Business Ideas for New and Veteran Business Owners

No matter the business idea, there’s probably a perfect one out there just for you. Whether it’s your first business, second or third, you may run into trouble thinking of what product/service to start next. Check out these business ideas to get your creative juices flowing!

Outdoor Business Ideas

Office life isn’t for everyone. Starting an outdoor business can be as straightforward as gardening, or as thrilling as hosting guided camping experiences. Here are six of the top business ideas for people who love the outdoors, as well as some tips on how to help finance your new enterprise.

1. Gardening and Landscaping: Gardening, landscaping, or yard waste cleanup is a great opportunity for people who love to work outdoors. Equipment is the biggest expense. To get set up, consider an equipment loan.
2. Dog Walking and Training: A dog walking business can be a great way to combine your love of the great outdoors and furry creatures. One way to finance this business is a business line of credit. Business lines of credit let you pull from a set amount of cash and pay interest on what you borrow.
3. Junk Hauling and Salvage Service: People always need help clearing out their closets, attics, and garages. Also, the biggest expense will be the equipment. Thankfully, commercial truck financing can help you afford the large up-front costs associated with buying your fleet.
4. House Painting: Startup costs are minimal, and so is overhead. The biggest upfront costs in the house painting business are supplies. You can use your line of credit to finance these recurring expenses without having to dip into your liquid capital.
5. Camping and Hiking Guide: Being an outdoor guide is another great option for those of us who love to connect with nature. Have the right permits and licenses to operate your business. Your startup costs will be minimal in this field, but you may need to purchase supplies and additional gear for your clients.
6. Ski Instructor: As an independent ski and/or snowboarding instructor, you’ll want to have the right training and permits to protect yourself and your clients.

Baby Boomer Business Ideas

Although baby boomers, the nation’s second-largest living generation, have reached retirement age, that doesn’t mean they’re ready to stop working. More and more individuals age 50 and older are choosing to embark on encore careers instead by starting their own small businesses.

Whether it’s a new business concept or a franchise, these five industries are a great solution for baby boomers to invest in themselves, pursue their passions and make a profit as they continue to work beyond retirement.

Here are the top five business industries in which we’ve seen boomers thrive:

1. Pet care: Many boomers fill their empty nests with furry companions. Starting a pet care business allows aspiring entrepreneurs to pursue their passion for critters, but make money at the same time.
2. Airbnb hosts: Additionally, baby boomers can become Airbnb hosts and make some extra cash on the side by renting their space to travelers.
3. Campgrounds and RV parks: RV parks, allow owners to experience the great outdoors while also making a profit.
4. Senior care: As The demand for in-home care services is rising. This can be a great field for boomers to dive into because as they’re aging, so are their parents.
5. Fitness: Baby boomers care about their health and want to stay in shape to avoid aging and disease. As such, the fitness industry has seen a large movement of 50+ individuals not only joining gyms but also starting their own fitness-related businesses.

Entrepreneur Wacky Business Ideas

“Drawntodiscover.com is a progressive and pioneering visual literacy and learning solution for children. We manifest creativity and self-confidence through interactive enrichment video lessons built to develop fine motor skills into cognitive growth. As a result, we find the children using the program often increase their math, science, and reading skills while truly enjoying the educational experience.” — Brian Goodman, Co-Founder, Drawn To Discover

“Acceptd is the largest arts network in the world. Our current code name is Ignite. Our mission is to help arts venues redefine their product and offerings to fill the house every night with a new generation of art.” — Bill Balderaz, Principal, Futurety

“The Complete Retirement Planner will be the premier means for easily creating a comprehensive, year by year, retirement plan. This planner will directly help those that have no written retirement plan. Until now, the tools needed to create such a complex plan are virtually non-existent. Problem solved! There is nothing else that is this complete.” — Drew Parker, Creator, The Complete Retirement Planner

“We champion to people living life to the fullest with a new camera-based messaging app for making plans with friends using video invites.” — Brian Liebler, Founder & CEO, LivnList

“My business is a very unusual niche of dollhouse kits and dollhouse miniatures. I have more than 2,000 miniatures on my site to appeal to an audience mainly composed of older female hobbyists.” — Amanda Austin, Founder & President, Little Shop of Miniatures

“The four largest expenses in life are your house, schooling, car, and wedding. There is more than enough financing for your car, school and house, why not for your wedding? Enter DUO Pay. We offer affordable payment plans and financing for your wedding. “— Nick Redd, Co-Founder, DUO Venues

Repeat Business Ideas

This is not a literal business idea, but still a great one at that. We’re here to give you several repeat business ideas. I mean who wouldn’t want to turn their first-time customer into a lifelong “groupie” for their business. After all, repeat business is the ultimate barometer of success.

1. Teach associates to greet people like they would welcome a new neighbor into their home. Communicate to front-line staff how important it is to smile, greet, and connect with customers as people first.
2. Ask customers if they have ever been to your store before. Tell new customers more about your business. It will not only provide useful information but also create a relationship. Repeat customers should be acknowledged and always thanked for their past loyalty; new customers should be welcomed and provided a different kind of special attention.
3. Always tell the customer you can help them. People like to feel they are speaking to a person who can help. And, it’s not important how you help them, but showing the customer you care about answering their question or resolving their problem goes a long way.
4. Listen to emotions. Pay attention to what customers are feeling, not just saying.
5. Have business cards printed up for all associates? It will make your staff feel more important and it’s an excellent way to invite the customer to return. Also, by inviting the customer to return, it demonstrates that you want to see them again, which is a critical component of the customer journey.
6. Keep in touch. Ninety percent of all retailers fail to show the customer they matter after the sale. That’s a big mistake. Even a nicely worded customized email can show customers they are relevant, important, and appreciated after an interaction has occurred.