As the global economy continues to recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people seem to be out of a job and looking to start their own line of business. Whether it be a small venture or a more ambitious start-up, we all feel like we might need some inspiration to get work. Here are some of the more popular, in-demand business ideas that will hopefully give you inspiration this year.
First of all, let’s define our terms. There are two main kinds of business ideas that you might consider when you’re thinking about your target customer base. The first is known as B2C, or business to customer. This means a business or company that provides services or products to customers directly. The other kind of business is B2B, or business to business where your company provides services or products to other businesses. We’ll try to touch on both models and you’ll make your own decision as to which suits you most.
First: B2C small business ideas:
-
E-commerce:
At the age of the internet and the pandemic, the safe and practical option seems to be to work from home and online. A lot of people have therefore selected to sell products online through practices like drop-shipping and online auctions. According to the NRF, overall 2021 retail sales to grow between 10.5% to 13.5 %, to between $4.44 trillion-$4.56 trillion. But the more important news is non-store, and online sales will likely range from $1.09 trillion to $1.13 trillion, an increase of 18% to 23%. This means that there’s a great economic opportunity on online sales that will undoubtedly be a big part of the economy of the future.
-
Children’s products and toys:
If there’s one line of business that has always turned a profit for its owners, it has to be products that are related to children and childcare. As the world progresses, children and their upbringing are becoming even more of a priority for society as a whole. According to the NPD group, parents are buying products for their babies at a much higher rate. NPD says juvenile products had revenues of $7.35 billion in 2020, up 6.5% in a year.
The most popular categories were:
- Safety products, including health & grooming products and baby gates. 2020 sales hit $587.5 million, up 35% from 2019.
- Furniture sales came in at $952.1 million, up 17% from 2019. Top sellers in this category included cribs, toddler beds, and children’s and baby furniture.
- The entertainment category, including activity seats/jumpers, and swings, rang up $963.6 million in sales.
As for toys, we continue to see a surge in their sales in 2021, they generated sales of $25.1 billion in 2020, up 16%, according to a report from The NPD Group. Online sales in particular took a huge boost as they showed revenue growth of up to 75%. NPD recommends retailers offer BOPIS (buy online, pick up in-store) or curbside pickup options since that’s more convenient to busy consumers.
-
New online customers:
The Washington Post reports that baby boomers – meaning consumer who is 65 and over are now the fastest-growing category of e-commerce shoppers. Therefore, products and services focusing on their needs are on the rise. From antique shops to healthcare and skincare products, the possibilities are truly endless.
-
Beauty products:
One of the fastest-growing trends that we see in beauty products is the rise of products targeted towards male customers. According to Allied market research, the personal care market for men has grown in an unprecedented way and should hit 166$ billion by 2022.
Data from global research firm Mintel also reaffirms this trend, as it reports that more than two-thirds of Gen Z males in the U.S are interested in gender-free beauty products. So more male-oriented products would be an amazing idea to start a business around as this will only continue to grow in the future. According to Mintel, 9% of Gen Z males say they use some form of lighter, ‘no-makeup’ makeup, whether it’s tinted moisturizer, BB cream or CC (color correcting) cream.”
These days in the beauty industry, all the buzz is about clean beauty (Meaning the products are safe and non-toxic). The global clean beauty market is expected to grow from revenues of $5.4 billion in 2020 to $11.6 billion in 2027.
-
Home improvement:
Another product category that has seen an increase in sales due to social distancing is home improvement products. Likely because people are working more and more from home, they are deciding to transform their living spaces and improve upon them, According to consumer research group The NPD Group. In 2020, consumers invested their home improvement dollars in their kitchens and baths (revenues were up 28%), while overall home improvement revenues rose 22%, and paint sales increased 16%.
-
Tutoring
With many parents opting out of traditional school systems in favor of home education, tutors are in greater demand than ever these days. ZipRecruiter reports private tutors are making an average salary of $45,000 a year. This makes it an attractive opportunity as a side business.
Recommended Stories
Second: B2B small business ideas:
Every start-up that we talked about so far is going to need a lot of help launching, growing, and maintaining their business. This in itself makes for a great business opportunity which can be utilized through providing those businesses with services that they require, AKA business to business (B2B) services which are in demand including:
- Accountants and bookkeepers
- Web designers
- Graphic designers
- Business consultants
- Digital marketer
- Business plan writers
- Translation services
- Social media consultants
- Virtual assistant
Which business fits you?
Before choosing the business that suits your requirements, you must know that each business structure carries with it several pros, cons, and tax consequences. We would recommend consulting with your accountant and attorney before making that decision. Most of all though, you have to choose something that you’d be willing to spend endless hours on because the most difficult phase of any business venture is the start. So choose something that you love to do. Hopefully, reading through these ideas will inspire you to take that step and start working to yourself, thereby gaining more autonomy and prosperity than you ever had before.
