit the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our How to Start a Child Care Information & Referral Services Business guide or our How to Start a Video Arcades & Internet Gaming Centers Business guide.
Remember that starting a business in Sitka has some implications. Think about what needs are currently being underserved in Sitka. Only by spending some time analyzing Sitka demographics can you decide if there will be strong demand for your business idea.
Sitka, Alaska Demographic Information
Sitka has an active business community that includes small businesses,
mid-sized businesses and large businesses.
To give you a better feel for Sitka demographics for small businesses, we have tabulated the small business sizes, based on number of employees, for business in Sitka.
| Business Size | # of
Businesses |
| 1-4 Employees |
790 |
| 5-9 Employees |
222 |
| 10-19 Employees |
138 |
| 20-49 Employees |
36 |
| 50-99 Employees |
24 |
| 100-249 Employees |
6 |
| 250-499 Employees |
3 |
| 500-999 Employees |
0 |
| 1000+ Employees |
0 |
| All Sitka Businesses |
1219 |
As a new Sitka entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Sitka 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 |
| Ambulance Services |
1 |
| Art Dealers |
3 |
| Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores |
3 |
| Barber Shops |
1 |
| Beauty Salons |
5 |
| Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores |
2 |
| Boat Building |
3 |
| Boat Dealers |
3 |
| Book Stores |
3 |
| Business Associations |
1 |
| Canvas and Related Product Mills |
1 |
| Caterers |
1 |
| Child and Youth Services |
1 |
| Child Day Care Services |
4 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
5 |
| Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners |
1 |
| Collection Agencies |
1 |
| Computer and Software Stores |
1 |
| Convention and Visitors Bureaus |
1 |
| Couriers |
3 |
| Credit Unions |
1 |
| Document Preparation Services |
1 |
| Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) |
4 |
| Drywall and Insulation Contractors |
2 |
| Educational Support Services |
1 |
| Electrical Contractors |
4 |
| Exterminating and Pest Control Services |
1 |
| Family Clothing Stores |
2 |
| Fine Arts Schools |
1 |
| Finfish Fishing |
26 |
| Finish Carpentry Contractors |
2 |
| Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers |
5 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers |
2 |
| Flooring Contractors |
2 |
| Florists |
2 |
| Food Service Contractors |
3 |
| Framing Contractors |
1 |
| Fresh and Frozen Seafood Processing |
6 |
| Full-Service Restaurants |
8 |
| Furniture Stores |
1 |
| General Automotive Repair |
4 |
| General Freight Trucking, Local |
1 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
2 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores |
8 |
| Golf Courses and Country Clubs |
2 |
| Hardware Stores |
1 |
| Heating Oil Dealers |
2 |
| Historical Sites |
1 |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores |
2 |
| Home Health Care Services |
2 |
| Household Appliance Stores |
1 |
| Inland Water Freight Transportation |
1 |
| Inland Water Passenger Transportation |
1 |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
5 |
| Internet Service Providers |
2 |
| Investment Advice |
1 |
| Janitorial Services |
3 |
| Jewelry Stores |
1 |
| Junior Colleges |
1 |
| Land Subdivision |
1 |
| Landscaping Services |
2 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants |
7 |
| Marinas |
1 |
| Men's Clothing Stores |
1 |
| Mobile Food Services |
1 |
| Museums |
1 |
| Navigational Services to Shipping |
1 |
| New Housing Operative Builders |
2 |
| Newspaper Publishers |
1 |
| Office Administrative Services |
1 |
| Office Supplies and Stationery Stores |
1 |
| Offices of Certified Public Accountants |
1 |
| Offices of Chiropractors |
4 |
| Offices of Dentists |
4 |
| Offices of Lawyers |
3 |
| Offices of Optometrists |
1 |
| Offices of Real Estate Appraisers |
1 |
| Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
4 |
| Passenger Car Rental |
1 |
| Pet and Pet Supplies Stores |
1 |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores |
2 |
| Radio Stations |
2 |
| Remediation Services |
2 |
| Residential Remodelers |
3 |
| Roofing Contractors |
1 |
| Savings Institutions |
1 |
| Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation |
1 |
| School and Employee Bus Transportation |
2 |
| Securities Brokerage |
1 |
| Shellfish Fishing |
8 |
| Site Preparation Contractors |
4 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars |
5 |
| Solid Waste Collection |
1 |
| Sporting Goods Stores |
4 |
| Sports and Recreation Instruction |
2 |
| Taxi Service |
1 |
| Telecommunications Resellers |
1 |
| Television Broadcasting |
1 |
| Temporary Shelters |
1 |
| Tile and Terrazzo Contractors |
1 |
| Tour Operators |
4 |
| Used Car Dealers |
2 |
| Veterinary Services |
1 |
| Vocational Rehabilitation Services |
1 |
| Wired Telecommunications Carriers |
1 |
| Women's Clothing Stores |
3 |
| Zoos and Botanical Gardens |
1 |
Don't Skip the Business Plan
Creating a business plan is essential in maximizing the prospects of your new company. In effect, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Not having a business plan
Before you start writing a business plan, we suggest you skim Reasons to Write a Business Plan. A great resource for business planning assistance is the face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in Alaska.
How to Sell
Mastering the art of selling is essential if you want your new Sitka business to do well.
So what does it take to bring in more prospects and close more business? The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.
Compensating Sales People 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.
Improving Your Entrepreneurial Skillset
The best business owners recognize that they don't know everything.
As an entrepreneur who lives in Sitka, Alaska, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Alaska universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also beneficial to see if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Sitka entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.
Next Steps
Most new Sitka businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.
If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.
We are here to help Sitka 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 Sitka, Alaska
Here are more links that we believe will help you be successful in starting a business in Sitka.
- Resources for Sitka, Alaska Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Sitka entrepreneurs.
- Alaska Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Alaska.
- Alaska Small Business Development Center - The Alaska Small Business Development Center, which is hosted by the University of Alaska and funded in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration, has assisted businesses by providing free, confidential technical business assistance and low-cost business training in Alaska for twenty years.
- Sitka, Alaska Newspaper Ad Rates - This is a nearly comprehensive list of advertising rates for Sitka, Alaska newspapers, including ad costs for newspapers serving the Sitka area.
- Sitka, Alaska Radio Advertising Prices - To help you in your marketing efforts, we've gathered radio advertising rates for Sitka, Alaska area radio stations.
Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in Alaska
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