California Business Startup Guides

Opening a Business in Norwalk, California

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

What Business Are You Starting?

An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. You might get some good ideas about what kind of business to start by reading Free Business Ideas.

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 Aluminum Products Wholesale & Manufacturer guide or our Opening a Credit Insurance Business guide.

Don't forget that you are opening your new business in Norwalk. The business you want to start may already be well-represented in Norwalk. Only by spending some time analyzing Norwalk demographics can you decide if there will be strong demand for your business idea.

Norwalk, California Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
9175
5-9 Employees
2835
10-19 Employees
2070
20-49 Employees
1545
50-99 Employees
510
100-249 Employees
285
250-499 Employees
75
500-999 Employees
30
1000+ Employees
30
All Norwalk Businesses
16555

As a new Norwalk entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Norwalk 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
Amusement Arcades
1
Animal (except Poultry) Slaughtering
1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
1
Art Dealers
1
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
6
Baked Goods Stores
1
Beauty Salons
11
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers
1
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
9
Book Stores
2
Bowling Centers
1
Broadwoven Fabric Finishing Mills
1
Business Associations
2
Car Washes
2
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Caterers
6
Child and Youth Services
2
Child Day Care Services
12
Civic and Social Organizations
9
Collection Agencies
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
2
Commercial Screen Printing
2
Computer and Software Stores
2
Computer Systems Design Services
5
Construction Machinery Manufacturing
1
Consumer Lending
2
Convenience Stores
3
Credit Unions
3
Custom Computer Programming Services
2
Dental Laboratories
4
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
1
Direct Mail Advertising
1
Discount Department Stores
3
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
6
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
2
Educational Support Services
1
Electric Power Distribution
1
Electrical Contractors
10
Elementary and Secondary Schools
7
Employment Placement Agencies
2
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
3
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
3
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
4
Flooring Contractors
3
Florists
4
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
2
Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
2
Fruit and Vegetable Canning
1
Full-Service Restaurants
24
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
2
Furniture Stores
4
General Automotive Repair
20
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
2
General Warehousing and Storage
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
3
Grantmaking Foundations
1
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Hardware Stores
3
Home Centers
1
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
1
Home Health Care Services
3
Homes for the Elderly
6
Household Appliance Stores
1
Industrial Launderers
1
Industrial Valve Manufacturing
1
International Trade Financing
1
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
1
Internet Service Providers
1
Investment Advice
2
Janitorial Services
6
Jewelry Stores
6
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Language Schools
2
Limited-Service Restaurants
72
Limousine Service
1
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
4
Locksmiths
1
Machine Shops
3
Mail-Order Houses
1
Masonry Contractors
1
Meat Markets
2
Metal Stamping
2
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
3
Motor Vehicle Towing
2
Motorcycle Dealers
1
Nail Salons
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
9
Office Administrative Services
10
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
5
Offices of Chiropractors
3
Offices of Lawyers
18
Offices of Optometrists
7
Offices of Podiatrists
2
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Packaging Machinery Manufacturing
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
2
Parking Lots and Garages
2
Periodical Publishers
1
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
6
Photography Studios, Portrait
3
Pipeline Transportation of Crude Oil
1
Professional Employer Organizations
1
Quick Printing
3
Real Estate Credit
4
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
2
Remediation Services
1
Residential Property Managers
4
Residential Remodelers
6
Retail Bakeries
5
Roofing Contractors
5
Sales Financing
2
Savings Institutions
4
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Securities Brokerage
1
Security Guards and Patrol Services
3
Shoe Stores
6
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
22
Soft Drink Manufacturing
1
Special Needs Transportation
1
Sporting Goods Stores
6
Spring (Light Gauge) Manufacturing
1
Steel Foundries (except Investment)
1
Tax Preparation Services
8
Temporary Help Services
2
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
1
Tire and Tube Merchant Wholesalers
1
Tire Dealers
5
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
2
Tobacco Stores
1
Tortilla Manufacturing
2
Used Car Dealers
1
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Used Merchandise Stores
3
Vending Machine Operators
1
Veterinary Services
2
Video Tape and Disc Rental
5
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
3
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
3
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
8
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
5
Women's Clothing Stores
2

Have You Considered Franchising?

Examine a list of Norwalk businesses and you'll see that franchises make up a large percentage of local businesses. But is franchising the right option for you?

Our advice is to evaluate the possibility of your buying a franchise opportunity. We have many articles on franchises, such as Understanding Franchise Contracts. Become a franchising expert of sorts by reading more of our Articles on Franchising.

To learn about specific franchise opportunities, check out our Franchise Directory.

Sample franchise opportunities include N Time Family Salons and Cruise Holidays. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Embroidery Franchises and Pet Franchises.

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

Naming the Company

Making the right decision when choosing a company name is very important. There are many decisions you'll make now that you can change later, but changing a company name years down the road is not very easy. So, choose a good company name at the outset.

Pick a company name that isn't too generic. If you do a search engine search for your proposed name and a billion results come up, you may want to reconsider the name. It's much easier to come up in the search engines when your name is fairly unique.

For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Branding Advice.

There's one other important factor when naming a business. Since you are planning on starting a business in Norwalk, it's critical that you ensure that no other California company is using the business name you want to use.

Do You Need a Business Plan?

Creating a business plan is critical in maximizing the prospects of your new company. Indeed, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Not having a business plan

If writing a business plan is on your to-do list, be sure to read Business Plan Contests. You should also take advantage of face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in California.

Promoting Your New Startup

To rise above the crowd in Norwalk and build your business, you'll need to have a good marketing plan.

There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Point-of-Sale Displays 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.

Ramping Up Sales

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

Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.

Hiring Good Sales People is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.

Moving Forward

As an entrepreneur in Norwalk, 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.

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

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

More Business Startup Guides for California

Starting a Business in Northridge
Starting a Business in Novato

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