California Business Startup Guides

Opening a Business in Watsonville, California

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

Choosing the Right Company to Start

Choosing a business that is right for you is very important. We recommend that you read Good Business Ideas.

For in-depth how-to guides on how to start specific businesses, browse our Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our How to Start a Disability Employment Agencies Business guide or our Opening a Health Facilities Developers Business guide.

Always keep in mind that you are starting a business in Watsonville. The business you want to start may already be well-represented in Watsonville. Only by spending some time analyzing Watsonville demographics can you decide if there will be strong demand for your business idea.

Watsonville, California Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
2279
5-9 Employees
897
10-19 Employees
557
20-49 Employees
357
50-99 Employees
135
100-249 Employees
60
250-499 Employees
15
500-999 Employees
6
1000+ Employees
0
All Watsonville Businesses
4306

As a new Watsonville entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Watsonville 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
Architectural Services
4
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
1
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
7
Automotive Transmission Repair
1
Baked Goods Stores
2
Beauty Salons
13
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers
2
Book Stores
1
Bowling Centers
2
Broadwoven Fabric Finishing Mills
1
Business Associations
2
Cable and Other Program Distribution
1
Car Washes
2
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Cement Manufacturing
1
Cemeteries and Crematories
2
Child and Youth Services
2
Child Day Care Services
50
Civic and Social Organizations
8
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
5
Collection Agencies
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
2
Community Food Services
2
Computer and Software Stores
1
Computer Systems Design Services
2
Computer Training
1
Concrete Pipe Manufacturing
1
Confectionery and Nut Stores
1
Consumer Lending
1
Convenience Stores
4
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
1
Couriers
3
Credit Unions
3
Custom Computer Programming Services
3
Cut Stock, Resawing Lumber, and Planing
1
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
1
Direct Mail Advertising
1
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
2
Directory and Mailing List Publishers
1
Discount Department Stores
1
Display Advertising
2
Drafting Services
2
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
3
Electrical Contractors
14
Electron Tube Manufacturing
2
Elementary and Secondary Schools
4
Engineering Services
11
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
1
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
3
Family Planning Centers
1
Farm Labor Contractors and Crew Leaders
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
5
Fertilizer (Mixing Only) Manufacturing
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
12
Fish and Seafood Markets
1
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
1
Flight Training
3
Floor Covering Stores
2
Flooring Contractors
4
Florists
7
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
1
Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
3
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
2
Full-Service Restaurants
39
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
2
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
1
Furniture Stores
3
General Automotive Repair
14
General Freight Trucking, Local
12
General Rental Centers
2
General Warehousing and Storage
4
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
1
Glass and Glazing Contractors
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
2
Grantmaking Foundations
2
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Hardware Stores
3
Hat, Cap, and Millinery Manufacturing
1
Heating Oil Dealers
1
Home Health Care Services
1
Home Health Equipment Rental
1
Homes for the Elderly
2
Industrial Building Construction
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
21
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
1
Investigation Services
1
Investment Advice
3
Irradiation Apparatus Manufacturing
1
Janitorial Services
13
Junior Colleges
1
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Land Subdivision
1
Landscape Architectural Services
3
Landscaping Services
41
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
6
Limited-Service Restaurants
31
Locksmiths
1
Machine Shops
2
Mail-Order Houses
3
Marketing Consulting Services
3
Masonry Contractors
5
Meat Markets
6
Men's Clothing Stores
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
3
Motor Vehicle Towing
3
Motorcycle Dealers
5
Museums
2
Musical Groups and Artists
3
Musical Instrument Manufacturing
1
Nail Salons
3
New Housing Operative Builders
1
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
4
Office Administrative Services
5
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
1
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
9
Offices of Chiropractors
9
Offices of Lawyers
12
Offices of Optometrists
4
Offices of Other Holding Companies
1
Offices of Podiatrists
1
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
2
One-Hour Photofinishing
2
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
2
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
13
Passenger Car Rental
1
Payroll Services
1
Perishable Prepared Food Manufacturing
1
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
3
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
2
Photography Studios, Portrait
1
Portfolio Management
1
Private Mail Centers
1
Professional Organizations
2
Public Relations Agencies
1
Quick Printing
1
Racetracks
1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
1
Real Estate Credit
3
Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage
9
Remediation Services
1
Residential Property Managers
6
Residential Remodelers
23
Retail Bakeries
8
Roofing Contractors
9
Savings Institutions
4
Securities Brokerage
3
Security Guards and Patrol Services
4
Septic Tank and Related Services
1
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
1
Shoe Stores
3
Site Preparation Contractors
4
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
11
Software Publishers
1
Sporting Goods Stores
3
Sports and Recreation Instruction
2
Tax Preparation Services
6
Taxi Service
1
Telephone Answering Services
1
Television Broadcasting
1
Temporary Help Services
1
Temporary Shelters
3
Testing Laboratories
4
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
3
Tire Dealers
6
Travel Agencies
4
Used Car Dealers
4
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Used Merchandise Stores
2
Vending Machine Operators
1
Veterinary Services
4
Video Tape and Disc Rental
3
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
8
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
2
Women's Clothing Stores
2
Women's Handbag and Purse Manufacturing
2
Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing
2
Wood Window and Door Manufacturing
1

Is a Franchise Opportunity Right For You?

Visit the business district of Watsonville and you'll notice that many local entrepreneurs have gone the franchising route. But is franchising the right option for you?

Most business experts recommend that you consider franchising as an option. We have many articles on franchises, such as Understanding Franchise Contracts. Gain a solid understanding of franchising by scanning all of our Articles on Franchising.

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

Representative franchise opportunities include P.J.'s Coffee and Cartridge Depot. Alternatively, you can browse franchise categories, such as Video and DVD Rental Franchises and Auto Parts and Tools Franchises.

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

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Watsonville Business?

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

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

Letting the World Know You Exist

To grow your Watsonville business, you'll need to have a good marketing plan.

You can learn quite a bit about marketing on our site. Marketing Basics is a good read to get your marketing creativity flowing. That's just a taste of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Abilities

The best business owners know that what they know now may not be enough to ensure their future success.

Given that you are starting a business in Watsonville, 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 Watsonville entrepreneurs.

Moving Forward

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

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

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

Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in California

Starting a Business in Walnut Creek
Starting a Business in Weaverville

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

 

 

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