So you have decided to ditch your nine-to-five job to start your own business.
Congratulations!
Starting a business makes you feel like you are your own boss. You enjoy independence, control, and freedom from routine. You take decisions when, where, and how to get the job done.
Okay, but let’s not get carried away by the fancy of sitting in the boss chair.
Have you ever thought about which the best business is for you?
There are many small business ideas. But, while you are full of passion and energy, it is not easy to find the right direction. You need a great business idea that not only matches your interest but in demand too.
Top 11 Best Small Business Ideas for Beginners
Here I have outlined some best small business ideas you can turn into reality today. Let’s get started.
1. Food Truck Business
Do you love to cook or fond of experimenting with food?
You must have a dream of having your own restaurant. But unless you are lucky enough to get financed during the earlier stage, you can’t afford to make such a big investment.
Don’t lose the heart.
If you don’t have enough money to open a restaurant, a food truck business can be started with a comparatively lower investment.
It requires you to buy a food truck that can be a pre-owned one. Running a food truck business also lets you know if customers like your food. Plus, you have a wider reach to the customers as you are on the run.
And if you get an overwhelming response, you might convert your food truck business into a restaurant. By that time, your food truck business must have earned you a good sum to be invested in a restaurant business.
2. Coffee Shop
The coffee industry has witnessed skyrocketed growth over the past few years.
According to one report, one-third of Americans spend more on coffee than on investments. The report further found that the average American spends nearly $1,100 per year on coffee or roughly $92 a month. That’s why investing in a coffee business can be a rewarding business idea.
There was a time when people used to meet their date or spend quality time at the coffee shops. Over the years, it has been turned into a hotspot for official meetings, too.
Running a coffee shop can be started with a low investment. It requires you to rent a space, and buy a coffee machine. Good thing is that you can do the things on your own if you are looking to make it a self-service coffee shop, eliminating the need of hiring staff. Make sure to work on your menu, ambiance, and mugs design.
3. Bakery
If you are looking for a profitable business from home, what about running a bakery business?
Counted among one of the successful home-based businesses today, a bakery can be a great business idea for those who enjoy baking and create appealing food. You can supply your bakery products to the local bakeries and restaurants.
4. Photography
Are you good at taking photographs? Are you admired for your great photography skills? Why not turn it into a profession?
Photography is a good business idea if you are equipped with creative ability, composition, and technical knowledge. This career can be more rewarding if you love to accept challenges and are interested to live your life through the lens.
Apart from providing your services for weddings and other events, there are many other ways to make money as a photographer. You can sell your photographs to stock websites and magazines. Besides, you can run photography classes.
If you lack the essential skills and still want to be a photographer, join a photography institute where you can hone your angle, timing, light exposer, and compositions.
5. Tuition Classes
Tutoring is another lucrative small business idea that not only offers flexible work hours and huge financial gain but also helps students get educational success. It is a simple profession anyone can do, whether you are a university student, salaried person, stay-at-home parent, or a retired teacher. Starting a tutoring business can earn you higher hourly wages, depending on how many students you have.
You can start providing tuitions at your home. All you need a whiteboard and seating arrangements according to the number of students you have. But first of all, you should have expertise in the subject you are going to teach.
6. Car Wash
Whether a small town in Ohio, upscale NYC, or rural areas around Missouri, one thing is for sure: people always prefer neat and clean transportation to rusty, muddy wrecks. Well, this is a glimpse of human nature. According to one report, consumers spend an estimated $5.8 billion on car washes annually. According to another study, a profit can range from $50,000 to $100,000 per year for a self-service car wash.
Eureka! Here we got another small business idea. If there is not a car wash service in your area or at least one in the next city, opening a car wash can be a profitable move.
Before starting this “soapy-spongy’ business, make sure to earn experience and knowledge in the car wash business, including everything from location to water conservation to the equipment and chemicals used and even the marketing tactics. For example, you need to choose a location for your car wash business that is accessible to customers.
Locating at a busy intersection might not be that beneficial as people are less likely to figure out how to get there. Opening it near a highly traveled road and street where the speed limit is at 40 MPH or less. Besides, the space should be large enough to accommodate vehicles of all sizes and to avoid road blockage as well.
Nail these important things and you will make the rest of your business journey significantly smoother.
7. Daycare
Taking care of kids when parents are away is always in demand. Many parents pay hundreds of dollars monthly for someone to take care of their kids.
However, a daycare business is different from other businesses. It is something that offers valuable services to families, working parents, and the kids in your care.
Apart from being advantageous at the business level, opening a daycare can be fulfilling at personal and emotional levels.
This profession requires you to be caring and patient to work with kids. Make sure to have the proper training and certification required by your state.
8. Property Manager
Many people live away from their properties located in different states or cities.
They look for someone who can take care of their property, handle the tenants, and manage all repairs and fixes.
Enter a property manager.
Become a property manager can be a lucrative career due to the high demand for rental properties in most housing markets on a global scale. In some markets like Nashville, nearly half of the population lives in rental space.
That’s why the demand for property managers is on the rise. However, most people like to work with a qualified property manager, meaning that some sort of degree in property management and real estate can help you.
After working as a property manager for a couple of years, you can then open your property management agency.
9. Translation Services
If you are well versed in multiple languages and can translate from one language to another, this business idea is meant for you. There is an ever-increasing need for translators on the global scale due to the boom in the cross-communication culture both on a personal and professional level.
While the startup cost is low, it is a home-based or remote business requiring you an internet-enabled computer. You can work for the legal, medical, commercial, editing, and interpretation industries. You can run your business solo, or manage a group of translators, even if you are not that skilled translator yourself.
10. Tour Guide
Do you know the local history of your city or state?
Why not become a tour guide?
However, it requires you to go through extensive research to do the job well. But that is just half done.
Stand out of the sea by offering tours that target a particular part of your community’s history. For example, you can offer a tour of the haunted places in your city or some unexplored areas.
11. Freelancing IT Professional
This part covers all IT job roles to be done as a freelancer, including graphic designer, developer, and online marketing expert. Platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, and Toptal have made it easy to find a job as a freelancer.
You need to make an account on these platforms to get projects across the globe.
Bottom Line
Hope this list would help you find the right business as a beginner.
However, make sure to choose the profession you have expertise in or that appeals to you the most. If you don’t have any experience in the business you are after, it is better to learn some skills by opting for the associated courses.
Well, that is just half done. Once you choose the business, create a business plan that will outline your business requirements, goals, and investment. It is also important to market your new venture. Well, it can be done with the help of social media.