6 Booming Industries for Entrepreneurs

There has never been a better time to be an entrepreneur than right now. Many businesses are relatively easy and inexpensive to start up, thanks to advances in technology and the internet. The trick is to pick the right industry – one you honestly enjoy working in and one with opportunity for growth now and in the future. A great way to pick the right industry is to look at which industries are gaining traction and have room for fresh ideas and innovation.

If you dream about being your own boss and are looking for flourishing markets that offer great potential, set your sights on these 6 booming industries.

1. Cannabis-Based Business

Cannabidiol, or CBD, is a burgeoning market, offering a number of therapeutic benefits that have many entrepreneurs seeing green. CBD comes from hemp, but it won’t make you high because it doesn’t have the psychoactive compound THC, which is found in marijuana. 

Nevertheless, the naturally occurring compound offers an array of health benefits for a variety of issues, such as sleep disorders, anxiety, depression, appetite control, weight loss, and nausea and vomiting from motion sickness or chemotherapy. CBD is also a proven anti-inflammatory, binding to the body’s cannabinoid receptors to induce feelings of calm and relieve pain.

Consumer interest in CBD-based products also stems from the soaring trend of medical and legalized marijuana. But while the CBD market does have its own complexities, it offers a much simpler process than dealing with marijuana. 

If you are in a state that allows hemp production and CBD extraction from the plant, you can grow as many acres of low-THC hemp as you like, and then turn that crop into any number of products. Such products include CBD oil brands, gummies, patches, capsules, creams and compounds.

2. Health and Wellness Services

Being healthy and fit, both in mind and body, is all the rage right now. The pursuit of all things that promote physical and mental well-being has given rise to a $4.2 trillion global industry. There are so many ways to approach wellness from a business standpoint that it has spawned a new genre of entrepreneur — the “wellpreneur.” The wellness boom includes:

• Healthy eating and nutrition
• Wellness tourism/retreats
• Fitness and mind-body health
• Preventive and personalized medicine
• Workplace wellness
• The spa economy
• Wellness real estate

The fastest-growing sectors are spas, wellness retreats and wellness real estate. The latter involve communities designed to support residents’ physical, emotional and even spiritual well-being, offering a refuge from modern life. There are plenty of other ways for wellness-minded entrepreneurs to get a foot in the door, such as becoming a health and wellness coach, nutritionist, personal chef, or massage therapist – to name just a few.

3. Mobile Food Businesses

Food trucks have long been a popular way for culinary entrepreneurs to kick-start an appetizing business. The trend merges people’s love for delicious food and their desire to eat on the fly. The mobile food industry is a proven business model, surging at almost 8 percent annually, far outpacing the average growth of the restaurant industry at 2 percent annually. But options these days go beyond the ever-popular taco truck venture.

If you’re interested in the mobile food business, be creative and look for a fresh take on being a food vendor. Food trucks and mobile concessions offer a great way to test new flavors and unique menus. And remember that you aren’t limited to a truck. 

The industry now includes food kiosks, food carts, concession trailers and mobile catering businesses. One emerging concept is the “bustaurant” (or bus restaurant). This means converting a bus — such as a double-decker — with a kitchen in the lower half and seating for customers in the upper half, making it the ultimate mobile restaurant.

4. Online Learning and Educational Software

In our digital age, many people are forgoing traditional school in favor of alternative methods of learning. This has led to an unprecedented boom in online learning, also known as e-learning. Globally, online education is a booming industry, expected to reach $275 billion by 2022. The key factors propelling online learning are its flexibility, low cost, easy accessibility and increased effectiveness for learners. And yet, until recently, few people have been paying attention to this trend.

Online learning can be an incredibly successful business. While many e-learning companies are geared toward helping people grow practical skills, others are homing in on providing elite educational experiences online. Many are focused on developing the high-quality content and programs that make online learning so successful. 

If you’re an expert in a field, you can turn your knowledge into an online course and make money. Courses should aim to meet the needs of modern students by encouraging interactivity and group participation. Break your training down into bite-size segments so it’s easy for students to complete lessons during breaks.

5. All Things Babies and Kids

It looks like we’re having more babies, and that’s leading to skyrocketing industries that support these children and their parents. By 2020, the number of children is projected to rise to 80 million and account for 24 percent of the U.S. population. And these newest members of society are commanding a healthy chunk of the market. 

The global baby-product markets are expected to grow 5.5 percent annually, and reach $16.78 billion by 2025. Trends in kid-focused businesses include party planning, educational toys and games, children’s clothing, furniture, health, and grooming products.

One area that stands out as a unique opportunity is businesses focused on children’s activities. This industry is well suited to franchising, making it a great concept for entrepreneurs who are themselves kids at heart. 

Franchising opportunities can include camps, such as summer- or spring-break camps, or those focused on sports activities or other extracurricular activities such as art, music, or STEM. In fact, 37 percent of families say they plan to spend over $1,000 per child on activity-related fees for the academic year.

6. Hospitality and Travel

The hospitality industry is undergoing drastic changes, bringing about a number of fresh opportunities for entrepreneurs. The global travel and tourism industry continues to grow, with more than one billion tourists traveling to international destinations every year. And behind this surging demand for travel is the mobile-minded millennial generation, a group that relies on technology and social platforms to find the best travel options to suit them. 

This trend has led to the massive growth of the sharing economy – with the likes of Airbnb impacting traditional hotel business models and making the competition even tougher. In fact, “peer-to-peer” accommodation is expected to have a compound annual growth of 31 percent between 2013 and 2025.

Talented and flexible entrepreneurs will find that hospitality offers a variety of options for their innovative ideas. There are numerous franchise opportunities at all levels of tourism and hospitality, so you don’t have to build a brand from scratch. And the sharing economy offers exciting opportunities. 

The sharing economy is estimated to swell to $335 billion by 2025, making it one of the fastest-growing trends across the globe. Ideas for how to get in on this trend include purchasing homes to rent to tourists or looking for unique accommodations, such as luxury homes or yachts for rent, or glamping sites.