The Big List

of Business
Ideas
100+ in-demand business ideas
you can start today
Coming up with a worthy business idea, one
you feel confident investing your time and
money in, is where every entrepreneurial
journey begins.

To help you find the inspiration

to start, we compiled a list of over a hundred
in-demand business ideas, broken down into
categories like fitness, apparel, and gaming.

All that You can browse through

was missing them at your own pace, or
skip down to a category
was the that captures your interest.
right idea.
1. Fitness and wellness
2. Pets
For each category, we’ll discuss noteworthy
trends, offer more than a dozen potential
3. Food and beverage
business ideas, and suggest tips to
4. Home and living spaces
get started.

5. Gaming
Some of these business ideas solve a problem.
Others focus on catering to a passionate 6. Outdoor recreation
community or a specific lifestyle. Maybe you’ll
find one that speaks directly to you, or maybe 7. Apparel and accessories
you’ll find some inspiration to go in a brand
new direction. 8. Beauty
9. How to bring your
business idea to life

Have a business idea in mind?

Learn how to source products and get started on Shopify

Get Started
Fitness &
wellness
There’s a growing movement to take ownership over
our physical and mental health. More and more, people
are prioritizing self-care and fitness routines as a part
of their lifestyle. In fact, global revenue from the
fitness industry was estimated to be $99.9 billion in
2019, and it’s expected to continue growing.

Some of the top trends in this category, according to a 2018

survey by ACSM’s Health and Fitness Journal, include group
training, wearable technology, yoga, personal training, wellness
coaching, outdoor activities, and functional fitness.

With more people committing to, and spending more on, regular
fitness routines, self-improvement, and mental wellness, there’s an
abundance of physical, digital, and service-based products you can
sell in this category.

Business ideas
1. Create and sell inspirational 7. Sell gear for a specific sport or 12. Sell group meditation
prints or t-shirts for gym goers. activity, like snowboarding or classes or guided meditations
Muay Thai. as digital products.
2. Sell one-on-one or group
personal training sessions or plans. 8. Build a brand for avid hikers 13. Sell meal preparation plans
and sell products that fit their for busy people.
3. Start an athleisure clothing brand lifestyle (boots, backpacks,
for people who like to work out tents, etc.). 14. Sell workout products for
throughout the workweek people who enjoy working out
9. Create a fitness apparel at home.
4. Sell vegan protein powder brand for CrossFit, martial arts,
(there’s thousands of Google powerlifting, or another specific 15. Sell sleep aids, like weighted
searches a month for pea, hemp, fitness regiment. blankets and earplugs.
and other plant-based powders).
10. Start a wellness coaching 16. Sell light therapy products,
5. Start a yoga company and sell business and work with like light alarm clocks for waking
yoga mats and other accessories. individuals or companies. up gradually.

6. Sell post-workout recovery items, 11. Sell CBD topical products 17. Sell workout products for
such as balms and foam rollers. (there’s an estimated 19,000 people who enjoy working out
monthly Google searches for at home.
“CBD cream”).

02
Tips

Create a Highlight Consider finding

lifestyle brand the proof customers offline
Create inspirational or People love sharing their Find or host events,
educational content on fitness and wellness classes, and offline
visual platforms like journeys online. gatherings where you can
Instagram, and invest Encourage your best network with prospective
in high-quality lifestyle customers to create customers, promote your
photography that content featuring your products or services, or
resonates with your products, contribute to give out free samples.
audience. Pictures and case studies, or join a
videos speak louder community managed
than words. by your brand.

Product idea
An environmentally friendly non-slip
yoga mat that’s perfect for beginners to
start their yoga journey. You can source
products like these using Oberlo and
sell them on Shopify without having to
hold any inventory yourself.

Inspiration:
SuperFit
Micki Krimmel’s experience with
roller derby encouraged her to start
an inclusive and body-positive apparel
line with SuperFit.

Learn more

03
Pets
Pets come in a variety of species, breeds, and sizes,
from dogs and cats to fish and hamsters. That also
means there are many different types of customers you
can serve.

Owners love spoiling their pets—Americans alone spent

over $72 billion on their pets in 2018. Much of it was on
food, signaling a trend among owners to invest more in
the diets and quality of life of their fur children.

Some experts point to millennials, who are leading the

way in the humanization of pets. Pet equivalents of
human product categories are popping up more and
more, from memory foam dog beds to vegan dog food.
So if you want to think outside the box, think about what
you can offer to help people pamper their pets in much
the same way we pamper ourselves.

Business ideas
1. Create a store selling pet 8. Make and sell premium 14. Sell indestructible dog toys.
cameras and food dispensers that pet food. (About 9,900 people search for
allow owners to watch and “dog toys” every month.)
interact with their pets while 9. Sell decorations for fish
they’re not at home. tanks and aquariums. 15. Sell interactive cat toys
or automated feeders.
2. Sell GPS pet trackers. 10. Sell plants (along with pet
parents, plant parents are on
3. Sell products that pet owners the rise).
can personalize with photos of
their pets. 11. Sell costumes for small pets,
such as guinea pigs or
4. Create organic pet food and hamsters (or even plants).
treats to sell.
12. Sell designer pet socks.
5. Sell dog accessories. (Searches for “pet socks” spike
every winter.)
6. Sell luxury dog beds (people are
spoiling their pups with heated 13. Grow a social media
and memory foam beds). account for your dog and sell
merchandise and sponsorships.
7. Create a dog clothing line (dog
t-shirts or jackets).

04
Tips
Focus on
Appeal customer Niche down
to emotion retention based on pet
Pets are like family to their Since pets have many Since there are so many
owners, and as a brand you ongoing needs—just like different types of pets,
need to consistently show humans—consider the each with their own
you get that. Consider potential for generating needs, you can hone in on
incorporating your own furry recurring business with one type of pet owner
friend into your marketing whatever you choose and focus your marketing
materials and engaging with to start. Can your product on them.
content shared by other pet be turned into a monthly
owners. Don’t forget to subscription? Can you sell
incorporate emotional complementary products?
persuasion into
your copywriting.

Learn how to start

a pet business
Use our guide to learn how to build a
profitable pet business from scratch,
from ideas you can explore to ways of
marketing your products.

Read guide

Inspiration:
Shed Defender
Every dog owner understands the chore
of cleaning up dog hair. While many
solutions already exist, Tyson Walter
decided to focus on prevention with
Shed Defender, creating a new product
category for breathable dog onesies.

Learn more

05
Food and
beverage
The food and beverage industry is a great place to start a business with
a lot of potential for recurring revenue. With a delicious product, it won’t
be difficult to get your customers to place repeat orders or even sign up
for a subscription.

According to CB Insights’ Food and Beverage Trends to Watch in 2019,

some big waves to look out for include the rise of ecommerce-optimized
packaging for selling food and beverage products online, personalized
food products, cannabis-infused products, and lab-grown proteins. The
plant protein market, in particular, is valued at $11 billion, with
plant-based variations of popular food popping up more and more.

Business ideas
1. A subscription box for snacks 7. Sell nutrients and supplements. 13. Sell diet-friendly variations of
from a particular culture. popular foods (gluten-free,
8. Craft your own hot sauce and vegan, etc.)..
2. Create a paleo-friendly sell it online and in retail stores.
snack food. 14. Sell sugar-free candies.
9. Sell coffee (cold brew,
3. Create a vegan-friendly grass-fed, bulletproof, etc.). 15. Put together a home beer
snack food. brewing kit and sell it online.
10. Sell gourmet salts, like
4. Curate a monthly meal Himalayan pink salt, fleur
kit and sell it to people who de sel, or kala namak.
want to learn how to cook
new dishes. 11. Sell a specific type of tea
online, such as oolong or matcha.
5. Sell eco-friendly snack packs.
12. Sell online/in-person
6. Create a sugar-free cooking classes.
beverage brand.

06
Tips

Consider pop-up Share Be wary of

shops and free recipes regulations
samples
People like to try before they Inspire customers with Selling food and beverage
buy when it comes to food innovative recipes that products comes with its
products. Think about how involve your products. own set of rules to follow,
you can get a customer from the way you create
to sample your products, your product to the way
keeping in mind that this you package and ship it.
can be a cost-effective Be sure to check the FDA
way to acquire new website and adhere to
customers and generate the rules.
word-of-mouth referrals.

Learn how to start an

online food business
Starting a food business comes
with many unique challenges, from
sourcing ingredients to following local
regulations. Learn from entrepreneurs
who have been there and done that in
our complete guide to selling
food online.

Read guide

Inspiration:
CustomHeats
Don’t be intimidated by a crowded
market. Find out how Custom Heat
went viral with a unique value
proposition and a $100 bottle of hot
sauce on Shopify Masters.

Listen to podcast

07
Home and
living spaces
There are many ways you can approach selling products
for the home to customers including homeowners,
renters, tenants, Airbnb hosts, small condo residents,
and more.

Browse Houzz for inspiration (popular products include

pillows, decorative accents, lamps, rugs,
wall clocks, and artwork).

Some products focus on style and others on function.

Think about how your business can introduce products made for
the bathroom, bedroom, baby room, bar, garden, and other areas
of the home. If there’s something you’ve found yourself wishing
you had in your own home, there are probably others out there
wishing the same thing.

Business ideas
1. Sell smart home accessories, like 7. Curate and sell survival kits. 14. Sell organizers or furniture
smart locks, for Airbnb hosts to for small apartments.
manage their business. 8. Sell partyware and/or
party planning services. 15. Sell cookware and kitchen
2. Produce bedding focused gadgets for people who are
on a certain need (such as 9. Sell baby products for new serious about home cooking.
hypoallergenic sheets or parents, like baby cameras,
weighted blankets). toys, and parenting courses. 16. Sell succulents or terrariums
for people who want to add
3. Create a store selling 10. Create a barware company low-maintenance greenery to
products for home offices, (bar cart, ice makers, cocktail their dwelling.
such as whiteboards, standing sets, etc.).
desks, and organizers. 17. Create eco-friendly
11. Sell cozy fabrics, cleaning products and sell
4. Sell smart mirrors. like throw blankets. them to environmentally
conscious homeowners.
5. Sell posters, paintings, or 12. Put cute or artistic designs on
art for people to decorate their throw pillows and sell them online. 18. Curate a home gardening
walls with. (Think if there’s a kit for apartment tenants.
specific aesthetic or vibe to 13. Target renters with blinds
double down on.) and other temporary home fixtures.

6. Sell ornate lights and lamps.

08
Tips

Master product Build a presence Get creative with

photography on Pinterest ad targeting
Learn how to showcase the Pinterest is where a lot of Many paid advertising
best side of your products, people plan out home platforms let you target
as many customers will want makeovers and save based on location, and
to see how they’ll brighten products they’re thinking some, like Facebook, even
up their homes and about purchasing. As one let you target homeowners
day-to-day lives. of the biggest search specifically. You can also
engines for this purpose, consider using Google
it’s definitely a channel Shopping ads to advertise
worth considering. your products to people
searching for them.

Product idea
The nakiri knife is a Japanese vegetable
knife with a straight blade that has yet to
be popularized in western markets. This
knife and other unique cooking tools can
be sourced through Oberlo and sold
through your own Shopify store.

09
Gaming
There are over 2.5 billion gamers around the world,
ranging from console gamers to PC gamers to
mobile gamers.

Mobile gaming, in particular, is a fast-growing

segment, especially among casual gamers.

With the rise of esports and spectatorship (watching

people play video games competitively or casually),
the total audience size for the gaming industry has
never been bigger.

This doesn’t mean that analog games are on their

way out. Tabletop and board games are still alive
and well, and with Kickstarter, you can bypass
many of the traditional routes to bring your own
game ideas to the market.

Business ideas
1. Import and sell mobile gaming 8. Create artistic decals 13. Sell personalized decals to let
accessories, like gamepads, power for specific consoles (PS4, people put their names or gamer
banks, and phone cases. Nintendo Switch, etc.). tag on their consoles.

2. Become a Twitch streamer and 9. Cater to PC gamers with 14. Create 3D models, musical
sell merch and sponsorships. top-of-the-line accessories scores, and other assets to sell as
and products. digital products that indie game
3. Sell gaming headphones developers can license.
and mics for live streamers. 10. Sell apparel that
references aspects of
4. Crowdfund your own tabletop gaming culture or appeals
or digital game. to specific communities.

5. Sell ergonomic gaming gear 11. Create your own mobile game
(gaming chairs, wrist rests, etc.). and publish it on Steam, iTunes or
the Google Play store (monetize
6. Reach out to popular indie it directly or through in-app
game developers and offer to purchases, ads, or merch).
sell their merch.
12. Create your own card game
7. Source and sell gaming hardware, and sell it online or approach
like keyboards and mice. game stores.

10
Tips

Find gamers on Consider Seek out

Twitch, YouTube, crowdfunding communities
and Discord
You can grow your own Video game and tabletop Gaming is a broad category,
audience through some products tend to do well on but you’ll find that gamers
of the biggest channels, Kickstarter. In fact, some of the organize themselves into
where gamers watch most funded projects in communities online (Reddit,
everything from reviews Kickstarter’s history were Discord, Facebook Groups),
to Let’s Play videos, or games like Kingdom Death: and offline (Meetups) based
work with YouTubers Monster and Exploding Kittens, on their shared interests
and Twitch streamers to which raised several millions of in gaming.
promote your products. dollars on the platform.

In 2018, gaming
outgrew all other
forms of entertainment
in revenue.
Gaming $ 116B

Television $ 105B
Film Box O�ice $ 41B
Digital Music $ 17B

Source: Reuters

How we made
$2,416 in 5 weeks
selling gaming glasses
Sometimes a business idea can
be as simple as taking an existing product
and marketing it to a different audience.
In this case study’s example, it was
blue-light blocking glasses for gamers.

Read case study

11
Outdoor
Recreation
Outdoor recreation represents a broad economic sector, encompassing products
and services for a wide variety of activities, from camping, hiking, and fishing in
the summer, to skiing and snowboarding in the winter.

The outdoor sports industry is projected to grow annually at a rate of 9.4%, putting
the projected value of the industry at $30.8 billion by 2024. On top of this, the share
of millennial purchasers is growing, something expected to benefit the industry.
Millennials have been shown to be more avid outdoor enthusiasts. Although they
reside mostly in cities, millennials seem to place a higher value on “getting away”,
which explains why they’re considered a valuable long-term target market for
the industry.

The great thing about selling products for outdoor activities is the broad range of
products and services you can offer. You may consider building a brand around a
single hobby or activity, a group of related hobbies, or a more specific niche within
a broad category of hobbies.

The urge to get outside has never been more pressing. Tons of potential customers
are taking up new outdoor pursuits, and they’ll need gear, apparel, and the right tools
to do it.

Business ideas
1. Sell bikepacking supplies like 7. Sell supplies for gardening and 12. Drop-ship scuba-diving gear
special bike carriers lawn care, such as seeds, planters, and supplies such as snorkels,
and equipment. outdoor decor, soil, and tools for wetsuits, and special equipment
garden maintenance like waterproof cameras and
2. Drop-ship gear and apparel diving lights.
for hiking-enthusiasts, like 8. Create an electronics brand that
specialized footwear, coats, specializes in portable, 13. Sell ski and snowboarding
walking sticks, and backpacks. outdoor-friendly electronics like equipment like poles, goggles,
satellite walkie-talkies, bluetooth boots, helmets, and winter apparel.
3. Create a camping brand and speakers, waterproof cameras, and
offer portable cooking supplies, solar-powered chargers 14. Create a rollerskating
tents, sleeping bags, and brand and sell skates alongside
outdoor furniture. 9. Drop-ship fishing supplies, such equipment like pads, helmets,
as fishing rods, baits, tackle boxes, skate bags, and special parts like
4. Sell equipment for net and nets, and boating gear. wheels and bearings.
racket sports like badminton,
tennis, and racquetball. 10. Create a brand for 15. Develop a boating brand and
mountain-climbing enthusiasts sell products like anchors, tarps,
5. Develop an apparel and sell climbing shoes, helmets, navigation tools, bow thrusters,
brand centered around harnesses, climbing rope, and water-proof tape, and special
an outdoor lifestyle. travel bags. boat-cleaning products.

6. Sell swimwear, pool toys, and 11. Start a skateboard brand

inflatable furniture for lounging and sell apparel, footwear, decks,
on the lake. wheels, helmets, and other parts
and equipment.

12
Tips

Prioritize search Bet on referral Consider your

engine and social customers own hobbies
media ads Products in this category Do you have a favorite
often spread from enthusiast outdoor activity? You
You can find customers
to enthusiast through word can think about product
that share a specific
of mouth. Think about how categories you use or
hobby by targeting
you can encourage your products you wish
relevant interests on
customers to recommend existed and build your
Facebook and keywords
your products to others in business around that.
on Google.
their networks, such as Being a member of your
encouraging them to create own target market is a
and share content about your big advantage.
products or implementing a
referral program.

Product idea
Bikepacking is huge right now, and this
15L Bicycle Bag Rear Seat Pack is the
perfect accessory for recreational
bicyclists and food delivery workers.
You can find it and similar products on
Oberlo.

Inspiration:
CROSSNET
When brothers Greg and Chris Meade
(alongside their friend Mike Delpapa)
merged the school-yard game of
four-square with classic volleyball,
the new sport of CROSSNET was
born. After leaving their corporate jobs
behind, these three founders went on
to develop a brand, manufacture their
products, and create an entire industry
around a sport of their own creation.

Read their story

13
Apparel and
Accessories
Fashion is one of the longest-standing categories on this list.
Clothing and accessories let people express their style, identity,
and personality to the world, allowing for multiple entry points for
would-be entrepreneurs.

One of the biggest trends in fashion is the shift away from fast
fashion—purchases with a short shelf-life—with the rise of
conscious consumers. That means people are willing to spend
more on fewer items that last. This spells a return to clothing that
makes consumers feel good about themselves.

Accessories such as sunglasses, watches, and handbags are

another category you can break into by selling directly to
consumers, competing on price without compromising quality.
These timeless products will always be in demand—people will
always need sunglasses as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow.
Consider emerging styles and evergreen identities you can cater to
with your own products.

Business ideas
1. Make and sell your own jewelry. 7. Sell clothing alteration services. 11. Start an apparel company
targeting certain regions
2. Flip your thrift store and 8. Create fun t-shirts for people (e.g., countries, cities, even
vintage finds. from a certain culture (e.g., West neighbourhoods).
Indian, Chinese, Italian).
3. Become a fashion or beauty 12. Start a fashion line inspired
blogger/vlogger and then sell your 9. Create fun t-shirts for people by your cultural roots.
own products or sponsorships. with a certain profession (writer,
entrepreneur, translator) or from a 13. Create and sell apparel
4. Offer sarees to rent or buy online. certain industry (tech, healthcare, products that cater to certain
business). enthusiasts, such as anime,
5. Start a clothing rental business. gaming, or hockey.
10. Sell witty t-shirts for
6. Start a clothing company pet owners. 14. Sell minimalist watches,
to serve plus-size customers. clothing, or sunglasses.

14
Tips

Leverage Focus on a Let them “try on”

print-on-demand niche market your products

Consider partnering with Customers have endless From photos of models

beauty vloggers on YouTube, options when it comes to wearing your products to
bloggers, or Instagrammers clothing, but don’t let that sizing charts, there are
to access their audiences of intimidate you. You can several ways you can help
beauty enthusiasts. Consider compete by niching down shoppers see themselves
offering them a free sample and simply serving a segment in your products, feel better
of your product to review. of the larger market better about buying, and reduce
and more deeply than your returns and exchanges.
the competition.

Print-on-demand:
A low-risk way to start

Print-on-demand lets you create and

ship custom products without holding
any inventory yourself. There are many
print-on-demand companies that help
you easily put your own designs on
t-shirts, sunglasses, phone cases,
leggings, and more.

Read guide

Inspiration:
Peace Collective
Peace Collective is an apparel company
that lets you wear your Canadian identity.
It has found great success in tapping into
viral moments and local pride.

Listen to podcast

15
Beauty
The beauty category is valued at $532 billion. And that’s no
surprise when you consider the repeat business potential in
this space and success stories like Kylie Cosmetics and
Jefree Star that were driven by social media influence.

According to an Ipsos report on the future of

beauty, the biggest trends in the beauty industry
surround diversity, inclusion, and sustainability.

The industry is starting to see more Asian influences in beauty

products, such as kimchi as a beauty ingredient and
K-pop–inspired cosmetics. New brands are also being built
around largely underserved consumer segments, like the male
beauty space,products for darker complexions, and other
opportunities to niche down.

Business ideas
1. Source cruelty-free makeup to 7. Start a skincare company based 12. Become a makeup artist
sell online. on a certain routine. or hairdresser.

2. Dropship cute makeup brushes. 8. Sell Korean beauty products, 13. Create an all-natural,
like silicon sheet masks, snail toxin-free shampoo.
3. Sell hair extensions slime, and skincare routines.
(an estimated 130K people search 14. Sell scented bath bombs.
for hair extensions each month, 9. Become a beauty blogger
including clip-in, tape in, halo, etc.). and build an audience you 15. Sell beauty or grooming
can monetize. products for men.
4. Buy cosmetic products in
bulk and curate them into a 10. Sell your own makeup 16. Create and market a new
subscription box. organizers/bags/containers. skincare routine.

5. Sell fake eyelashes. 11. Innovate upon common dental

products (teeth whitening kits,
6. Sell makeup for toothbrushes, floss).
darker complexions.

16
Tips

Consider Check local Invest in your

influencer regulations packaging
marketing
Consider partnering If you are making your Beauty products should
with beauty vloggers own cosmetic products, be aesthetically pleasing
on YouTube, bloggers, or be sure to follow themselves. Create a
Instagrammers to access local regulations. memorable unboxing
their audiences of beauty experience for your
enthusiasts. Consider See the FDA rules customers and increase
offering them a free sample for guidelines. your chances of getting
of your product to review. word-of-mouth referrals.

Learn how to sell

makeup online
From positioning your brand in a
crowded market to manufacturing your
own products, learn the ins and outs of
starting your own cosmetics company
in our step-by-step guide.

Read guide

Inspiration:
Tribe Beauty Box
With only $200, Bili Balogun launched
Tribe Beauty Box and grew her
business to over $300,000 in sales in
16 months.

Listen to podcast

17
 Coming up with a solid business idea is

How to
just the first step. The rest is following
through. Embarking on your own
entrepreneurial journey is exciting,
Bring your but it won’t be easy. We’re here to help.

Business If you’re not confident enough yet, you

can try to validate your idea first. But if

Idea to Life you’re ready to run with your business

idea, the next step is to find and source
products to sell. Here are some of the
ways you can do that:

Make and sell your own products

Many entrepreneurs start off with their own handmade products,
whether it be bath bombs or jewelry. They start off selling to friends
of friends through Etsy or Instagram, eventually scaling their
business to reach new audiences.

Sell handmade products

Create digital products

Digital products like courses, music, plans, designs, and
templates can be created once and sold endlessly.

Sell digital products

18
 Customize print-on-demand products
Print-on-demand lets you customize white label products, like
t-shirts, backpacks, books, and more. When a customer places an
order, your product is printed and shipped without you needing to
hold any inventory.

Sell print on demand products

Start a dropshipping business

Dropshipping lets you partner with a supplier who fulfills orders
on your behalf, letting you sell other people’s products without
shipping them yourself.

Start a dropshipping business

Create your own original product

Creating your own original product is an exciting way to bring
something new to the market or even create your own category.
You can crowdfund your idea or find a manufacturer to bring
your idea to life.

Create your own product

Start your free 14-day trial of Shopify

today — no credit card required.

Start my store

19