Pennsylvania Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in West Chester, Pennsylvania

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

Will You Be a Good Entrepreneur?

Most new companies do not succeed, in part because the founder did not have the tenacity and/or the skills to succeed. So, before you open a business, consider all of the implications of being an entrepreneur.

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 West Chester. They are usually very willing to share their insights on the ups and downs of being an entrepreneur.
  • We recommend reading Should You Become an Entrepreneur?. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
  • Have a candid conversation with friends and family. Others sometimes know you better than you know yourself.

Choosing the Right Company to Start

Choosing a business that is right for you is very important. To stir your creative juices on what kind of business to start, take a look at Evaluating Your Idea.

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 Starting a Coin & Token Manufacturers Business guide or our How to Start a Medical Billing Services Business guide.

Always keep in mind that your new business will be in West Chester. Some businesses will do better in West Chester than others. Only by spending some time analyzing West Chester demographics can you decide if there will be strong demand for your business idea.

West Chester, Pennsylvania Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
10392
5-9 Employees
3042
10-19 Employees
2092
20-49 Employees
1536
50-99 Employees
510
100-249 Employees
300
250-499 Employees
48
500-999 Employees
24
1000+ Employees
24
All West Chester Businesses
17968

As a new West Chester entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in West Chester 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
5
Ambulance Services
2
Architectural Services
14
Art Dealers
3
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
4
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
5
Automotive Transmission Repair
1
Baked Goods Stores
1
Barber Shops
2
Beauty Salons
35
Book Publishers
1
Book Stores
6
Building Inspection Services
7
Business Associations
6
Cable and Other Program Distribution
9
Cafeterias
1
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
1
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
5
Caterers
4
Cemeteries and Crematories
6
Charter Bus Industry
1
Child and Youth Services
4
Child Day Care Services
16
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
1
Claims Adjusting
1
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
5
Collection Agencies
4
Commercial Bakeries
1
Commercial Flexographic Printing
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
5
Commercial Photography
4
Commodity Contracts Dealing
1
Computer and Software Stores
2
Computer Facilities Management Services
1
Computer Systems Design Services
43
Computer Training
1
Confectionery and Nut Stores
3
Confectionery Merchant Wholesalers
1
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
2
Convenience Stores
11
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
2
Convention and Visitors Bureaus
1
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Couriers
4
Court Reporting and Stenotype Services
4
Custom Computer Programming Services
40
Dance Companies
1
Dental Laboratories
3
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
2
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
2
Digital Printing
1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
7
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
4
Discount Department Stores
1
Display Advertising
1
Document Preparation Services
5
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
16
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
4
Educational Support Services
4
Electrical Contractors
26
Electronic Shopping
4
Elementary and Secondary Schools
11
Employment Placement Agencies
3
Engineering Services
41
Environmental Consulting Services
8
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
1
Facilities Support Services
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
1
Fine Arts Schools
7
Finish Carpentry Contractors
22
Fish and Seafood Markets
1
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
23
Flight Training
1
Flooring Contractors
6
Florists
8
Folding Paperboard Box Manufacturing
1
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
3
Food Product Machinery Manufacturing
1
Food Service Contractors
13
Footwear and Leather Goods Repair
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
5
Frozen Specialty Food Manufacturing
1
Full-Service Restaurants
61
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
6
Furniture Merchant Wholesalers
3
Furniture Stores
7
General Automotive Repair
37
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
1
General Warehousing and Storage
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
9
Glass and Glazing Contractors
2
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
4
Grantmaking Foundations
6
Hand and Edge Tool Manufacturing
1
Hardware Manufacturing
1
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
7
Hardware Stores
4
Hazardous Waste Collection
1
Hazardous Waste Treatment and Disposal
1
Heating Oil Dealers
1
Home Centers
1
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers
2
Home Health Care Services
4
Homes for the Elderly
4
Household Appliance Stores
3
Industrial Building Construction
3
Industrial Design Services
2
Industrial Valve Manufacturing
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
60
Interior Design Services
4
International Trade Financing
1
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
2
Internet Service Providers
4
Investigation Services
2
Iron and Steel Forging
1
Janitorial Services
25
Jewelry Stores
6
Land Subdivision
7
Landscape Architectural Services
5
Landscaping Services
68
Leather and Hide Tanning and Finishing
1
Limited-Service Restaurants
68
Limousine Service
3
Logging
1
Machine Shops
8
Mail-Order Houses
3
Marketing Consulting Services
20
Masonry Contractors
15
Men's Clothing Stores
1
Metal Window and Door Manufacturing
1
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
10
Motion Picture and Video Production
3
Motor Vehicle Towing
3
Museums
2
Musical Groups and Artists
2
Nail Salons
2
Natural Gas Distribution
1
New Car Dealers
21
New Housing Operative Builders
4
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
3
Nursing Care Facilities
4
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
7
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
4
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
29
Offices of Chiropractors
16
Offices of Dentists
54
Offices of Lawyers
88
Offices of Optometrists
7
Offices of Podiatrists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
3
Optical Goods Stores
2
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
3
Packaging Machinery Manufacturing
3
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
3
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
23
Passenger Car Rental
4
Payroll Services
3
Periodical Publishers
6
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
3
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
14
Plastics Bag Manufacturing
1
Political Organizations
2
Portfolio Management
11
Private Mail Centers
6
Professional Employer Organizations
3
Professional Organizations
1
Public Relations Agencies
2
Radio Stations
4
Railroad Rolling Stock Manufacturing
1
Real Estate Credit
15
Real Estate Investment Trusts
1
Recreational Goods Rental
1
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
1
Remediation Services
2
Residential Remodelers
40
Retail Bakeries
5
Reupholstery and Furniture Repair
2
Roofing Contractors
10
Rooming and Boarding Houses
1
Sales Financing
3
Satellite Telecommunications
1
Securities Brokerage
14
Septic Tank and Related Services
3
Sheet Metal Work Manufacturing
2
Shoe Stores
3
Siding Contractors
5
Sign Manufacturing
5
Silverware and Hollowware Manufacturing
1
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
11
Software Publishers
3
Solid Waste Collection
3
Solid Waste Landfill
1
Sporting Goods Stores
9
Sports and Recreation Instruction
5
Steel Investment Foundries
1
Telecommunications Resellers
1
Telemarketing Bureaus
2
Temporary Help Services
7
Temporary Shelters
2
Testing Laboratories
2
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
7
Tire Dealers
3
Tobacco Stores
1
Translation and Interpretation Services
1
Travel Agencies
5
Truss Manufacturing
1
Used Car Dealers
5
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
2
Used Merchandise Stores
10
Veterinary Services
15
Video Tape and Disc Rental
4
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
2
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
2
Web Search Portals
3
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
53
Window Treatment Stores
1
Women's Clothing Stores
8
Wood Container and Pallet Manufacturing
1

Naming the Company

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.

Company names should be fun to say, and they should help people to understand what you do and how you differentiate yourself in the market.

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

As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are planning on starting a business in West Chester, it's imperative that you check now that you will be the only Pennsylvania company using the business name you have chosen.

Forming a Company in West Chester, Pennsylvania

It's very important that you form your business as a legal structure. The main 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 traditional C-corporation, a Limited Liability Company (LLC), or an S-corporation.

Incorporation 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. If you are starting a business in Pennsylvania, it doesn't mean you are required to incorporate in Pennsylvania. As it turns out, you are allowed to incorporate wherever you want. However, if you do incorporate in another state, you'll have to register as a foreign corporation in your home state.

There are many nuances to forming a company. We recommend you read some of the educational articles about company formation that are availabe on our site, such as Dissolving a Corporation. You should also consider getting professional assistance from your business lawyer. Finally, if you are starting a business in West Chester, Pennsylvania, our information on Incorporating in Pennsylvania may be a useful resource if you decide to incorporate in Pennsylvania.

How to Sell

Mastering the art of selling is priority one if you want your new West Chester business to do well.

Not knowing how to sell can result in lost customers and minimal market share. Let us help you refine your selling techniques through our many useful sales advice tips.

The Art of Customer Referrals offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

What's Next?

Most new West Chester businesses underestimate the number of challenges they will face.

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 West Chester and elsewhere to achieve real success. We believe entrepreneurship is an amazing engine for job creation in West Chester, neighborhood development and overall economic health.

More Entrepreneurial Resources for Starting a Business in West Chester, Pennsylvania

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

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