New York Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in Staten Island, New York

Are you starting a business in Staten Island, New York? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in Staten Island.

Do You Have What It Takes?

Before quitting your day job, take inventory of your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.

While entrepreneurship has become a popular career choice, we recommend you do the following before you take the plunge:

  • Speak with other entrepreneurs in Staten Island. Get their candid feedback on what it takes to start a successful business.
  • You should read Starting a Company. It's a good read for those who are thinking about becoming an entrepreneur.
  • Talk it over with a close friend or partner. 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 Business Are You Starting?

There are many businesses that you can start. How do you know which type of business is right for you? You might get some good ideas about what kind of business to start by reading Good 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 Starting a Dance Club guide or our Starting a Tatoo Parlor guide.

Don't forget that you are starting a business in Staten Island. The business you want to start may already be well-represented in Staten Island. Don't forget to review Staten Island demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.

Staten Island, New York Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
15756
5-9 Employees
3881
10-19 Employees
2508
20-49 Employees
1629
50-99 Employees
438
100-249 Employees
210
250-499 Employees
78
500-999 Employees
24
1000+ Employees
9
All Staten Island Businesses
24533

As a new Staten Island entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Staten Island 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
5
Amusement and Theme Parks
1
Amusement Arcades
3
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
12
Architectural Services
28
Art Dealers
4
Automatic Vending Machine Manufacturing
1
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
6
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
5
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
30
Automotive Transmission Repair
6
Baked Goods Stores
16
Barber Shops
16
Beauty Salons
145
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers
2
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
32
Boat Building
1
Boat Dealers
5
Book Publishers
1
Book Stores
9
Bowling Centers
2
Business and Secretarial Schools
1
Business Associations
4
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Cafeterias
5
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
4
Car Washes
24
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
12
Cemeteries and Crematories
8
Charter Bus Industry
7
Child and Youth Services
14
Child Day Care Services
79
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
13
Civic and Social Organizations
9
Claims Adjusting
6
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
35
Collection Agencies
4
Commercial Bakeries
4
Commercial Flexographic Printing
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
8
Commercial Photography
6
Commercial Screen Printing
2
Commodity Contracts Dealing
2
Community Food Services
1
Computer and Software Stores
13
Computer Facilities Management Services
9
Computer Systems Design Services
56
Computer Training
1
Concrete Pipe Manufacturing
1
Confectionery Merchant Wholesalers
6
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining
1
Consumer Lending
4
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
2
Convenience Stores
50
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
2
Copper Rolling, Drawing, and Extruding
1
Couriers
5
Court Reporting and Stenotype Services
4
Credit Card Issuing
1
Credit Unions
2
Curtain and Drapery Mills
1
Custom Compounding of Purchased Resins
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
61
Dental Laboratories
11
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
11
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
5
Digital Printing
1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
6
Direct Mail Advertising
3
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
12
Discount Department Stores
6
Display Advertising
4
Document Preparation Services
7
Drafting Services
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
45
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
23
Educational Support Services
8
Electrical Contractors
136
Electronic Auctions
3
Electronic Shopping
10
Elementary and Secondary Schools
53
Emergency and Other Relief Services
1
Employment Placement Agencies
11
Engineering Services
27
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
8
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
27
Facilities Support Services
4
Family Clothing Stores
24
Family Planning Centers
1
Fine Arts Schools
18
Finish Carpentry Contractors
61
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
8
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
35
Floor Covering Stores
13
Flooring Contractors
18
Florists
29
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
9
Food Product Machinery Manufacturing
1
Footwear and Leather Goods Repair
1
Formal Wear and Costume Rental
2
Framing Contractors
10
Freight Transportation Arrangement
27
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
5
Full-Service Restaurants
243
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
18
Furniture Stores
34
General Automotive Repair
98
General Freight Trucking, Local
48
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
4
General Rental Centers
4
General Warehousing and Storage
4
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
40
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
5
Grantmaking Foundations
6
Graphic Design Services
8
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
3
Hardware Stores
14
Heating Oil Dealers
7
HMO Medical Centers
1
Home Centers
6
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
3
Home Health Care Services
27
Home Health Equipment Rental
1
Homes for the Elderly
2
Household Appliance Stores
10
Human Rights Organizations
2
Industrial Design Services
1
Industrial Launderers
6
Inland Water Freight Transportation
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
91
Interior Design Services
9
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
1
Internet Service Providers
1
Investment Advice
21
Iron and Steel Forging
1
Janitorial Services
39
Jewelry (except Costume) Manufacturing
2
Jewelry Stores
43
Kidney Dialysis Centers
3
Land Subdivision
14
Landscaping Services
94
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
7
Libraries and Archives
12
Limited-Service Restaurants
246
Limousine Service
25
Linen Supply
3
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
7
Luggage and Leather Goods Stores
2
Machine Shops
3
Mail-Order Houses
8
Manifold Business Forms Printing
1
Marinas
6
Marine Cargo Handling
1
Marketing Consulting Services
13
Meat Markets
12
Meat Processed from Carcasses
1
Media Representatives
1
Medical Laboratories
4
Men's and Boys' Neckwear Manufacturing
1
Men's Clothing Stores
11
Miscellaneous Intermediation
2
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
24
Motion Picture and Video Production
9
Motor Vehicle Towing
5
Motorcycle Dealers
3
Museums
11
Music Publishers
1
Musical Groups and Artists
7
Musical Instrument Manufacturing
2
Nail Salons
91
Natural Gas Distribution
5
Navigational Services to Shipping
9
New Car Dealers
16
New Housing Operative Builders
21
News Dealers and Newsstands
10
Newspaper Publishers
4
Nonresidential Property Managers
6
Nursing Care Facilities
12
Office Administrative Services
34
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
8
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
7
Offices of Bank Holding Companies
1
Offices of Chiropractors
50
Offices of Dentists
192
Offices of Lawyers
218
Offices of Optometrists
11
Offices of Other Holding Companies
2
Offices of Podiatrists
22
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
12
Ophthalmic Goods Merchant Wholesalers
1
Optical Goods Stores
25
Packaging and Labeling Services
3
Packing and Crating
2
Paging
2
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
6
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
52
Parking Lots and Garages
7
Passenger Car Leasing
2
Passenger Car Rental
1
Payroll Services
6
Periodical Publishers
1
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
11
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
6
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
71
Photography Studios, Portrait
18
Political Organizations
1
Portfolio Management
8
Private Mail Centers
4
Professional Employer Organizations
1
Professional Organizations
5
Quick Printing
5
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
4
Real Estate Credit
27
Remediation Services
4
Repossession Services
2
Residential Property Managers
27
Residential Remodelers
135
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
9
Roofing Contractors
30
Rooming and Boarding Houses
2
Sales Financing
1
Satellite Telecommunications
3
Savings Institutions
69
Schiffli Machine Embroidery
1
Secondary Market Financing
1
Securities and Commodity Exchanges
1
Securities Brokerage
25
Security Guards and Patrol Services
27
Septic Tank and Related Services
6
Sewage Treatment Facilities
1
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
1
Shoe Stores
39
Siding Contractors
6
Sign Manufacturing
3
Site Preparation Contractors
25
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
61
Software Publishers
1
Solid Waste Collection
12
Special Needs Transportation
5
Spice and Extract Manufacturing
1
Sporting Goods Stores
16
Sports and Recreation Instruction
13
Tax Preparation Services
23
Taxi Service
28
Telecommunications Resellers
3
Telephone Apparatus Manufacturing
1
Temporary Help Services
6
Temporary Shelters
4
Testing Laboratories
1
Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters
2
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
23
Tire and Tube Merchant Wholesalers
2
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
44
Tobacco Stores
6
Toilet Preparation Manufacturing
1
Tour Operators
5
Translation and Interpretation Services
1
Travel Agencies
24
Truss Manufacturing
2
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
15
Used Merchandise Stores
9
Vending Machine Operators
7
Veterinary Services
21
Video Tape and Disc Rental
10
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
6
Voluntary Health Organizations
3
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
32
Window Treatment Stores
7
Wineries
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
39
Women's Clothing Stores
52
Wood Office Furniture Manufacturing
1
Wood Window and Door Manufacturing
2

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Staten Island Business?

An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in New York. Follow that link and you can review several good businesses for sale in Staten Island.

If you are serious about buying a business, you may want to read this article: Hold Harmless Agreements When Buying Businesses.

Don't Skip the Business Plan

Having a business plan is critical in maximizing the prospects of your new company. In effect, a business plan is a written description of the future you envision for your business. Starting a business without a business plan makes you more prone to becoming a business failure statistic.

To learn more about business plans, read Business Plan Mistakes. You can also get free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in New York.

Improving Your Entrepreneurial Skillset

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

Given that you are starting a business in Staten Island, New York, you should check out some of the many programs available at nearby New York universities, colleges and community colleges. You should also check if there are any networking groups or organizations in which Staten Island entrepreneurs get together to network and trade their business experiences.

Now It's Up To You

You have a dream -- starting a business in Staten Island. To achieve your dream, you have to persevere, even when the odds are against you.

If you choose the right business and love what you do, you will greatly increase your odds of success.

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Staten Island and throughout the United States . 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 Staten Island, New York

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

More Business Startup Guides for New York

Starting a Business in Stamford
Starting a Business in Stone Ridge

Browse All Business Startup Guides for New York
Starting a Business Guides for Other States

 

 

Share this article


Additional Resources for Entrepreneurs

Lists of Venture Capital and Private Equity Firms

Franchise Opportunities

Contributors

Business Glossary