California Business Startup Guides

Starting a Business in Daly City, California

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

Will You Be a Good Entrepreneur?

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

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 Daly City. They are usually very willing to share their insights on the ups and downs of being an entrepreneur.
  • We recommend reading Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. For aspiring new entrepreneurs, it's a must read article.
  • Seek the advice of somebody who knows you well. Others sometimes know you better than you know yourself.

What Type of Business Should You Start?

An important decision is what kind of business you want to start. You might get some good ideas about what kind of business to start by reading Free 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 Patent Drafting Services Business guide or our Starting a Surface Plates Business guide.

Remember that Daly City is the place where you are starting a business. Some businesses will do better in Daly City than others. Don't forget to review Daly City demographics to see if there's a market for what you want to sell.

Daly City, California Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
2213
5-9 Employees
777
10-19 Employees
564
20-49 Employees
348
50-99 Employees
135
100-249 Employees
63
250-499 Employees
15
500-999 Employees
6
1000+ Employees
3
All Daly City Businesses
4124

As a new Daly City entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Daly City 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
2
Ambulance Services
2
Amusement Arcades
1
Art Dealers
1
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
3
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
9
Baked Goods Stores
1
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
2
Boat Dealers
1
Book Stores
2
Bowling Centers
2
Cafeterias
3
Camera and Photographic Supplies Stores
1
Car Washes
3
Cemeteries and Crematories
15
Child and Youth Services
3
Child Day Care Services
14
Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores
1
Civic and Social Organizations
4
Claims Adjusting
1
Clothing Accessories Stores
1
Commodity Contracts Dealing
1
Community Food Services
2
Computer and Software Stores
4
Computer Facilities Management Services
1
Computer Systems Design Services
10
Confectionery and Nut Stores
1
Consumer Lending
2
Convenience Stores
8
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Couriers
5
Credit Unions
2
Custom Computer Programming Services
11
Dental Laboratories
3
Diagnostic Imaging Centers
2
Discount Department Stores
2
Document Preparation Services
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
2
Drywall and Insulation Contractors
4
Electrical Contractors
13
Electronic Shopping
1
Employment Placement Agencies
3
Exam Preparation and Tutoring
3
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
2
Family Clothing Stores
8
Family Planning Centers
1
Fine Arts Schools
2
Finish Carpentry Contractors
4
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
1
Floor Covering Stores
2
Flooring Contractors
3
Florists
4
Food (Health) Supplement Stores
4
Food Service Contractors
1
Formal Wear and Costume Rental
1
Framing Contractors
1
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
1
Full-Service Restaurants
57
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
4
Furniture Stores
7
General Automotive Repair
18
General Freight Trucking, Local
4
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
Glass and Glazing Contractors
2
Golf Courses and Country Clubs
3
Graphic Design Services
1
Hardware Merchant Wholesalers
1
Hardware Stores
3
Hobby, Toy, and Game Stores
2
Home Centers
2
Home Health Care Services
7
Homes for the Elderly
11
Household Appliance Stores
2
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
19
Investigation Services
1
Investment Advice
8
Janitorial Services
20
Kidney Dialysis Centers
1
Landscaping Services
3
Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
2
Limited-Service Restaurants
61
Limousine Service
3
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
3
Locksmiths
1
Meat Markets
1
Men's Clothing Stores
6
Miscellaneous Intermediation
2
Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers
12
Motor Vehicle Towing
2
Motorcycle Dealers
1
Musical Groups and Artists
1
New Car Dealers
12
New Housing Operative Builders
2
Newspaper Publishers
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
2
Nursing Care Facilities
2
Office Administrative Services
5
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
1
Offices of Chiropractors
6
Offices of Dentists
68
Offices of Lawyers
13
Offices of Optometrists
5
Offices of Other Holding Companies
1
Offices of Podiatrists
3
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
3
Optical Goods Stores
4
Outdoor Power Equipment Stores
1
Packing and Crating
1
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
13
Parking Lots and Garages
2
Passenger Car Rental
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
3
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
10
Photography Studios, Portrait
1
Portfolio Management
2
Poultry Processing
1
Professional Employer Organizations
2
Professional Organizations
2
Quick Printing
1
Real Estate Credit
14
Real Estate Investment Trusts
1
Residential Property Managers
8
Residential Remodelers
17
Retail Bakeries
3
Roofing Contractors
9
Scheduled Freight Air Transportation
1
School and Employee Bus Transportation
1
Securities Brokerage
7
Security Guards and Patrol Services
2
Ship Building and Repairing
1
Shoe Stores
15
Siding Contractors
1
Site Preparation Contractors
1
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
18
Solid Waste Collection
2
Special Needs Transportation
1
Sporting Goods Stores
6
Tax Preparation Services
7
Taxi Service
1
Temporary Help Services
3
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
2
Tire Dealers
4
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
2
Tour Operators
2
Translation and Interpretation Services
1
Travel Agencies
2
Used Household and Office Goods Moving
1
Used Merchandise Stores
3
Veterinary Services
6
Video Tape and Disc Rental
6
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
3
Voluntary Health Organizations
1
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
7
Women's Clothing Stores
12

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.

For other considerations regarding naming a company, we recommend this article: Naming a Business.

On a final note, given that you are starting a business in Daly City, it's very important that you make sure you will be the only California company using the business name you have chosen.

The Role of the Business Plan

Having a business plan is critical in laying a solid foundation for your business success. In effect, a business plan is a written description of the future you envision for your business. Not having a business plan makes you more prone to becoming a business failure statistic.

If writing a business plan is on your to-do list, be sure to read Business Plan Outsourcing. You can also get free counseling sessions provided by your local SCORE chapter in California.

Promoting Your New Company

Whether your goal is to attract Daly City customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you need a solid marketing plan.

You can learn all about marketing on our site. Comparing Advertising to PR is a good read to get your marketing thoughts flowing. There are many more articles on marketing on our site. Visit our Small Business Marketing resource section to see them all.

What's Next?

You have a dream -- starting a business in Daly City. 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 Daly City and elsewhere to achieve real success. 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 Daly City, California

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

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