Florida Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Crystal River, Florida

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

Do You Have What It Takes?

Being an entrepreneur is difficult, much harder than working as an employee. Are you positive you are ready to take on this challenge?

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

  • Reach out to other entrepreneurs in Crystal River. Get their candid feedback on what it takes to start a successful business.
  • Peruse Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. This is one of our more popular articles for folks who want to go into business for themselves.
  • Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. 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? We recommend that you read Good Business Ideas.

For step-by-step instructions on starting a variety of business types, visit the Good Businesses to Start section of our site. For example, you might be interested in our Starting a Sand Spreading Service guide or our How to Start a Travel Emergency Assistance Business guide.

Don't forget that Crystal River is the place where you are starting a business. Think about what needs are currently being underserved in Crystal River. Study Crystal River demographics and do a competitive analysis as part of your startup planning process.

Crystal River, Florida Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
1310
5-9 Employees
474
10-19 Employees
282
20-49 Employees
168
50-99 Employees
36
100-249 Employees
36
250-499 Employees
6
500-999 Employees
9
1000+ Employees
0
All Crystal River Businesses
2321

As a new Crystal River entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Crystal River 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
1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
3
Automobile Driving Schools
2
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
8
Barber Shops
1
Beauty Salons
16
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
2
Boat Dealers
5
Book Stores
2
Business Associations
1
Cafeterias
1
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
1
Canvas and Related Product Mills
1
Car Washes
2
Child Day Care Services
8
Civic and Social Organizations
2
Coin-Operated Laundries and Drycleaners
1
Collection Agencies
1
Community Food Services
1
Computer and Software Stores
4
Computer Systems Design Services
2
Concrete Block and Brick Manufacturing
1
Convenience Stores
2
Credit Unions
2
Custom Computer Programming Services
7
Dental Laboratories
2
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
2
Direct Title Insurance Carriers
2
Discount Department Stores
1
Document Preparation Services
2
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
3
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
2
Educational Support Services
1
Electric Power Distribution
2
Electrical Contractors
7
Elementary and Secondary Schools
1
Emergency and Other Relief Services
1
Environmental Consulting Services
2
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
3
Family Clothing Stores
3
Fine Arts Schools
2
Finfish Fishing
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
3
Fish and Seafood Markets
1
Flight Training
1
Floor Covering Stores
1
Flooring Contractors
3
Florists
2
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
5
Food Service Contractors
1
Footwear and Leather Goods Repair
1
Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation
12
Full-Service Restaurants
26
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
1
Furniture Stores
6
General Automotive Repair
8
General Freight Trucking, Local
1
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
5
Glass and Glazing Contractors
1
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
1
Grantmaking Foundations
1
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Hardware Stores
3
Home Centers
1
Home Health Care Services
4
Homes for the Elderly
2
Household Appliance Stores
3
Industrial Building Construction
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
15
Interior Design Services
2
Janitorial Services
6
Jewelry Stores
10
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Land Subdivision
1
Landscape Architectural Services
2
Landscaping Services
6
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
1
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
1
Locksmiths
1
Machine Shops
1
Marinas
2
Marketing Consulting Services
3
Masonry Contractors
3
Materials Recovery Facilities
1
Medical Laboratories
3
Miscellaneous Intermediation
2
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
1
Motion Picture and Video Production
1
Motor Vehicle Towing
1
Motorcycle Dealers
2
Museums
1
Nail Salons
1
Navigational Services to Shipping
1
New Car Dealers
3
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nuclear Electric Power Generation
4
Nursing Care Facilities
2
Office Administrative Services
2
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
6
Offices of Chiropractors
6
Offices of Dentists
13
Offices of Lawyers
11
Offices of Optometrists
3
Offices of Podiatrists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
5
Packing and Crating
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
2
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
4
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
3
Photography Studios, Portrait
2
Private Mail Centers
1
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
1
Real Estate Credit
2
Recreational Goods Rental
1
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
1
Repossession Services
1
Residential Property Managers
1
Residential Remodelers
5
Roofing Contractors
2
Sales Financing
1
Savings Institutions
1
Securities Brokerage
4
Security Guards and Patrol Services
1
Septic Tank and Related Services
1
Sewage Treatment Facilities
1
Siding Contractors
2
Site Preparation Contractors
5
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
3
Sporting Goods Stores
2
Sports and Recreation Instruction
3
Tax Preparation Services
1
Testing Laboratories
2
Tire and Tube Merchant Wholesalers
1
Tire Dealers
3
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
2
Tour Operators
3
Travel Agencies
1
Used Car Dealers
2
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Veterinary Services
3
Video Tape and Disc Rental
2
Water Supply and Irrigation Systems
1
Web Search Portals
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
3
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
1
Women's Clothing Stores
2

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Crystal River Business?

An excellent way to get started in business is to Buy a Business in Florida. Follow that link and you may find several good businesses for sale in Crystal River.

If you are serious about buying a business, you may want to read this article: How to Buy a Business.

Naming the Company

Making the right decision when choosing a company name is very important. There are many decisions you'll make now that you can change later, but changing a company name years down the road is not very easy. So, choose a good company name at the outset.

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.

On a final note, given that you are opening a business in Crystal River, it's critical that you ensure that you will be the only Florida company using the business name you have chosen.

The Role of the Business Plan

Writing a business plan is vital in maximizing the prospects of your new company. Indeed, your business plan is your game plan for how you hope to grow your business. Failure to write a business plan will greatly reduce your chances of business success.

To learn more about business plans, read Find Sample Business Plans Online. You should also take advantage of free business counselors available to you through your local SCORE chapter in Florida.

Marketing Your New Venture

To rise above the crowd in Crystal River and build your business, you'll need to have a good marketing plan.

There are myriad resources on this site to help you with your marketing plan. Getting Publicity is an article that will stimulate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.

Now It's Up To You

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

From this point on, you control your own destiny.

Our goal here is to promote the vitality and growth of small businesses in Crystal River 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 Crystal River, Florida

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

  • Resources for Crystal River, Florida Entrepreneurs - Browse a variety of resources we've collected to assist Crystal River 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.

More Business Startup Guides for Florida

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Starting a Business in Davie

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