When starting a business now, entrepreneurs should be looking to join an emerging industry, or one that is rapidly growing and producing products that people are hungry for... which industry is most likely to produce the most powerful companies of the future?
Wearable computing technology
Your smartphone will soon be considered as old as an eight-track player. In its place will be computerised contact lenses that can predict the weather or send you Facebook messages. This is wearable computing technology. With 3D glasses, watches and other personal devices, it will be ubiquitous in shaping your environment, interpreting what you see and telling you what you can do with it. What are the chances of success? Just think of the smartphone market.
Craft alcoholic beverages, fine beer
Never mind wine. Craft brewers and small spirits producers are booming as image-conscious drinkers seek out high-quality cocktails and beers. The smallest of these microbreweries and microdistillations are selling their products at high prices through high-end shops and farmers' markets. Revenues from micro-distilling grew by 29% in 2012, while at the same time revenues from micro-distilling increased by 32%.
Voyage specialists
Voyages have long attracted the cost-conscious and adventurous. Now the demand for alternative cruising experiences is driving the development of new cruise types. The 'adventurers' of the future will need specialist knowledge and personalised service. Think cruise trips, food and wine cruises, even foreign language cruises.
Online education
The cost of university has risen sharply and the job market remains tight, creating opportunities for companies offering low-cost or even free education online. These are not the diploma mills that the accrediting bodies have slammed, and several companies even boast the involvement of top universities in their management. Venture capitalists are already focusing on this, and established education company Kaplan is not far behind.
Healthcare technology
The impact of the new crown epidemic has accelerated the trend towards consumer-driven healthcare. Companies are looking to the market for aspirational products, including fitness apps and glucose monitors, designed to help consumers take control of their health and reduce their healthcare costs. Last year, digital healthcare companies raised $1.4 billion from venture capital firms, a 46 per cent increase from 2011. Insurers and technology companies are looking for acquisition opportunities.
Specialist online retail
Increasingly discerning online shoppers are looking for more business opportunities, from removable, movable collar shirts, personalised greeting cards, customised eyewear, to antique furniture. Fast-growing sectors include fashion sample sales, personalised greeting cards and photo printing. Sophisticated and customisable options in product lines, such as personalised greeting cards, are tugging at the emotional heartstrings of young, tech-savvy consumers and are raising prices.
3-D printing
The age of 3-D printing has arrived. The greatest growth is in low volume and complex products, and in highly technical industries such as aerospace engineering and medical devices: prosthetics or space shuttle parts. However, this is not the only opportunity. in 2018, the 3D market is expected to reach $3 billion, which will include a large number of 3-D printed toys and jewellery.
Virtual Data Rooms (VDRs)
Virtual data rooms allow you to store and access large volumes of files in the cloud:Imagine an enhanced version of Dropbox that is designed for complex transactions such as financial transactions and litigation that are sensitive and complex and require sophisticated controls and a high level of monitoring. Those large transactions require thousands of pages of documents, which can now be sold for 85 cents a page. In fact, this industry, now at $600 million, is expected to surge to $1.2 trillion by 2017.