Seasonal Business?

[Drake]

I was just curious as to what others thought about a seasonal business.

I do believe I just had my "MJ DeMarco Limo" idea moment, however, there is one downside.

The problem that concerns me is that the business is primarily seasonal. By this I mean roughly 6 to 8 weeks out of the year several million people will really benefit from this service but after that the remaining 40ish weeks will pretty much be slow. I know several Hotels and Cruises shutdown for specific seasons so it could still potentially be worth it.

My main concern is not being able to test it properly until those specific weeks which is a lot of wasted time unless I take up a side project.

Would really be interested in what some of you guys think.
Thanks!

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[The-J]

1) There was no 'limo moment'. His business was created out of many years of experimenting, testing, and seeing what would work.

2) If the business is seasonal, it doesn't mean it's not worth working on. Does it solve the need? And since the time is not yet, you have time to build it.

 

[petethepeddler]

Seasonal businesses can work.

Look at Income Tax preparation, Halloween costume stores, Christmas tree lots, etc.

Its really hard to form an opinion on what you've posted so far.

All you've said is that its seasonal (6-8) weeks and made a mention of hotels that close down
in off seasons.

We have no idea what your business idea is to comment properly.

 

[globalmargaret]

I don't know where you are located, but up here in rural Alaska nearly all businesses are seasonal and the owners do just fine. Most business owners (including myself) take advantage of the slow seasons to follow other muses while being open limited hours or by request of the locals.
If it fills a need or solves a problem, is profitable, and you have something to occupy your time in the off season then what could possibly go wrong?
I am not typically a huge fan of advertising before the company exists, but if you are talking eco tourism check with the local visitors center or chamber of commerce. Quite a few of them keep logs of how many people called asking for what service. Ask them if anyone has ever asked for your particular service before or if they know some good avenues to find potential customers. Sometimes they can even put in a plug for you with clients they know are looking for similar services.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[JasonR]

Almost all businesses experience some seasonality. I wouldn't let that stop you from testing the idea. Consider this: if you're idea/business makes you 6 in 2 months, that frees up the rest of your time to work on another business in the other 10 months.