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15 businesses ideas with a low investment

Tips / 14.01.2021

Does the entrepreneurial streak run in you?

Are you ready to start your own business, but are unsure of which road to pursue?

In this blog post, we highlight 15 of the most profitable and successful small businesses.

And the best part is that these businesses can be started with a low investment.

We hope to inspire you to take the next steps forward in your business journey.

In short, these business ideas are the following:

But if you’d like to find out more, keep reading below.

Let’s get started!

1. Catering services and food trucks

With the rise of the foodie industry, food trucks have become a popular go-to for food lovers.

Whether in parking lots, at weddings or at festivals and celebrations, you’ll find your favourite food at the back of a brightly-coloured food truck in your city.

If you have a passion for food, then opting for a food truck is a low-investment business.

You’ll need to keep in mind, however, that you’ll be working long hours.

If you’re not afraid to put in the time and effort, this venture could prove to be really profitable for you.

Similar to food trucks is the catering industry.

You might be catering to children’s parties, weddings or other special celebrations.

This industry is on the rise and if you have a passion for making tasty culinary creations, then don’t hesitate to start your catering business!

2. Web and logo design

The “window” to every successful business is its website.

That’s why if you’re gifted in this technical specialty, you can make a tidy profit for yourself.

With low overhead costs and a low investment on technology, you could find that working for yourself while creating neat and interesting web designs for your customers could bring in success.

A branch of web design is logo design.

If you’re a graphic designer with an eye for detail, you could really play a useful role in helping other businesses start out by helping them create their brand and brand identity.

With so many people being busy with their lives and jobs, taking care of the chores at home is the last thing they want to take care of.

That’s where you could potentially come in with your home cleaning and garden maintenance service.

Got an eye for cleanliness? Do you pay attention to details?

Then this business opportunity is for you!

3. Cleaning: home and garden maintenance services

Outsourcing of home and garden maintenance tasks that were previously done by individuals on their own is a thing of the past.

With so many people being busy with their lives and jobs, taking care of the chores at home is the last thing they want to take care of.

That’s where you could potentially come in with your home cleaning and garden maintenance service.

Got an eye for cleanliness? Do you pay attention to details?

Then this business opportunity is for you!

4. Tech repair and IT support

We are surrounded by technology in our daily lives.

In fact, we rely on technology to do our work and entertain ourselves.

But what happens when our trusty PC, tablet or phone stops working?

Many people would want to get that fixed so that they can resume their daily lives.

As a tech repair or IT support professional, you could use this window of opportunity and start offering this service to your clientele.

5. Personal training

Health and fitness are the name of the game in our busy, driven society.

With low overheads and a Personal Training certificate (which is also not expensive to obtain), you could consider this as your pathway to success.

There is always a high demand for fitness services as individuals strive to keep healthy and fit whilst leading their busy lives.

6. Courier and delivery services

Self-employed couriers do not have high overhead or start-up costs apart from fuel and vehicles.

One challenge that may get in the way of conducting this business is larger firms or being awarded the right contracts.

However, once your foot is in the door, you could easily and competitively start doing deliveries or couriering parcels and documents to the desired destination.

Just make sure to research the demand in your area, as well as ensure that your vehicle is in great condition to pass the necessary inspections.

7. Vacation rentals

Got a spare room that you’re not using?

Why not take advantage of this opportunity to rent it out?

You could use Airbnb or other rental sources to find your clientele.

All you need to do is calculate the costs of advertising, cleaning and supplies and you’ll then be able to know how much to charge for renting out your extra space.

8. Warehouse and storage

If you own a building or have a garage that’s not being used, then offering this to companies or individuals as storage space could be the business idea you’ve been looking for.

It requires little overhead and work.

The most important thing would be to have the right insurance in place in case of flooding, pest damage, theft or other potential hazards.

9. Language translators

Got the gift of the gab? Speak many languages?

Then joining the business of translations is your answer to a successful business venture.

With our interconnected and globalised world, translations are becoming increasingly important and there’s high demand for this service.

That’s why you can easily make use of your skills by offering language translation services.

Again, the overheads are low and you’ll need to rely on your own language expertise to provide this service.

But apart from that, demand is high while the initial investment is low.

10. Marketing, social media, copywriting and PR

The need for creative and engaging marketing and advertising these days is huge as many businesses seek to stand apart from the crowd.

However, marketing services can be expensive and that’s why freelance work in this field is growing.

If you’re a gifted storyteller with a penchant for creating high quality content – which is crucial in today’s marketing landscape – then all you need to do is advertise your services and start writing.

It takes a laptop or a desktop with an internet connection and copious amounts of coffee to stimulate your creative juices.

Therefore, overheads for freelancing in this field are very low.

You’ll need to be creative and imaginative and deliver high quality results – whether for social media, blog posts, writing press releases or other types of copy.

11. Auto repair and auto leasing

It can happen to anyone, anywhere and at any time.

Yes, car troubles.

Whether it’s a flat battery or tire, a broken windshield wiper, lights that don’t work or something more serious like a fender bender, there are millions of people who rely on their cars every day.

Car repair and leasing services can help individuals facing these types of dilemmas.

If you have the right experience and qualifications, then this business venture might just be your calling.

Research shows that in 2019, auto repair companies raked in big profits.

That’s why considering this line of work could be a good idea for you.

Just make sure you’ve got the right premises, tools and equipment as well as specialisations to carry out this type of work.

It will be a registered business, so you’ll also need to consider the nitty gritty that goes into creating one from the start.

However, once you’ve passed that hurdle, you can be on your way to making good money in no time with constant demand for your services.

12. Party services

It doesn’t matter what time of year it is, there will always be birthdays, anniversaries, weddings and other types of celebrations.

If you’re good at planning events, then party services might be your calling.

Overheads can be as low as you negotiate them with your subcontractors who’ll most likely deal with decorations and catering.

Event planning can be really rewarding and your clientele can range from catering to small kids’ parties to large corporate events.

13. Florists

Valentine’s Day, Easter, Christmas, birthdays, weddings, christenings and other holidays and special events are a natural part of our lives.

Flowers play a big role in celebrating and you might be tempted to open a flower shop.

You’ll need to source your primary products – the flowers – and prepare them in beautiful arrangements.

Luckily, flowers are not expensive to invest in.

Your biggest expense might be renting your store where you’ll sell flowers from.

Ultimately, this is another profitable business venture with demand for its goods strong no matter what time of year.

14. Tax, accounting and business consulting services

We all need to submit tax returns, but our knowledge of tax and accounting practices might not be strong and we could easily get lost if it weren’t for the helpful tax and accounting practitioners.

Hence, the high demand for these services.

In addition, bookkeeping services are vital for all businesses and you don’t need to work in an office to offer this service to your customers.

Taking this business online and offering it on a freelance basis could be your best bet.

Additionally, if you’ve been in business for many years, you may have developed a wealth of knowledge and experience that you could offer to your clients.

With low overheads and armed with your knowledge, this could be a very successful business venture indeed.

15. Handymen

Whether going at it as an individual, an employee of a bigger company or franchising – there are many opportunities for handymen.

Building, plumbing or electrical, the work of a handyman is always in demand.

That’s why if you have these skills, you should consider putting them to good use by starting your own business venture.

Conclusion

In this blog post, we spoke about 15 of the most profitable and lucrative small businesses.

Depending on your skill set and range of experience, you could easily enter one of these industries with your own business and not only not pay high overhead costs, but also build a profitable venture.

Whichever road you choose to follow, remember that payment acceptance will be a crucial part of your business.

This is where myPOS can help you with our versatile range of card machines and online payment solutions so that you can not only help your business grow, but accept payments seamlessly.

For more information and to see how we can help your business, feel free to contact us by emailing sales.mypos.com