Inc Magazine: Best Industries for Starting a Business

Inc Magazine article highlighting 16 industries for starting a business. A few of the industries are a little goofy (e.g., selling homemade goods online and sperm banks), but others come from the just-released Top Industry data from AnythingResearch.com. Cool, huh? There are certainly a lot of other factors that go into identifying venture opportunities, but many of these  less well-known industries are worth looking at.

Three Things Every Business Should Do in a Recession

Change begets opportunity. Given the current economic situation, here are three things that every company should do:

Renegotiate vendor contracts. This is not to say that you should squeeze all profit out of your vendors. Business relations should always be mutually beneficial. However, contracts that were negotiated a few years ago when things looked rosy should be carefully reevaluated. For example, one small business was able to renegotiate their contract with Verizon Business and cut their bill in half.

Foster employee loyalty. Employees are more likely to stay at their jobs now, if they feel the jobs are secure. The good news is it’s easier to retain employees. But don’t be lulled by this. Unhappy employees being forced to work harder and longer hours will not stick around once the economy turns. Now that employee’s expectations are lower, do small things to increase job satisfaction and make people feel appreciated.

Do more for your customers. Much advice centers on how to maintain price discipline and avoid doing work at (or below) cost. There’s a different opportunity, however. Given that your customers are likely facing a new environment, they may be open to help in new, adjacent areas. For example, a company that downsized may now be shortstaffed in certain areas and happy to have a vendor provide managed services. Look for these areas, and propose solutions for your customers’ problems.

AnythingResearch.com – Industry Analytics and Research

AnythingResearch.com has released 2009 research reports on over a thousand industries providing instantaneous access to market size, typical financials (e.g., income statement, balance sheet), salary benchmarks, etc etc.

The goal is to shed light on  small businesses in “main street” industries by providing accurate and detailed statistics.

http://www.AnythingResearch.com

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Private Equity Enters the Trailer Park Industry

Note: for information on the Watchtower industry screening tool, please contact Daniel Berch.

Trailer Park Boys (television show and movie) is an amusing and sometimes heartbreaking look at struggles towards life and happiness in an RV park in Nova Scotia. But while the Boys were busy with various get-rich-quick schemes, private equity investment firm Context Capital Partners entered the space.

Industry data shows EBITDA margins of 27%, slow but steady growth around 2% per year, and extreme fragmentation for the RV Parks and Campgrounds industry (NAICS 721711). And at, $1.7 billion market size, it’s worth a second look.

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