It's a winner! / No chance.

[evenflow]

If you were to start a business right this second, what ideas would have a future? Which ones are dead in the water?

Good ideas:
- A rehash of an existing idea but "green" or "carbon neutral"

Bad ideas:
- High street film rental places
- P0rn magazine publishers

....any more?

[Republik]

Home brew shop would be a winner.

[davido140]

brothel

ETA if you're selling "stuff" like that homebrew shop idea, I think anything niche on the highstreet is doomed unless you've got a healthy internet selling side of the business to back it up. Shop space is so blinking expensive these days it makes little sense to have a physical presence as a shop when you can have very cheap warehouse space or free "garage at home" space and do just as good a job flogging on the internet.

Edited by davido140 on Friday 2nd October 09:24

[davido140]

well that's a potentially interesting thread consigned to sub-forum obscurity...

[evenflow]

+1. I still don't think these sub-fora are working.

[SGirl]

The Business forum has been here since long before the P&P was split up. And it's very useful. You'll get some sensible ideas in here once the people busy running businesses have got time to read your message.

[evenflow]

SGirl, I was hoping to get a more general perspective. For example, the high street film rental thing - it's as likely that someone in the Lounge would come up with that idea as someone in the specific Business forum.

[SGirl]

Try reporting the thread to the mods with a message asking them to move it. They're normally quite helpful if you just ask.

[bazking69]

The money is in services not a product IMO.

[a_bloke]

Pastie shop

[jimmyb]

bazking69 said:

The money is in services not a product IMO.

Pretty much this. If you could combine it with "green" credentials you would be on a winner i reckon.

[Goughie]

I've got what I thought was a winning idea in the retail sphere until I looked at shop rentals - great idea or no, shop rentals are insane and there's no way I'd want to hamstring myself to such an extent. The idea isn't really transferrable to the web either so it'll have to go on the back burner for now...

[jimmyb]

Goughie said:

I've got what I thought was a winning idea in the retail sphere until I looked at shop rentals - great idea or no, shop rentals are insane and there's no way I'd want to hamstring myself to such an extent. The idea isn't really transferrable to the web either so it'll have to go on the back burner for now...

Goughie dep on the idea and whther location is going to be a big issue as there are literally thousands of empty "shops" out there that have been empty for quite some time. The correct approach to the owners or managers of them may see you getting a rock bottom rental/lease and on your terms as the shops sitting empty for months will be costing the owners money they will not be wanting to lose. An offer to ease their losses may not go unnoticed.

Ie they may have been getting 1000 a week rental but the shops been empty for 3-6months thats 12-24k even if you only offered them £200 a week that drops their loss by near a grand a months which is better than nothing. But if they were to agree something like that there would be various strings attached like a very short notice period from them should they get someone else or maybe they would ask for six months reduced then upping to 500-1000 a week again etc.

The philosophy of dont ask dont get is very much applicable. Theres also no need to be embarrased about asking.

[Engineer1]

davido140 said:

brothel

ETA if you're selling "stuff" like that homebrew shop idea, I think anything niche on the highstreet is doomed unless you've got a healthy internet selling side of the business to back it up. Shop space is so blinking expensive these days it makes little sense to have a physical presence as a shop when you can have very cheap warehouse space or free "garage at home" space and do just as good a job flogging on the internet.

Edited by davido140 on Friday 2nd October 09:24

I went and bought my last homebrew kit from a local shop because the delivery charge when added to the selling price meant it was worth while finding a shop, local to me there is a homebrew shop on the highstreet and a homebrew market stall.

[Marf]

Carbon neutral pornography?

[Simpo Two]

bazking69 said:

The money is in services not a product IMO.

You have to ask which country is more cash-rich - the UK (a 'service-industry' country) or China (a 'making-things' country).

As for 'green', that's merely a passing added-value gravy-train whimsy.

Edited by Simpo Two on Friday 2nd October 20:29

[Chris_w666]

jimmyb said:

Good Stuff

Take this advice if you wanted to open a shop, a mate of mine closed his shop just over 2 years ago, he has just signed a six month lease on a market hall stand in a refurbished town centre market. The cost to him of this lease? £0 he has no overheads at all from it and he can walk away at anytime in the 6 month period FOC.

Sounds too good to be true but it really is a great time to get a deal on small empty units.

[cazzer]

bazking69 said:

The money is in services not a product IMO.

Which is the exact thinking that got this country into the st it's in.
You can't base a whole economy on people servicing other people.
Someone somewhere has to make and sell something.
Unfortunately, due to that sort of thinking, that somewhere is China.