A Craft Brewery or Craft Distillery
Craft breweries and distilleries are popping up everywhere! And they're making small cities like Asheville, North Carolina and Fort Collins, Colorado top travel destinations—and for good reason. If you're a craft beer or craft alcohol connoisseur, this is the perfect time to turn your passion into a business as everyone is getting behind the craft movement, even the federal government! One of the best things about these crafty businesses is the culture. Whether you're in the backwoods of Virginian drinking moonshine or the streets of Boston with a world-famous lager, these people love what they do and share their passion with everyone around them. However, we recommend seeking out a consultant if you plan on starting your own craft brewery or distillery as this industry is heavily regulated by the government.
A Boutique Marketing Agency
Marketing has evolved from this formal, Manhattan-corner-office type of business into an unconventional medley of passions. And the best part is that many of the fields within marketing don't require an advanced degree, just real-world experience. A few niches you can build a boutique marketing agency out of include influencer marketing, web design, social media marketing, graphic design, or brand photography. Each of these businesses requires little-to-no startup money, plus most of your work can be done remotely from anywhere in the world! Starting a boutique marketing agency means you can focus only on the creative tasks you enjoy.
Health & Wellness Coach
Everyone is looking for ways to be the best version of themselves. From affirmation and motivation to dieting and working out, there is a broad range of needs that a health and wellness coach can meet. This gives you the ability to find a niche that suits your passion. You can focus on self-appreciation and self-esteem or you can develop an offering that tackles people's habits and diets. My favorite thing about starting a business as a health and wellness coach is that you have the opportunity to truly help people. If that's something that drives you, this is definitely the right business to pursue.
A Boat Maintenance or Repair Business
If you like fixing up old boats and working on the water, starting a boat maintenance or repair business is a great business venture! Unlike car maintenance businesses, boat maintenance and repair businesses don't necessarily need a facility or shop, so there's a lot less investment and overhead with this particular business. Think about it: boat owners usually store their boat in a marina or mooring, which is right on the water. Plus, your services will always be in need. Owning a boat in itself requires a large investment of time. Most boat owners would much rather have someone else fix an engine or repair a broken propeller. And you don't need to be living near the beach. As long as you're located near a large body of water, you'll have plenty of clients.
A Healthy Food Truck
Everyone knows that opening up a restaurant is risky business. However, food trucks are a great alternative for those who love to cook! They're extremely trendy, there's very little overhead, you can travel to anywhere hungry people are at, and a lot of the work to convert a vehicle into a food truck can be done by yourself. Plus, people are becoming more and more concerned with what they eat—whether it's for weight loss, overall health concerns, or ethical reasons. To start a healthy food truck, all you need is a passion for cooking and a basic understanding of nutrition.
Social Media Influencer
Social media influencers are extremely important to big brands. Companies like Coca-Cola and H&M are looking for authentic real-life people to share their products with the world. Becoming a social media influencer is tough work. You need to be unique but authentic: interesting but not fake: compelling but not sales-y. As you begin to amass followers on your chosen social media platform, you can begin to develop your business as a social media influencer. This is another business that has extremely low overhead; all you really need is a smartphone and a laptop!
Bookkeeper
Becoming a CPA is time-consuming. However, one of the most painful parts of accounting (which most business owners doing their own accounting can attest to) is the bookkeeping, which you don't need to be a certified public accountant to do! Bookkeeping requires attention to detail and a love of tracking numbers. If those sound like you, starting a bookkeeping business will give you the income and job satisfaction you're looking for. Most small business owners are trying to DIY their way through their accounting and having an affordable offering that handles the most time-consuming part of accounting will be great.
Virtual Assistants
Virtual assistants, while not one of the most glamour jobs to have, are extremely popular (and pay surprisingly well). Chances are, someone you know is a virtual assistant. Becoming a curator of this digital talent and connecting them to paying clients can be a great business for someone with a large networking. If connecting people is something you love to do, this is a great business idea for you.
Socially Conscious Travel Guide
There's a growing trend called socially-conscious travel. It involves a more holistic appreciation and ethical itinerary when traveling the world. While this trend is particularly popular among millennials, more and more are hearing about this new way to travel and becoming hooked. Being a socially conscious travel guide means that you are responsible for seeking out beautiful, "ethical" places for people to travel (similar to a travel guide) AND developing an itinerary that allows them to really immerse themselves in the area—shopping and dining at local establishments, meeting with people native to the land, and avoiding unethical attractions (like elephant riding in India or dolphin riding in Hawaii).
Event Planner
The wedding industry is extremely lucrative and isn't going anywhere, but having to deal with angry brides may not be your cup of tea. Event planning is a great alternative to traditional wedding planning—without all the drama. As we become more involved in our own lives, we want to celebrate more. From series premiere parties to divorce parties, we're celebrating more and more—and why not! If you have a knack for planning parties that are so unforgettable people never stop talking about them, then this could be the business idea for you.
More and more millennials are opting for less-traditional forms of employment, such as entrepreneurship. And while starting a business is difficult, being able to call all the shots, work when you want to work, and do only the things that you want to do make the challenge seem well worth it. Whether you're interested in brewing beer or traveling the world, there's a business idea for you!