California Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Eureka, California

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

Are You Ready for Entrepreneurship?

Running your own business is hard work, much harder than working as an employee. Are you sure you have the stamina and skills to succeed on your own?

Because entrepreneurship is not for everyone, we recommend you do the following to help you assess whether you should move forward with starting a business:

  • Talk to other entrepreneurs in Eureka. Listen closely to their experiences and see if you think you too can be successful.
  • We recommend reading Should You Become an Entrepreneur?. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
  • Have a candid conversation with friends and family. 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.

Eureka, California Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
21141
5-9 Employees
9828
10-19 Employees
6453
20-49 Employees
3969
50-99 Employees
999
100-249 Employees
324
250-499 Employees
54
500-999 Employees
27
1000+ Employees
0
All Eureka Businesses
42795

As a new Eureka entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Eureka 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
Amusement Arcades
1
Animal (except Poultry) Slaughtering
1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
2
Architectural Services
4
Armored Car Services
1
Art Dealers
3
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
3
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
8
Automotive Transmission Repair
3
Baked Goods Stores
2
Beauty Salons
12
Bed-and-Breakfast Inns
1
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
4
Blood and Organ Banks
1
Boat Dealers
2
Book Stores
3
Bowling Centers
1
Business Associations
8
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
1
Car Washes
5
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
3
Caterers
4
Cemeteries and Crematories
2
Charter Bus Industry
1
Child and Youth Services
9
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
1
Civic and Social Organizations
14
Claims Adjusting
3
Clothing Accessories Stores
3
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
3
Collection Agencies
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
2
Commercial Screen Printing
1
Community Food Services
3
Computer and Software Stores
4
Computer Systems Design Services
3
Confectionery and Nut Stores
1
Consumer Lending
2
Convenience Stores
7
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Couriers
3
Court Reporting and Stenotype Services
2
Credit Unions
7
Custom Computer Programming Services
4
Cut Stock, Resawing Lumber, and Planing
2
Dental Laboratories
3
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
1
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
3
Discount Department Stores
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
11
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
5
Electric Power Distribution
1
Electrical Contractors
19
Elementary and Secondary Schools
2
Emergency and Other Relief Services
1
Engineering Services
10
Environmental Consulting Services
1
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
2
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
5
Facilities Support Services
1
Family Planning Centers
1
Farm Labor Contractors and Crew Leaders
1
Fine Arts Schools
3
Finfish Fishing
5
Finish Carpentry Contractors
4
Fish and Seafood Markets
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
10
Flooring Contractors
6
Florists
4
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
3
Formal Wear and Costume Rental
1
Fresh and Frozen Seafood Processing
1
Full-Service Restaurants
52
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
3
General Automotive Repair
19
General Freight Trucking, Local
3
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
14
Glass and Glazing Contractors
2
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Graphic Design Services
3
Hardware Stores
6
Historical Sites
1
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
7
Home Centers
2
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
1
Home Health Care Services
5
Homes for the Elderly
8
Household Appliance Stores
3
Human Rights Organizations
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
29
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
1
Interurban and Rural Bus Transportation
1
Investigation Services
2
Janitorial Services
5
Jewelry Stores
10
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Landscaping Services
9
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
6
Limited-Service Restaurants
30
Linen Supply
1
Locksmiths
3
Logging
4
Machine Shops
2
Mail-Order Houses
3
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
1
Marinas
1
Marking Device Manufacturing
1
Medical Laboratories
2
Men's Clothing Stores
1
Miscellaneous Intermediation
1
Mobile Food Services
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
4
Motion Picture and Video Production
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
1
Museums
4
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
1
Nail Salons
1
Navigational Services to Shipping
1
New Car Dealers
10
New Housing Operative Builders
2
Newspaper Publishers
2
Nursing Care Facilities
2
Office Administrative Services
2
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
2
Office Machinery Manufacturing
1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
2
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
17
Offices of Chiropractors
8
Offices of Lawyers
60
Offices of Optometrists
10
Offices of Podiatrists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
6
Optical Goods Stores
5
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
5
Paging
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
11
Passenger Car Rental
2
Periodical Publishers
1
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
4
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
2
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
10
Portfolio Management
1
Private Mail Centers
1
Professional Organizations
5
Quick Printing
1
Racetracks
1
Radio Networks
1
Radio Stations
2
Real Estate Credit
7
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
3
Remediation Services
1
Repossession Services
1
Residential Property Managers
9
Residential Remodelers
19
Retail Bakeries
3
Roofing Contractors
10
Sales Financing
1
Savings Institutions
1
Sawmills
1
Securities Brokerage
10
Security Guards and Patrol Services
5
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
1
Sign Manufacturing
1
Site Preparation Contractors
5
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
14
Solid Waste Collection
1
Solid Waste Landfill
1
Sporting Goods Stores
6
Sports and Recreation Instruction
2
Tax Preparation Services
6
Telecommunications Resellers
1
Telemarketing Bureaus
1
Telephone Answering Services
1
Television Broadcasting
4
Temporary Help Services
3
Temporary Shelters
3
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
4
Tire Dealers
4
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
1
Tortilla Manufacturing
1
Used Car Dealers
5
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Used Merchandise Stores
10
Veterinary Services
4
Video Tape and Disc Rental
4
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
1
Voluntary Health Organizations
2
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
1
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
2
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
3
Women's Clothing Stores
7

What About Franchising Opportunities?

As you drive around Eureka, you'll see that franchises make up a large percentage of local businesses. Would going with a franchise be a good idea for you?

Most business experts recommend that you consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as How to Franchise. Get a thorough education on franchising by browsing all of our Articles on Franchising.

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

Representative franchise opportunities include Au Bon Pain and Grins 2 Go. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Cartridge Recycling Franchises and Child Entertainment Franchises.

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

Marketing Your New Venture

To grow your Eureka business, you need a great marketing plan.

There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Marketing Basics is an article that will stimulate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. That's just a sampling of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

Bring in Revenues

Do you know how to sell? In order to attract customers to your new Eureka business, you need to focus on sales.

Why should customers buy from you instead of buying from competitors? Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.

Cold Call Selling offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Abilities

Good business owners recognize that they don't know everything.

As an entrepreneur who lives in Eureka, California, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby California universities, colleges and community colleges. It's also worthwhile to see if there are any networking organizations for Eureka entrepreneurs.

Never Give Up

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

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

This site is all about helping entrepreneurs in Eureka and elsewhere to achieve real success. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Eureka 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 Eureka, California

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

More Startup Articles for California Cities

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Starting a Business in Exeter

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

 

 

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