Texas Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Sugar Land, Texas

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

Do You Have Entrepreneurial Drive and Passion?

Before announcing to the world that you are going to start your own business, take inventory of your entrepreneurial instincts and capabilities.

With so much at stake when you start a business, we strongly recommend you do the following before you proceed:

  • Speak with other entrepreneurs in Sugar Land. 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.

Sugar Land, Texas Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
5256
5-9 Employees
1418
10-19 Employees
1032
20-49 Employees
648
50-99 Employees
246
100-249 Employees
147
250-499 Employees
36
500-999 Employees
12
1000+ Employees
3
All Sugar Land Businesses
8798

As a new Sugar Land entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Sugar Land 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
Advertising Agencies
8
Air Traffic Control
1
Ambulance Services
1
Amusement Arcades
2
Architectural Services
6
Automobile Driving Schools
2
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
5
Automotive Transmission Repair
1
Barber Shops
3
Beauty Salons
36
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
3
Blood and Organ Banks
1
Book Stores
6
Building Inspection Services
2
Business to Business Electronic Markets
2
Cafeterias
4
Cane Sugar Refining
1
Car Washes
4
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Caterers
1
Child and Youth Services
2
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
3
Civic and Social Organizations
3
Claims Adjusting
1
Clothing Accessories Stores
3
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
3
Collection Agencies
2
Commercial Bakeries
1
Commercial Photography
2
Commercial Screen Printing
2
Commodity Contracts Brokerage
2
Commodity Contracts Dealing
1
Computer and Software Stores
8
Computer Facilities Management Services
1
Computer Systems Design Services
61
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining
2
Consumer Lending
3
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
2
Convenience Stores
27
Couriers
1
Credit Unions
4
Curtain and Drapery Mills
2
Cut Stock, Resawing Lumber, and Planing
1
Deep Sea Freight Transportation
1
Dental Laboratories
1
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
3
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
3
Dimension Stone Mining and Quarrying
1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
3
Document Preparation Services
3
Drafting Services
1
Drilling Oil and Gas Wells
4
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
7
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
3
Educational Support Services
3
Electric Power Distribution
4
Electronic Auctions
1
Electronic Shopping
2
Elementary and Secondary Schools
10
Employment Placement Agencies
8
Engineering Services
46
Environmental Consulting Services
7
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
9
Facilities Support Services
2
Family Clothing Stores
19
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fine Arts Schools
8
Finish Carpentry Contractors
3
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
11
Floor Covering Stores
4
Florists
5
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
7
Food Service Contractors
9
Footwear and Leather Goods Repair
1
Formal Wear and Costume Rental
2
Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
4
Full-Service Restaurants
80
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
1
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
3
Furniture Stores
11
General Automotive Repair
17
General Freight Trucking, Local
3
General Rental Centers
1
General Warehousing and Storage
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
15
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
4
Graphic Design Services
4
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Hardware Stores
1
Home Centers
2
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
4
Home Health Care Services
8
Homes for the Elderly
6
Household Appliance Stores
4
Human Rights Organizations
1
Industrial Design Services
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
68
Interior Design Services
5
International Trade Financing
1
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
1
Internet Service Providers
3
Investigation Services
3
Investment Advice
13
Jewelry Stores
19
Kidney Dialysis Centers
3
Land Subdivision
4
Landscape Architectural Services
1
Landscaping Services
26
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
4
Limited-Service Restaurants
113
Linen Supply
2
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
3
Locksmiths
3
Machine Shops
3
Mail-Order Houses
1
Marketing Consulting Services
8
Meat Markets
1
Medical Laboratories
2
Men's Clothing Stores
2
Metal Can Manufacturing
1
Miscellaneous Intermediation
6
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
5
Motion Picture and Video Production
5
Motor and Generator Manufacturing
1
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores
2
Nail Salons
4
Natural Gas Distribution
3
Navigational Services to Shipping
1
New Car Dealers
2
New Housing Operative Builders
4
Newspaper Publishers
2
Nursing Care Facilities
2
Office Administrative Services
29
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
3
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
4
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
28
Offices of Chiropractors
9
Offices of Dentists
84
Offices of Optometrists
14
Offices of Other Holding Companies
2
Offices of Podiatrists
5
Ophthalmic Goods Merchant Wholesalers
2
Optical Goods Stores
7
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
7
Parking Lots and Garages
1
Passenger Car Leasing
1
Passenger Car Rental
1
Periodical Publishers
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
2
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
1
Photography Studios, Portrait
6
Portfolio Management
5
Private Mail Centers
5
Professional Employer Organizations
2
Professional Organizations
2
Public Relations Agencies
1
Radio Networks
1
Real Estate Credit
19
Real Estate Investment Trusts
2
Record Production
1
Remediation Services
1
Residential Property Managers
16
Residential Remodelers
8
Retail Bakeries
4
Roofing Contractors
4
Sales Financing
1
Savings Institutions
11
Securities Brokerage
21
Security Guards and Patrol Services
3
Sewage Treatment Facilities
3
Ship Building and Repairing
1
Siding Contractors
1
Site Preparation Contractors
2
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
25
Soap and Other Detergent Manufacturing
1
Software Publishers
5
Solid Waste Landfill
1
Sound Recording Studios
1
Sports and Recreation Instruction
7
Steam and Air-Conditioning Supply
1
Steel Investment Foundries
1
Tax Preparation Services
4
Temporary Help Services
9
Testing Laboratories
2
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
2
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
3
Tobacco Stores
1
Translation and Interpretation Services
1
Travel Agencies
5
Used Car Dealers
2
Used Merchandise Stores
5
Vending Machine Operators
2
Video Tape and Disc Rental
9
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
1
Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters
3
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
4
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
32
Window Treatment Stores
4
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
10

Have You Considered Franchising?

As you drive around Sugar Land, you'll notice that many local entrepreneurs have gone the franchising route. Should you be giving franchising serious consideration?

We highly recommend you evaluate the possibility of your buying a franchise opportunity. We have many articles on franchises, such as Selling A Franchise. Get a thorough education on franchising by browsing all of our Articles on Franchising.

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

Sample franchise opportunities include Muffin Break and Planet Smoothie. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Vending Franchises and Real Estate Franchises.

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

Choosing a Company Name

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.

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.

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

As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are planning on starting a business in Sugar Land, it's very important that you make sure no other Texas company is using the business name you want to use.

Company Formation in Sugar Land, Texas

It's essential that your business is formed as a legal entity that is separate from its owners. The primary advantage of forming your new business as a legal entity is that it separates your business liabilities from your personal liabilities.

The entity you form can be a corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership or other structure.

Incorporating is a very popular way to form a business. A key decision is whether to form and S-Corp or a C-Corp, and you also must decide in which state you will incorporate. Just because you are starting a business in Texas, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in Texas. In fact, you are allowed to incorporate in the state of your choosing. For example, it's very popular to incorporate in Delaware, and incorporating in Nevada has become very trendy as well. Don't forget, though, that you will have to register as a foreign entity in all states that you do business in.

There's a lot to know about forming a company. To learn the fundamentals of company formation, browse articles on our site, such as Avoiding Personal Liability in Business. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in Sugar Land, Texas, our information on Incorporating in Texas may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Texas.

How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Abilities

Successful entrepreneurs know that they don't know everything.

With your business being located in Sugar Land, Texas, you will want to take advantage of the learning programs at local Texas educational institutions. It's also smart to see if there are any networking organizations for Sugar Land entrepreneurs.

Now It's Up To You

You have a dream -- starting a business in Sugar Land. 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.

We are here to help Sugar Land businesses to be successful. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in Sugar Land, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in Sugar Land, Texas

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

More Business Startup Guides for Texas

Starting a Business in Stephenville
Starting a Business in Sulphur Springs

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

 

 

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