Florida Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Okeechobee, Florida

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

Do You Have What It Takes?

An entrepreneurial life is hard work, and can be orders of magnitude more strenuous than working as an employee. Are you sure you have the stamina and skills to succeed on your own?

Here are three things we recommend you do before you fully commit to starting a new business of your own.

  • Talk to other entrepreneurs in Okeechobee. Get their candid feedback on what it takes to start a successful business.
  • We recommend reading Why Small Businesses Fail. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
  • Get feedback from somebody whom you trust. A support network of family and friends can be a great sounding board for good advice before you decide for sure to go into business.

What Type of Business Should You Start?

An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. If you are struggling with what type of business to start, read Finding Your Niche in Life.

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 How to Start an Antique Watch Dealership guide or our How to Start a Crates & Crating Industrial Business guide.

Always keep in mind that your new startup will be located in Okeechobee. The business you want to start may already be well-represented in Okeechobee. Study Okeechobee demographics and do a competitive analysis as part of your startup planning process.

Okeechobee, Florida Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
1404
5-9 Employees
491
10-19 Employees
285
20-49 Employees
141
50-99 Employees
45
100-249 Employees
21
250-499 Employees
9
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
0
All Okeechobee Businesses
2396

As a new Okeechobee entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Okeechobee 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
3
Architectural Services
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
10
Automotive Transmission Repair
1
Baked Goods Stores
1
Beauty Salons
5
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
6
Boat Dealers
3
Business Associations
1
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Cafeterias
1
Car Washes
1
Charter Bus Industry
1
Child Day Care Services
10
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
2
Commercial Photography
1
Commercial Screen Printing
1
Computer and Software Stores
2
Confectionery Merchant Wholesalers
1
Consumer Lending
2
Convenience Stores
10
Custom Computer Programming Services
2
Dental Laboratories
1
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
2
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
2
Display Advertising
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
7
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
5
Electrical Contractors
13
Elementary and Secondary Schools
1
Emergency and Other Relief Services
2
Engineering Services
1
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
2
Family Clothing Stores
3
Family Planning Centers
2
Farm Product Warehousing and Storage
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
3
Fertilizer (Mixing Only) Manufacturing
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
6
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
1
Floor Covering Stores
1
Flooring Contractors
4
Food Service Contractors
5
Footwear and Leather Goods Repair
1
Footwear Merchant Wholesalers
1
Framing Contractors
2
Freight Transportation Arrangement
1
Full-Service Restaurants
19
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
2
Furniture Stores
4
General Automotive Repair
12
General Freight Trucking, Local
5
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
3
Glass and Glazing Contractors
1
Home Health Equipment Rental
2
Household Appliance Stores
1
Industrial Design Services
1
Industrial Launderers
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
11
Interior Design Services
1
Janitorial Services
4
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Land Subdivision
3
Landscape Architectural Services
1
Landscaping Services
12
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
5
Limited-Service Restaurants
19
Machine Shops
4
Marinas
2
Masonry Contractors
2
Medical Laboratories
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
2
New Car Dealers
3
New Housing Operative Builders
3
Nonresidential Property Managers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
1
Office Administrative Services
2
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
3
Offices of Chiropractors
4
Offices of Dentists
8
Offices of Optometrists
4
Offices of Podiatrists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
4
Optical Goods Stores
1
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
2
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
2
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
3
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
5
Photography Studios, Portrait
1
Professional Employer Organizations
1
Professional Organizations
1
Radio Networks
2
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
1
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
8
Remediation Services
2
Residential Property Managers
1
Residential Remodelers
4
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
3
Roofing Contractors
4
Savings Institutions
1
Septic Tank and Related Services
1
Shoe Stores
1
Siding Contractors
4
Site Preparation Contractors
11
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
1
Software Publishers
1
Solid Waste Collection
4
Sporting Goods Stores
5
Tax Preparation Services
3
Temporary Help Services
2
Testing Laboratories
1
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
1
Tire Dealers
1
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
2
Used Car Dealers
3
Used Merchandise Stores
4
Vending Machine Operators
1
Veterinary Services
2
Video Tape and Disc Rental
3
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
2
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
4
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
3
Women's Clothing Stores
1

Should You Franchise?

Examine a list of Okeechobee businesses and it's apparent that franchising has become a very popular way to start a business. But is franchising the right option for you?

We highly recommend you consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as Questions to Ask Franchisors. Get a thorough education on franchising by browsing all of our Articles on Franchising.

You can find franchise opportunities by browsing our Franchise Opportunities Directory.

Sample franchise opportunities include ShockPR and Chem-Dry Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Juice Bar Franchises / Smoothie Franchises and Pizza Franchises.

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

Getting Money to Start a Business

Finding the funds to fuel the growth of your Okeechobee business will be harder than you might expect. If you don't have a rich uncle to fund you, you'll need to be creative in how you approach your fundraising efforts.

To learn about raising money, we recommend you read the fundraising articles on our site, such as 504 Loans.

For Okeechobee entrepreneurs on the hunt for startup funding, check out our List of Florida Angel Investors and our List of Florida Venture Capital Firms.

The Art of Selling

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

So what does it take to bring in more prospects and close more business? Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.

Writing Great Proposals 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.

Increase Your Entrepreneurial Knowledge

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

Given that you are starting a business in Okeechobee, Florida, you will want to take advantage of the many programs available at nearby Florida universities, colleges and community colleges. We also suggest you look into networking organizations for Okeechobee entrepreneurs.

Now It's Up To You

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

We are here to help Okeechobee businesses to be successful. We want to be there for you to answer your business questions, whether you are a new Okeechobee 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 Okeechobee, Florida

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

  • Resources for Okeechobee, Florida Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Okeechobee entrepreneurs.
  • Florida Entrepreneurial Resources - We've gathered state-level entrepreneurial resources to help new entrepreneurs who are based in Florida.
  • Florida Small Business Development Center - The Florida Small Business Development Center Network (FSBDCN) is a statewide economic development partnership between higher education and other stakeholder organizations dedicated to providing entrepreneurs and established businesses with the assistance needed to start, grow and succeed, contributing to the Florida economy.

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