Innovative Business to invest in. - Sounds easy right? The painless part is to think up a business idea that is already common in the marketplace, but with so many business ideas... which one(s) is worth pursuing? If you have been asking yourself this question, then the following article is for you.
"No innovation no life, no innovation no future"- Jean-Claude Biver
But before talking business it is important to understand what innovation is and the importance of it. Sharing the case of Hublot, a Swiss luxury watchmaker is a great way to understand it. Jean-Claude Biver, the CEO of this company doesn't care about watches, because people don't buy them anymore. You might be asking "why would you work on a company that makes watches? and WHY would he be the CEO if he says that "buying an expensive watch is completely irrational"? Because he innovates!
The solution for the watches not to be extinct? The company produced watches not needed for time-keeping. Hublot created a watch that was all black. Everything black! Making people forget that a watch is about showing the time, transforming the rol of the watch from arational to an irrational product. This is called Conceptual innovation.
The world of investments offers opportunities that come in many shapes and forms. Small businesses require more work and risk than many other investments, but the payoff can be way bigger. As hard to believe as it may sound, they also generate a major part of the economy, provide a great amount of jobs, and are one of the best paths to long-term wealth if you choose the right business. But remember that money is not everything, focus on your skills, knowledge and interests when looking for a business to invest in. It doesn’t matter if its laundry, food, real estate, accounting or beauty, if you are keen with the business sector you are going to invest in, it is most likely to be a good investment in the future.
There two types of people: Some that want to be their own boss, but are not very exited about the part of developing a business model, doing the maths and taking care of the paperwork on their own; whereas there are others that love creating things from scratch and being in control of everything. If you are the first type of people, franchising is an idea you should really consider!
If you want to dig deeper and have additional resources on the franchise world here is an article we highly recommended :
Franchise Vs. Business owner. Which one is better for me?
Putting to the side the sector you choose, these are the key things you have to make sure the business you want to invest in has:
The potential to be profitable now and for many years in the future.
To be able to do well even in uncertain economic times.
Passion: Make sure it's requirements don’t require decades of experience. Focus more on the passion for the business.
Startup business needs: dedication, hard work, perseverance and a desire to succeed.
After understanding why finding an innovative trendy business is important and what it should have to succeed, here are some ideas based on current trends that might help you.
| GOOD BUSINESS IDEAS TO INVEST IN: |
| 1. Software Engineering & Development |
| 2. Laundry & Dry Cleaning |
| 3. Beauty Salons |
| 4. Digital Services |
| 5. Meal Kit Sales and Delivery |
The goal in the area is mainly to create, test and maintain different softwares on a variety of platforms, it goes from mainframes to mobile devices, it is everywhere. Each day, there are people developing new technologies and working on improving others. There is always a new idea inside an engineer or developer’s head. But that is not enough! Cloud computing and remote access allows software developers be home-based!
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the demand for software developers is expected to increase by 17% each year through 2023. If the demand increases, so will the pay. The Labor Statistics also states that the median pay in 2017 was slightly over $100,000 per year - making it a great business opportunity for those who pick up the skills. There is a slight tendency that, this amazing well paid creative minds start off as employees eventually become self-employed.
Other high demand, well-paid opportunities in the Information Technology sector include:
Systems Analysts
Hardware/Software Technicians
Network Engineers
Security Specialists
Last but not least, what people hate the most, washing and dry cleaning. Why should you invest in a sector that people hate?
For example, the Laundry & Dry Cleaning franchises are being a boom these days due to the fact that they offer people a solution to their problems, to what they hate doing (and have no time for). As we stated in the 4th point, it is very important to focus on demand. People will never stop washing and ironing their clothes (at least we sure hope so!), which is a key for these type of business, it is a long-term investment, not likely to lack of profit. So you better think about it!
You may be asking yourself why should you invest in Beauty Salons when they have so much competition and there are so many of them out there already.
Well, the reason why you should invest in this sector is mainly because it is very popular, it will never stop. And that means that this is basically a sure thing (if you do the right things, well of course). People will never stop going to the beauty salon because they will never stop cutting their hair. There are different options of course, such as cutting their hair on their own instead of going to the salon but...this kind of business will always have demand. People like being taken care of. But where high demand and high competition is out there, remember to give a good service as an added value. So watch out and keep an eye on it!
On this technological era, everything is online, fast, 5 minute waiting for something is already a waste of time. People are desperate, when a person wants something, they want it given to them right away, no waiting, I want it and I want it now!
It is very important to understand this, there is a concept is called buyer journey, all the steps a person goes through since they see the product/service until they buy it. By offering digital services such as music, templates, online courses, and so on, you provide a person with what they want on the precise moment they want it. Also, unlike other products these are not tangible, they do not require manufacturing and there is no shipping costs to worry about! Your margins can remain high.
Everyday is a hurry, chaotic: wake up early, have breakfast, workout, go to work, make dinner, sleep, repeat. Time is short. Nowadays people don’t have time to shop, prepare healthy meals and reduce their environmental footprint by not wasting as much food as they do.
That's the reason because the meal delivery sales are growing faster than we think, mainly in big cities.
"The meal kit industry in the U.S. is expected to reach $10 billion in sales by 2020".
It is pretty amazing, most of the industry work as follows: Customers select recipes online and meal kits with pre-chopped and measured ingredients are delivered to their homes on the chosen date/time, along with instructions for cooking and/or final preparation. Listed information such as calories counts allows consumers to adhere to dietary requirements.
A great added value meal kit suppliers have is that they often avoid large wholesalers and source ingredients from local farms, which creates business opportunities for small to mid-size growers, ranchers, among others.
Now that you have some interesting topics and ideas, it is time to brainstorm, think, reflect and get on going! Remember that the starting point is the hardest part, then things get easier; the pursuit of perfection can be one of the hardest things in getting a business up and running. Nothing is set on stone so, have fun on the process.
TEST, LEARN AND GROW AS YOU GO!
If you have any interesting investment ideas that you would like to share with us, leave a comment so we can brainstorm together!
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