Washington Business Startup Guides

Start a Business in La Conner, Washington

Are you starting a business in La Conner, Washington? This article discusses the most important things to consider when opening a business in La Conner.

La Conner, Washington Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
279
5-9 Employees
78
10-19 Employees
30
20-49 Employees
45
50-99 Employees
6
100-249 Employees
6
250-499 Employees
0
500-999 Employees
0
1000+ Employees
0
All La Conner Businesses
444

As a new La Conner entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in La Conner 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
Automotive Parts and Accessories Stores
1
Bed-and-Breakfast Inns
2
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
1
Boat Building
3
Boat Dealers
2
Book Stores
1
Broadwoven Fabric Mills
1
Canvas and Related Product Mills
1
Caterers
1
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining
1
Custom Computer Programming Services
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
1
Electronic Shopping
1
Employment Placement Agencies
1
Family Clothing Stores
1
Fine Arts Schools
1
Finfish Fishing
3
Fish and Seafood Markets
1
Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
1
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
1
Furniture Stores
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
8
Graphic Design Services
1
Homes for the Elderly
1
Jewelry Stores
2
Limited-Service Restaurants
5
Mail-Order Houses
1
Museums
1
Office Administrative Services
1
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
1
Offices of Dentists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
1
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
2
Pet and Pet Supplies Stores
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
1
Savings Institutions
1
Seafood Canning
1
Securities Brokerage
1
Shoe Stores
1
Tax Preparation Services
1
Used Merchandise Stores
3

Picking a Business Name

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.

Companies like Starbucks, Apple, Target, Microsoft and Intuit all have strong company names that are easy to remember and have become well-loved brands. Wouldn't it be nice if your new company name got on a similar track?

Numerous company naming issues are discussed in more detail in this article: Branding Advice.

As a final piece of advice, remember that because you are opening a business in La Conner, it's critical that you ensure that your company name has not already been claimed by another Washington business.

Make Sure You Have a Business Plan

A business plan is critical in maximizing the prospects of your new company. Indeed, a business plan is a written description of the future you envision for your business. Failure to write a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

To learn more about business plans, read The Art of the Executive Summary. You should also take advantage of face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in Washington.

Raising Money for Your New Venture

Raising money to fund your new La Conner business is not an easy task. Bootstrapping, which means growing the business without outside funding, is the best alternative, but that's not a viable option for many startup plans.

The good news is this site contains dozens of articles on raising money, including one we recommend entitled 504 Loans.

For La Conner entrepreneurs who want to raise money for a new venture, check out our List of Washington Angel Investors and our List of Washington Venture Capital Firms.

Marketing Your New Business

Whether your goal is to attract La Conner customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, you'll need to have a good marketing plan.

We have some great resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Promoting an Online Business is an article that will stimulate a few thoughts on your marketing plan. That's just one of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

Bring in Revenues

Do you know how to sell? In order to attract customers to your new La Conner business, you need to focus on sales.

Not knowing how to sell can result in lost customers and minimal market share. Fortunately, we've got plenty of good advice to help you improve your selling skills.

Effective Sales Presentations offers some helpful tips on how to sell. It's one of several good articles on our site regarding Entrepreneurial Selling.

Moving Forward

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

Owning your own business will be a daunting task, but you can do it.

We are here to help La Conner businesses to be successful. 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 La Conner, Washington

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

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