Idaho Business Startup Guides

Opening a Business in Lewiston, Idaho

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

Lewiston, Idaho Demographic Information

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

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

Business Size
# of
Businesses
1-4 Employees
13376
5-9 Employees
6552
10-19 Employees
3960
20-49 Employees
2496
50-99 Employees
744
100-249 Employees
288
250-499 Employees
120
500-999 Employees
96
1000+ Employees
0
All Lewiston Businesses
27632

As a new Lewiston entrepreneur, you may also be interested in the table below. It shows how many businesses there are in Lewiston 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
Air Traffic Control
1
Animal (except Poultry) Slaughtering
1
Appliance Repair and Maintenance
2
Architectural Services
3
Armored Car Services
1
Automotive Exhaust System Repair
1
Automotive Glass Replacement Shops
5
Beauty Salons
12
Beer and Ale Merchant Wholesalers
2
Beer, Wine, and Liquor Stores
2
Boat Building
2
Boat Dealers
4
Book Stores
2
Bowling Centers
1
Business Associations
4
Cable and Other Program Distribution
2
Cafeterias
1
Canvas and Related Product Mills
1
Car Washes
5
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Services
1
Casinos (except Casino Hotels)
1
Child Day Care Services
7
Civic and Social Organizations
7
Claims Adjusting
1
Clothing Accessories Stores
1
Collection Agencies
1
Commercial Lithographic Printing
1
Community Food Services
2
Construction Machinery Manufacturing
1
Construction Sand and Gravel Mining
2
Consumer Lending
6
Convenience Stores
2
Convention and Trade Show Organizers
1
Cosmetology and Barber Schools
1
Couriers
5
Credit Unions
8
Custom Computer Programming Services
3
Diet and Weight Reducing Centers
1
Direct Life Insurance Carriers
1
Discount Department Stores
3
Drilling Oil and Gas Wells
1
Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
14
Electric Power Distribution
2
Electrical Contractors
11
Electronic Shopping
1
Elementary and Secondary Schools
5
Emergency and Other Relief Services
2
Engineering Services
7
Exterminating and Pest Control Services
1
Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers
2
Fine Arts Schools
1
Finish Carpentry Contractors
4
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers
5
Floor Covering Stores
6
Flooring Contractors
2
Florists
5
Food Service Contractors
2
Footwear and Leather Goods Repair
1
Freight Transportation Arrangement
2
Fruit and Vegetable Markets
1
Full-Service Restaurants
31
Funeral Homes and Funeral Services
3
Furniture Stores
6
General Freight Trucking, Local
4
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
1
General Rental Centers
3
General Warehousing and Storage
1
Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores
6
Glass and Glazing Contractors
1
Gold Ore Mining
1
Grantmaking Foundations
1
Hardware Stores
3
Home Centers
3
Home Health Care Services
3
Homes for the Elderly
4
Household Appliance Stores
7
Hunting and Trapping
1
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages
26
Investigation Services
2
Investment Advice
1
Janitorial Services
7
Jewelry Stores
2
Land Subdivision
3
Landscaping Services
13
Limousine Service
1
Local Messengers and Local Delivery
3
Locksmiths
1
Logging
10
Machine Shops
5
Manufactured (Mobile) Home Dealers
2
Masonry Contractors
1
Medical Laboratories
1
Men's Clothing Stores
2
Motion Picture and Video Production
2
Motor Vehicle Towing
2
Motorcycle Dealers
2
New Car Dealers
7
New Housing Operative Builders
1
Nonresidential Property Managers
1
Nursing Care Facilities
4
Office Administrative Services
3
Office Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
3
Office Supplies and Stationery Stores
3
Offices of Certified Public Accountants
10
Offices of Chiropractors
7
Offices of Lawyers
25
Offices of Optometrists
6
Offices of Other Holding Companies
1
Offices of Podiatrists
2
Offices of Real Estate Appraisers
3
One-Hour Photofinishing
1
Optical Goods Stores
4
Paint and Wallpaper Stores
2
Painting and Wall Covering Contractors
3
Paper (except Newsprint) Mills
1
Paperboard Mills
1
Passenger Car Rental
3
Payroll Services
1
Periodical Publishers
2
Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services
1
Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
1
Pharmacies and Drug Stores
4
Photography Studios, Portrait
3
Port and Harbor Operations
1
Portfolio Management
1
Private Mail Centers
2
Radio Stations
4
Ready-Mix Concrete Manufacturing
1
Real Estate Credit
3
Recreational Vehicle Dealers
4
Residential Property Managers
4
Residential Remodelers
11
Rolled Steel Shape Manufacturing
1
Savings Institutions
5
Sawmills
1
Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation
2
Securities Brokerage
8
Security Guards and Patrol Services
2
Septic Tank and Related Services
1
Shoe Stores
5
Site Preparation Contractors
6
Small Arms Ammunition Manufacturing
1
Small Arms Manufacturing
1
Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars
12
Soft Drink Manufacturing
1
Solid Waste Collection
1
Special Needs Transportation
3
Sports and Recreation Instruction
1
Support Activities for Forestry
1
Tax Preparation Services
3
Television Broadcasting
1
Temporary Help Services
4
Temporary Shelters
1
Testing Laboratories
1
Tile and Terrazzo Contractors
1
Tire Dealers
5
Title Abstract and Settlement Offices
4
Tour Operators
1
Travel Agencies
3
Truss Manufacturing
1
Used Car Dealers
5
Vending Machine Operators
3
Veterinary Services
3
Video Tape and Disc Rental
3
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
2
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers
1
Wired Telecommunications Carriers
1
Women's Clothing Stores
4

Have You Considered Buying an Existing Lewiston Business?

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

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

Naming the Business

A big decision when starting a company is choosing a company name. Believe it or not, choosing a good company name can be a big contributor to your business success.

Even if the name doesn't do it by itself, many naming experts believe there should be a story behind the name that ties into your company mission.

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 planning on starting a business in Lewiston, it's very important that you make sure no Idaho company has already registered the company name you have selected.

Make Sure You Have a Business Plan

A business plan is essential to the health of your new business. Simply put, a business plan describes what you plan to do with the business and how you plan to do it. Not having a business plan is a recipe for disaster.

To learn more about business plans, read Free Business Plan Templates. You can also get face-to-face free consulting available from your local SCORE chapter in Idaho.

Marketing Your New Startup

Whether your goal is to attract Lewiston customers or you plan on selling elsewhere, having an excellent marketing plan is fundamental to your successs.

We have some helpful resources on this site for entrepreneurs who are working on marketing plans. Introduction to Advertising is a good read to get your marketing creativity flowing. That's just one of the many useful articles we have on Marketing a Small Business.

Ramping Up Sales

Being able to sell is a key enabler to your business success. Whether you are focused on selling local customers in Lewiston or are selling to customers throughout Idaho, the United States or even the world, you have to be able to sell.

Good selling involves demonstrating that your wares meet your customer's needs. The good news is we can help you to make selling a big competitve advantage for your new firm.

Selling with Questions is a good article to read, one of dozens in the Selling for Entrepreneurs section of our site.

Never Give Up

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

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

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

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

Starting-a-Business Guides for Other Cities in Idaho

Starting a Business in Kuna
Starting a Business in Malad City

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

 

 

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