Ohio Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Beachwood, Ohio

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

Are You Ready for Life as an Owner?

Most new businesses 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.

Before you move forward with starting a business, be sure to do these three things:

  • Grab a meal or cofee with other entrepreneurs in Beachwood. Listen closely to their experiences and see if you think you too can be successful.
  • Take a look at Business Failure. It's a short article but it's a good reality check for those are about to jump into the world of entrepreneurship.
  • Involve a spouse, family member or trusted friend in the decision. Ask them directly: Do I have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Listen carefully to their answer, as they presumably know your strengths and weaknesses.

What Business Are You Starting?

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 Good 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 Opening a Chauffeur Business guide or our How to Start a Dental Equipment & Supplies Business guide.

Remember that you are opening your new business in Beachwood. Some businesses will do better in Beachwood than others. Study Beachwood demographics and do a competitive analysis as part of your startup planning process.

Beachwood, Ohio Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
6834
5-9 Employees
2470
10-19 Employees
1578
20-49 Employees
1098
50-99 Employees
414
100-249 Employees
288
250-499 Employees
72
500-999 Employees
24
1000+ Employees
12
All Beachwood Businesses
12790

As a new Beachwood entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Beachwood 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
2
Architectural Services
12
Art Dealers
2
Automobile Driving Schools
1
Baked Goods Stores
2
Barber Shops
1
Beauty Salons
29
Bituminous Coal Underground Mining
1
Blood and Organ Banks
1
Book Publishers
1
Book Stores
3
Bowling Centers
1
Broadwoven Fabric Mills
1
Business Associations
1
Car Washes
2
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Caterers
3
Cemeteries and Crematories
2
Child and Youth Services
3
Child Day Care Services
10
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
6
Claims Adjusting
2
Clothing Accessories Stores
4
Collection Agencies
9
Commercial Flexographic Printing
2
Commercial Lithographic Printing
2
Community Food Services
1
Computer and Software Stores
3
Computer Systems Design Services
19
Computer Training
1
Confectionery and Nut Stores
3
Confectionery Merchant Wholesalers
1
Consumer Lending
1
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
2
Convenience Stores
2
Couriers
3
Credit Card Issuing
1
Credit Unions
2
Curtain and Drapery Mills
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
32
Dental Laboratories
2
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
8
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
3
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
7
Directory and Mailing List Publishers
1
Display Advertising
1
Document Preparation Services
1
Drafting Services
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
3
Electrical Contractors
5
Electronic Shopping
2
Elementary and Secondary Schools
6
Employment Placement Agencies
7
Engineering Services
12
Environmental Consulting Services
3
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
2
Family Planning Centers
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fine Arts Schools
4
Finish Carpentry Contractors
3
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
14
Floor Covering Stores
2
Flooring Contractors
1
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
1
Food Service Contractors
9
Formal Wear and Costume Rental
2
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
1
Full-Service Restaurants
36
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
1
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
10
General Automotive Repair
1
General Freight Trucking, Local
3
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
1
General Warehousing and Storage
3
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
13
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
4
Graphic Design Services
3
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
2
Hardware Stores
1
HMO Medical Centers
1
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
4
Home Health Care Services
11
Human Rights Organizations
1
Inland Water Passenger Transportation
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
75
Interior Design Services
8
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
1
Internet Service Providers
2
Investment Advice
24
Janitorial Services
10
Kidney Dialysis Centers
2
Land Subdivision
5
Landscape Architectural Services
2
Landscaping Services
7
Limited-Service Restaurants
33
Luggage and Leather Goods Stores
2
Mail-Order Houses
3
Marketing Consulting Services
15
Meat Markets
1
Media Buying Agencies
4
Media Representatives
3
Medical Laboratories
1
Men's Clothing Stores
7
Miscellaneous Intermediation
5
Musical Groups and Artists
2
Nail Salons
3
Natural Gas Distribution
1
New Car Dealers
4
New Housing Operative Builders
4
Newspaper Publishers
4
Nonresidential Property Managers
25
Office Administrative Services
19
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
3
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
66
Offices of Chiropractors
4
Offices of Dentists
55
Offices of Lawyers
87
Offices of Other Holding Companies
6
Offices of Podiatrists
4
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
5
Optical Goods Stores
7
Paint and Coating Manufacturing
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
5
Passenger Car Leasing
3
Passenger Car Rental
1
Payroll Services
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
10
Photography Studios, Portrait
3
Precision Turned Product Manufacturing
1
Private Mail Centers
1
Professional Employer Organizations
4
Professional Organizations
2
Public Relations Agencies
6
Quick Printing
2
Real Estate Credit
14
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
1
Remediation Services
1
Residential Property Managers
41
Residential Remodelers
8
Roofing Contractors
3
Sales Financing
4
Satellite Telecommunications
1
Securities Brokerage
20
Security Guards and Patrol Services
3
Shoe Stores
12
Siding Contractors
1
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
12
Software Publishers
3
Special Needs Transportation
1
Sports and Recreation Instruction
3
Tax Preparation Services
3
Telemarketing Bureaus
1
Temporary Help Services
19
Testing Laboratories
1
Tire Dealers
2
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
12
Tour Operators
1
Travel Agencies
10
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Veterinary Services
2
Video Tape and Disc Rental
2
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
2
Voluntary Health Organizations
5
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
29
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
2
Women's Clothing Stores
30
Wood Preservation
1

Should You Franchise?

As you drive around Beachwood, you may be surprised to see how many franchises there are in the area. Evidently, there must be some significant advantages to purchasing a franchise.

Our recommendation is that you consider franchising as an option. On our site, you can read many articles about franchising, such as Protecting Your Franchise Territory. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.

A comprehensive list of franchisors is available via our List of Franchise Opportunities.

Sample franchise opportunities include The Cure Water Damage and Personal Training Professionals. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Wine Franchises and Framing Store Franchises.

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

Naming the Company

A good company name can give a big boost to a new startup. It might seem like an easy thing to do, but there are many things to consider when naming a business.

Companies like Starbucks, Apple, Target, Microsoft and Intuit all have strong company names that are easy to remember and have become well-loved brands. Wouldn't it be nice if your new company name got on a similar track?

To get up to speed on what makes for a good company name, we encourage you to read this useful article: Naming a Business.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are planning on starting a business in Beachwood, it's imperative that you check now that no other Ohio company is using the business name you want to use.

Promoting Your New Company

To grow your Beachwood business, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your succeeding.

We have some helpful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Typical Direct Mail Response Rates 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.

Never Give Up

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

We are here to help Beachwood 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 Beachwood, Ohio

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

  • Resources for Beachwood, Ohio Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Beachwood entrepreneurs.
  • Ohio Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Ohio.
  • Ohio Small Business Development Center - Whether you're starting your business, expanding your business, or just looking to stay in business, the Small Business Development Centers of Ohio (SBDCs of Ohio) can help with professional guidance by connecting you with research, financing sources, and training opportunities.

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