Online shop companies in Brighton
1,067 online shop companies have a registered office in Brighton, and 374 of them were formed in 2025 or 2026. In their latest accounts, the typical one held £9,981 in cash and owed £11,520 at year end.
The numbers
| Measure | Brighton | UK |
|---|---|---|
| Registered companies | 1,067 | 162,689 |
| Formed in 2025 or 2026 | 374 (35%) | 51% |
| Being struck off or in liquidation | 92 (8.6%) | 10% |
| Typical cash at year end | £9,981156 accounts | £3,974 |
| Typical amount owed at year end | £11,520476 accounts | £7,594 |
| Typical number of employees | 1488 accounts | 1 |
What this means if you’re starting one
Most of your competition will be other newcomers
35% of the 1,067 online shop companies in Brighton were formed in 2025–26, against 17% of all companies in Brighton. Nationally, that share of new companies is higher than 99% of UK industries.
New rivals are arriving faster than in most trades, so your customers already have fresh options. Being new is not a difference on its own.
Brighton has fewer of these businesses than most places
Online shop companies are 1.5% of companies registered in Brighton, against 3% UK-wide (0.5× the national share).
That could be a gap or a sign of weak demand. The register cannot tell which.
You can start without much equipment
The typical online shop company in Brighton carries £2,051 of equipment and other fixed assets after depreciation, lower than 99% of UK industries.
Most of the cost of entry is time and running costs rather than kit, so a small test is cheap.
Planning a business like this in Brighton?
Answer two questions about your customer and what makes you different, and get a free three-week plan to test the idea before you spend real money. No account or card.
Check my ideaWhat these figures can’t tell you
Companies are counted where their registered office is, which may be an accountant or a home address rather than a shop. Sole traders and partnerships are not on the register, and electronically filed accounts cover roughly 60–75% of accounts filed each year. The figures describe companies that exist; they cannot prove demand for your idea or predict whether it will work. How the figures are built.
Online shop in other places
- Slough1,446 companies
- Reading1,303 companies
- Milton Keynes1,252 companies
- Kingston upon Thames1,072 companies
- Hemel Hempstead1,057 companies
- Medway1,044 companies
- Guildford1,029 companies
- Portsmouth936 companies
Other businesses in Brighton
- Buy-to-let landlord3,800 companies
- Business consultancy3,154 companies
- IT support or consultancy1,518 companies
- Dog grooming and other personal services1,405 companies
- Physiotherapy or therapy clinic1,100 companies
- Web design and software1,030 companies
- Restaurant895 companies
- Property management868 companies