Business Ideas for the (emerging) stay-at-home Economy?

[valuecreator]

I don't know about the US or Europe, but here in Australia all the places that sell vegetable seedlings and seeds have been completely cleaned up.

So I'm getting my boys to grow a massive amount of seedlings right now that they should start selling in about two weeks.

The cash will go into cryptos in the good old compounding grid. My boys calculated that for every $100 profit they make with this they should have around $2K worth of cryptos in 3 years. That's if the price stays are today's level. But that's another story.

 

[Mckenzie]

The impact of this event is about to put some big demands on the mental health space. I, myself, am starting to feel the effects of this. I am already mentally exhausted.

My daughter is working at a hospital & taking care of a Covid19 ward. she has to self isolate herself after work, she feels very tired & lonely....so, I got her a puppy! ..... Dog breeder as a business, anyone?

 

[Mastercool]

Telemedicine Services - Online Pharmacy delivering medicine to your door are going to explode...

 

[garyfritz]

Folks, I want to give you another idea. We need to reinvent the desk chairs for remote workers such as developers. Those ergonomic chairs are expensive and not very comfortable. I was thinking about an comfortable armchair with some sort of computer table attached to it. In this way you can stay in a comfortable position between a bed and a sofa and still focused on your work.

I spend waaay too much time in my office chair, and I wanted something to give my butt a break. I built a rack out of 2x2s to hold my monitor up in the air over my recliner (facing down at the chair), and I dug up an old ergonomic keyboard that split into two pieces so I could have one half-keyboard on each chair arm. Add a touchpad and shazam! You have a reclining workstation for almost nothing. Very little stress on your body. Unfortunately I'm quite tall so the recliner didn't fit me well and I couldn't stay in it more than an hour or so, but it was a sound idea. It would work a lot better if the monitor rack pivoted with the chair so you could recline at different angles. Maybe an idea for somebody looking at building ergo desks and whatnot...

 

[minivanman]

I spend waaay too much time in my office chair, and I wanted something to give my butt a break. I built a rack out of 2x2s to hold my monitor up in the air over my recliner (facing down at the chair), and I dug up an old ergonomic keyboard that split into two pieces so I could have one half-keyboard on each chair arm. Add a touchpad and shazam! You have a reclining workstation for almost nothing. Very little stress on your body. Unfortunately I'm quite tall so the recliner didn't fit me well and I couldn't stay in it more than an hour or so, but it was a sound idea. It would work a lot better if the monitor rack pivoted with the chair so you could recline at different angles. Maybe an idea for somebody looking at building ergo desks and whatnot...

I've often wondered why they don't make office chairs from minivan seats. To be honest, with all the people I know that weld and make stuff, I've often wondered why I haven't had one made for myself...... as my @ss is hurting while I type this.... I'll be texting my friend Gary tomorrow, I should have done this years ago!

Or, how about an interchangeable butt part on an office chair? Some days you may want a firm one or a soft one or even make one that is kind of like a donut except it is only felt and not seen (some people don't use donuts because they don't want others to see it) for people that need that sort of thing. You could even make one that has a warmer in it for the winter and make one with a cooler in it for the warmer months. No..... no one needs to make one that vibrates. We do not need Alice sitting at her desk through lunch with a smile on her face and then sleeping all afternoon

 

[minivanman]

I just had a Facebook messenger chat with my mums cleaner. (Isn’t that amazing in itself? Messaging someone in another country via a device in my hand...)

Anyway, the cleaner's been in for 20 mins to change my mum's bed covers, unblock the shower plug hole (it can get dangerously slippy otherwise), and do a quick vacuum. My mum was in another room. The cleaner wore gloves and disinfected surfaces as she went. Granted she didn’t wear a mask because it’s not the culture in the UK to wear masks (yet?).

I’m wondering how many old or vulnerable people who are self-isolated / cacooned will need a quick visit by a professional cleaner to keep their home safe and clean?

It depends which side you are looking at this from. If you are old, this would be GREAT if you can find someone that won't steal from you. As for being the cleaner or the company that provides the cleaner(s)..... we tried to stay away from old people. Our best customers were under 2000sf houses (1 floor preferably), as few kids as possible, as few pets as possible and both adults worked out of the home. Old people were time wasters and small payers when it came to the calculator. There are a few exceptions to every rule.

But speaking of old people.... how about someone that goes around and talks to them for 15 minutes, anything over 15 minutes and they are charged extra. This could be done as often as they want to pay for. Maybe the daughter/son could pay to have someone to visit mom/dad/grandparent in the nursing home once every 2 weeks or once a month. Once a month is better than 0 times a month the son/daughter goes to visit..... something like that..... what do you think? They could pay extra for you to take flowers or a card or something like that.

 

[Andy Black]

Home health is set to boom because of all the issues with assisted livings.

Cleaning services is a very generalized service. There’s 1k-10k avg. monthly searches just for that phrase. So high volume yes, but generalized. The more specific you get (ie carpet cleaning, house cleaning, janitorial services, etc.) , the lower the volume of searches. And when you throw in a specific location, it narrows the volume of searches down way more.

From the news articles and google trends I’ve researched...

1) cleaning services have been booming but that's pretty generalized

2) housekeeping and carpet cleaning have been getting hit hard in my area because people don’t want these providers in their home. I wonder how @IceCreamKid is doing in his area

3) janitorial and office cleaning services seem to be steady, but I’m assuming they are only operating within essential businesses since most places are shut down.

4) disinfecting services. This shit is set to boom obviously. Its not a very sought after topic on google because it’s such a niche category of cleaning services.

I built a simple landing page this week.

Should I make my ads and landing pages for cleaning services or get more specific with disinfecting services?

On one hand, cleaning services is vague and probably won’t have much of a turn over with generating leads, but there’s a huge market for it. On the other hand, disinfecting services might be too specific, but anyone who searches for that will probably be ready to buy, and the market is going to grow for that. And I have no idea how I would charge for a lead like that.

Any of the lead gen guys want to chime in?

Create Google Ads campaigns for all of them and see what happens?

 

[MattR82]

I stumbled across a tiny bookstore in my suburb of Paddington, Brisbane today. Literally has every single book ever mentioned on this forum and only about 10% fiction lol. My new favourite place.

Started chatting to the owner and he said he has tripled sales and is looking to rent out short term locations in other more affluent areas close to the CBD that aren't doing enough biz to stay open. He already has most of the stock, and only needs to fit the new locations out with some bookshelves. Thought it was funny and deserved to go in here.

He was never able to compete with the larger (but still independent) stores that had book signings and wine nights etc, but their range is quite limited compared to his and they are getting smoked.

 

[PizzaOnTheRoof]

Found this neat chart today. Good starting point to get ideas for picking up on what's trending right now, and will possibly be hot for the rest of the lockdown (and beyond!).

View attachment 31940

You can't seem to see the whole pic in the upload. I'll link to it here:

https://imgur.com/VKQXc67

View: https://i.imgur.com/VKQXc67.jpg

Some of these are good but most are commodities like soap, diapers, monitors.

Bread machines, crafts, and desks look promising.

Matter of fact, I'm validating a product in one of these categories as we speak...

Another opportunity...look at the bottom half and pick up some discounted inventory due to a drop in sales.

 

[garyfritz]

I've thought about this too. Maybe a spray/wipe on anti viral/bacterial compound that could be applied to handles, railings, buttons, etc.

Copper and silver naturally have anti viral/bacterial properties.

Stainless steel and plastic are both very friendly environments for COVID19. And of course ever doorknob &etc is shiny stainless steel.

Brass used to be the standard metal for doorknobs, railings, etc. And guess what? Brass, containing copper, is antiviral and antibacterial. Maybe we'll see a booming market for brass doorknobs & the like.

 

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[IceCreamKid]

2) housekeeping and carpet cleaning have been getting hit hard in my area because people don’t want these providers in their home. I wonder how @IceCreamKid is doing in his area

Completely stalled at the moment. Any non-essential biz that gets caught running in my area gets hit with a hefty fine. If you're willing to risk it, you can make a ton of money because there's literally zero competition right now. At this phase in my life I have too much to lose so it's not worth risking.

 

[EVMaso]

https://thereddidesk.com

That is freaking HOTT!!! I wonder how well these guys will do this year and beyond. Might spawn a whole new product category: furniture that is temporary, recyclable, easy to assemble, sturdy, functional, can be made to not look like a$$. (I'm excited about this since I work in the corrugated industry. Our designers can make practically anything, but it's usually high-end structures, displays etc.)

Also just want to add, I can find NOTHING ELSE on these guys right now (google, twitter, reddit etc.) aside from what's on the website and . . . The Fastlane Forum. Did one of YOU start this?

 

[MoneyDoc]

I think we need a new spin on grocery delivery... the current models are so overwhelmed and so inefficient...

One thing this pandemic proved - people are WILLING to pay extra for grocery delivery. Convenience > cost (especially in younger generations).

What if we have a "virtual" grocery store? No foot traffic allowed. Shop online or via an app, and your groceries are delivered via UPS/FedEx. The "amazon" of grocery? How convenient would that be? Logistics will be a challenge, but that's where entrepreneurs excel. Want an even further value add? Start your own supply chain and get the groceries delivered within hours to EACH customer.

No more "pushed back" time slots, 2 week wait periods, etc. This is one of the industries I think that will thrive once we get back to "normal living" alongside supply chain.

EDIT: Forgot to add. Supplements! People are EATING MORE. Diets are not being followed. People are more stressed. Weight loss supplements and nootropics will see an increase in demand. If you're a supplement brand owner, this is the PERFECT time to release new products.

 

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[MoneyDoc]

Uber or Lyft drivers while they're between calls.

Was actually thinking of something like “Uber” grocery. Why isn’t Uber capitalizing? They have the logistics...

GroceryPal
TaskMate
GroceryMate
RunMyErrands

 

[sonny_1080]

I like the idea of farm-to-table because every time I go to the grocery store to by fruit and veggies, I can't help but think about all the people that touch and breathe on the fruit that I'm buying.

Farm -> table minimizes that. Not to mention, the last thing I want to is go to the damn grocery store... but I love fruit. I'm sure other people feel the same.

This is my new thought process hahaha "what would Andy do? How would Andy think about this?"

Help local farms deliver more fruits and veggies to people's doorsteps. Hmmm...

 

[LightningHelix]

Are you using Microsoft a Remote Desktop?

I can NEVER get that to work right. I would love to set that up.

Cloud based would be more reliable than a single computer at a home. Also potentially more powerful and rent power as needed.

Both have advantages and disadvantages from where I’m standing.

Luckily, I have genius IT guys who help set me up, I've never looked how to do it myself.

It's pretty sweet, only draw back is I have to remind myself that my devices at home won't work for whatever I'm doing on remote desktop and vise versa. Like If I scan something at home, I have to send it to my work email via my own email. Can't use my webcam or microphone either in conjunction with stuff on my remote access.

 

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[MHP368]

I was just thinking a drive-in movie theater could actually be quite a hit in this brave new world.

Would it work with a makeshift sheet I wonder if you had the right projector?

Also as far as this thread in general , lots more tv and internet time now. Remember joe rogans podcast was founded in 2009 , people out of work have more time for staring and listening. Its gonna take quality to break through all the available chatter but in general that seems like a solid plan.

One I thought of is if you had a company that deliverd pre made "picnics" for families with kids that will be going out much more now , could be a subscription model thing maybe?

Right now and for the foreseeable future a trip to the grocery store is a bit anxiety inducing , especially with kids. Charge me say 50 bucks for enough food and snacks and drinks for a family of 4 or 5. I feel like if could get like a dozen or so folks in one area on board that itself would be a decent side hustle at least.

 

[minivanman]

I was just thinking a drive-in movie theater could actually be quite a hit in this brave new world.

We have a few around my area. I'll have to see if I can find out how they are doing or if they got shut down.

 

[Velocke]

It's pretty sweet, only draw back is I have to remind myself that my devices at home won't work for whatever I'm doing on remote desktop and vise versa. Like If I scan something at home, I have to send it to my work email via my own email. Can't use my webcam or microphone either in conjunction with stuff on my remote access.

Just discovered this recently, myself. I had used remote desktop to work from home before, but never tried to use conference call with webcam. Was disappointed that I could not show my colleagues my adorable cats. Wasn't disappointed for long, though...I just exited remote and logged into Zoom on my laptop, because everyone needs cute animals right now.
Yay, learning new things.

 

[reedracer]

My friend in San Francisco who hosts $150 a plate dinners for 10 as an AirBnB Experience is a Paris trained chef, Sommelier , and used to be marketer for a tech startup.
As she cannot host her dinners right now, she's holding Quarantine cooking parties.
I'm not sure if she'll charge for it eventually, but they sure are fun!

Cucina Testa Rossa | San Francisco CA

Cucina Testa Rossa, San Francisco, CA. 697 likes. Welcome to Cucina Testa Rossa! Please join me on my culinary journey. You’ll have a front row seat

www.facebook.com

 

[jeandearme]

Saw this on LinkedIn:

View attachment 31400


Found it only on Instagram here:
> http://instagr.am/p/B94tLg-HnbM/ View: https://www.instagram.com/p/B94tLg-HnbM/

I can already see it'll be uncomfortable for taller or bigger people. User of such desk won't be able to spread knees if went deeper with chair. That's not comfortable. Good idea, but so much room for improvement here!

 

[WM Roger]

For those searching for an all encompassing cloud sollution there's www.cloudalize.com
They offer gdaas cloud systems that bring your desktop and the computing power of a heavy workstation to any screen, tin-client, phone or whatever streams it. And quite reasonable price ranges.

 

[Lex DeVille]

@Lex DeVille ‘s freelancing courses are going to sell like hot cakes I suspect.

My sales are up from last month, but not significantly. Not in the way I expected at least. I've seen increases in demand in certain freelance skills and also in the number of proposals being submitted to gigs on Upwork. But I suspect many people are frozen (mentally) due to the sudden change to their lifestyle. Others aren't looking to learn new skills or start new ventures. I suspect that, in the U.S. at least, many are just waiting on those govt. checks to roll in.

 

[Roli]

One idea might be to provide shopping services for the elderly. Right now many older people are really scared to be in public and us younger people are in a position to protect them. So I think that a business that helps them get the things they need (for a reasonable delivery price of course)

Where I live, people have been doing this for free. It is one of the good things that's coming out of this, is we are all looking out for each other a lot more.

 

[reedracer]

From Angel List a summary of a NYT story. A lot of glittering generalities, but seems good. I do believe the company I work for (Big Tech, Inc.) has scored already with the massive remote worker upscaling for our customers. (My account went from support for 300 remote workers to 3500. We had 90% up with nary a glitch in 7 days and they were ready to go day one of the lockdown).

https://angel.co/today/stories/big-tech-could-emerge-from-coronavirus-crisis-stronger-than-ever-15579

Link to NYT at angel.co, here is the summary:

• While the rest of the economy is tanking from the crippling impact of the coronavirus, business at the biggest technology companies is holding steady — even thriving.
• Amazon said it was hiring 100,000 warehouse workers to meet surging demand. Facebook traffic for video calling and messaging had exploded.
• Microsoft said the numbers using its software for online collaboration had climbed nearly 40 percent in a week.
• Amazon has muscled in on brick-and-mortar retailers for years, but shoppers now reluctant to go to the store are turning to the e-commerce giant for a wider variety of goods, like groceries and over-the-counter drugs.
• Streaming services like Netflix have dampened box office sales for movies in recent years. Now, as movie theaters close under government orders, Netflix and YouTube are gaining a new audience.
• Companies were already dumping their own data centers to rent computing from Amazon, Microsoft and Google. That shift is likely to speed up as millions of employees are forced to work from home, putting a strain on corporate technology infrastructures.
• The largest tech companies could emerge on the other side of this much stronger.

 

[Mckenzie]

I loved that recording @Andy Black

The hard part is becoming qualified to answer the questions that help people without any real skills. Economics major + clothing store salesperson = useless.

Use your economic knowledge/degree to explain to the world how this pandemic crisis affecting their lives, and how the world is turning up side down when everyone is staying home with no income....etc...all this can be done using blogs, YouTube ...and capitalise on it.

 

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[Mckenzie]

Addiction will soon be an issue. So many people stressed out because of the outbreak or because they can't work and are dealing with it by drinking, smoking, porn and taking drugs. Just look at the US news for the number of booze deliveries companies are making. Going back to the workforce when this is all over will impact a lot of us and some might not be ready to go back to "normal living".

How are we going to help the guy that starts drinking at 10 AM because he has nothing better to do?

I read An article yesterday predicting divorces will skyrocket after this ., and what you said here was one of the reasons

 

[reedracer]

Also I think this era will force people to be a bit more creative with additional bedding as well.

View attachment 31833

View attachment 31834

I'm looking at plans to make our spare bed a Murphy. A roll-a-way bed cum desk would be cool for blizzards and other stuck at home instances

 

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[ChrisV]

Found this YouTube video that explains the brutally HONEST truth about making money and a living online or starting a business online that most people don't want to hear:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUFO2dS3plA

Are you a spammer? Going through your posts, you post like 70% legitimate replies, 30% sketchy links

I almost feel like you're a victim of these sketchy videos and you're just reposting them thinking they're enlightened,

 

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[ChrisV]

i'm thinking of how society will change due to all this... knowing that can help you plan businesses around that

i think some of the changes will be:

people working from home, people more conscious of germs, potential dismantling of the chinese communist regime, calculating the risk for various pandemics/catastrophes, greater trust in experts, more delivery services, closing of commercial real estate