Seriously Now; What type of business would be good to start at this point in our economy?????

[hang a left]

I know some of you jokers are going to love posting your funnies in this thread. But I really need to get some ideas. We are looking for a business to start to be able to survive and thrive once the wheels come off.

Thanks Mucho!!

[no_hypocrisy]

1. Pawn shops??

[LSK]

80. check out this site

www.prosper.com

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

2. Predatory lending for desperate people.

It's all the rage here too. "EASY MONEY", the adverts say.

Your new bankruptcy law should make it even tastier.

[robinlynne]

3. solar energy!!!!!!

[GumboYaYa]

10. I have been positioning my business in the alt energy field for the past

several years. We are growing like crazy now.

[gravity]

18. What type of energy is it?

[GumboYaYa]

50. I am an attorney.

About four year ago, I started focusing on alt energy businesses exclusively. Today, I can't keep up with all the clients I am getting.

There are lots of opportunitties in alt energy right now. What is your current work background?

[conscious evolution]

55. What about for an electrician?

Any ideas or leads for getting into the installation side of things?

[GumboYaYa]

67. Learn to do HVAC installation of Alt energy products.

We are training a lot of electricians to do that through one of the businesses I work with.

[conscious evolution]

72. I am exploring the idea of doing

solar or wind power conversions as a subcontractor.Any companies you involved with in need of such?

[notadmblnd]

79. where would one get that kind of training?

would it be on the job? A program at a local community college? I know someone that this would fit perfectly, I'd like to be able to put something on his mind so any answer would be greatly appreciated.

[rkc3]

21. Don't even have to go that far - do energy assessments.

Take a look at current energy use for households - create a detailed plan for reducing energy costs, including insulation, weatherproofing, etc.

Provide estimates of savings and recommend a few good contractors who could do the work and provide costs to make changes.

[gravity]

26. Thats a great idea for a business

I should start a business like that and give you some competition :evilgrin:

[rkc3]

29. I have to get into it first - after I learn the difference b/w a water line

and a gas line.

[gravity]

33. Oops, I thought you were GumboYaYa

well anyways, great plan

[gravity]

4. Make something catering to the wealthy

The middle class aren't going to be able to pay for anything in the future.

[peace13]

5. Exactly! n/t

[peace13]

7. Exactly! n/t

[erinlough]

42. To further elaborate....

Do something for the wealthy that they really want and have no chance of doing themselves. Then charge more than you know it's worth and keep them waiting a long time for it. Dress nice and hire attractive people and you can't go wrong. I swear these are lessons that I learned from my BIL who had an irrigation business putting in Underground Sprinklers. No way would the rich get their hands dirty installing this stuff. He would make them wait all summer, not rip them off but charge top prices and get his kids, who were a group of great looking guys, to wear professional looking izod tee shirts and clean jeans while they were installing. It put two kids through college, one a phd, and gave them travel and an early retirement. I think service is the way to go trendy things come and go but service is something you have to have.

[Virginia Dare]

81. Back to the Victorian/Robber Baron age...

those who serve and those who are served.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

6. Based On The Wheels Coming Off Reference, How Bout A Tinfoil Manufacturing Business?

Looks like lately its demand has risen greatly.

:rofl:

(Yup. You were right. Some of use are going to post our funnies)

[peace13]

16. Home security systems.

The 'Haves' will have to protect themselves from the hungry and homeless. We have been asking the same question here in Ohio. After suffering under Taft and Bush the economy has really ground to a halt in some areas. What will the rich need that we can supply? Peace, Kim

[grasswire]

8. shoe repair?

Seriously, won't some kind of repair service do well when people can't just afford to throw things away?

[Nay]

9. A bar. Honestly. If you can get a liquor license, you have it made.

In good times and bad, my FIL raked in the dough in his little hole-in-the-wall tavern in the middle of nowhere. I'm talking $120,000 a year.

[BluePatriot]

22. I second a bar or liquor store.

Times good? People want to drink. Times bad? People want to drink.

[NNN0LHI]

38. A bar or liquor store is recession proof n/t

[cindylouwho]

11. 4 necessities of life

Think shelter, water, fire (heat), and food

[Coyote_Bandit]

12. I am forced

to investigate the same question.

So far the best answers I have come up with involve health care and personal services for the elderly (including burial services), and (2) technical and trade skills involving tangible products rather than services.

A good plumber or electrician or seamstress or chef will do better in the emerging economy than most college educated folks who find themselves in debt and unable to secure work remotely related to their field of study.

[IDemo]

13. 'Bikes 'n Birks'

No oil? No problem!

[El Supremo]

14. Anything catering to oil & gas workers.

[GliderGuider]

15. An urban vegetable gardening consulting business

or how about a U-brew biodiesel shop? You supply the equipment and the expertise, and people can either buy or bring their own oils. They go home with diesel fuel.

[southerncrone]

17. Solar energy, if you are in a state where it would be feasible.

[Donnachaidh]

19. Classes in Living WITHIN your means?

One potential class title --

"No, your 6 year old does NOT require a cellphone." :eyes:

[geardaddy]

20. Privatized mercenary business n/t

[DaveJ]

23. Manufacturing.....?

I say manufacturing, not in a generic sense, but in the sense that you think of a new and original product, manufacture it, and sell it (...either in mass or for a high price per unit depending on the item). It's amazing how many widgets and gadgets there are that are incredibly obscure yet make a fortune for the owners. That's what I'm trying to do, and almost finished with. The only catch is, it may take years to design such a product, or in some cases, even think of one that people would like. But it's not that hard. Since there are billions of people, you can sell a mere 1 item for every 100,000 people and still make good money. On the other hand, starting a business from a pre-made stencil would make me nervous.

[Solon]

24. Suicide Booth Incorporated.

[FatDave]

31. Would you like...

Would you like quick and painless or slow and agonizing?

[Solon]

49. Slow and agonizing, makes me feel alive...

Besides, right now, it would be an improvement over what I feel, damned flu.

[Turbineguy]

25. I've been thinking about

"Investors Retribution Service". IRS for short (catchy acronym n'est pas?)

Perhaps I should not go into details as they will surely provoke a mods delete.

But seriously, movie theaters did OK during the Great Depression. People need a temporary respite from their troubles.

[porphyrian]

27. A dive bar. - n/t

[Joanne98]

28. A non-for-profit....

Read "The Starfish and the Spider"....

[gravity]

30. Beer delivery service

I always thought that this would be a really successful business, and you will cut down on people drinking and driving.

I don't know if its legal though.

[nyrnyr1994]

73. I've heard of this idea...

Sounds like it would be a good one too, I found this article about how this idea has flourished in Mexico:

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3469/is_14_56/ai_n14696689

~snip~
But in Nogales, Sonora--and most of northern Mexico for that matter--you can just pick up the phone and have your favorite brew delivered right to your door. At no extra charge.

For instance, a dozen quart-size bottles of Tecate cost $19.59.

Beer lovers in Mexico have enjoyed home beer delivery for about five years. It's part of the service offered by distributors of the country's major brands, such as Tecate and Corona in northern Mexico.
~snip~

[CK_John]

32. Repo, lock picking, making rickshaws and shopping charts. n/t

[leftofthedial]

34. plague body removal

alternative energy

sustainable agriculture

undertaker

butler (but the aristocrats will only need a few thousand of these)

house servant (but the aristocrats will only need a few thousand of these)

gardener (but the aristocrats will only need a few thousand of these)

tax collector for the local lord

[trashcanistanista]

35. Barbwire fence sales n' service

for homeowners.

[Pangolin]

52. Soylent Green manufacture n/t

.

[kerry-is-my-prez]

36. Something that caters to the elderly - the baby boomers will be seniors.

n/t

[mtnester]

37. As a wife (free bookkeeper) to a hubby who started a new business Sept. 2005..

we are doing very well in what is normally the "slow" time of the year in what could be considered home repair. Specifically, repair, replace and new installs of garage doors and accessories.

No one is able to sell their homes, and I think most folks have figured out they either will not be able to sell (market) or they over brought two years ago and will have to sit in that house now for quite a while so they do not take a bath. People are stepping back and going..."hmmm, I cannot (for whatever reason) sell the house for quite a while, so let's see what we can do to make our stay here better? New cabinets? New counters? Maybe I should fix that roof now that I am stuck here..."

Repair - plumbing, heating, home repair (general)...etc...I personally think will take off while the housing bubble is gone, and people are nervous.

[donco6]

40. Yes.

I agree with this idea. Anything along these lines - carpet installation, cleaning, painting, roofing, landscaping, sprinkler installs, CONCRETE WORK, plumbing retrofitting (jet tubs, new showers), etc. etc.

[trackfan]

39. Catering/Food

People always gotta eat.

[Faux pas]

41. Illegal documents. n/t

[razors edge]

43. Funeral Parlor. n/t

[Mr. Ected]

44. Buy Rental Properties

With foreclosures skyrocketing, people need to live SOMEWHERE.

Buy investment properties, rent them out at predatory rates, and the poor slobs who just lost their homes will be FORCED to pay your mortgage.

I know it's sick, but it's true, and it answers your question.

[MissB]

45. Setting up small gardens for urban dwellers.

There are a couple of people in this city that have started businesses to do this. Great if you have a green thumb.

[grannylib]

46. Here's my dream: a conversion shop to convert vehicles to biodiesel/

veggie oil or whatever, and a station for refueling those vehicles, with a free exercise room (bikes, treadmills, whatnot) all attached to run a generator to help power the place (and both active and passive solar and green roof technology wherever possible).

Would it work???

[RevolutionStartsNow]

47. Not a gloom and doom idea (there are some here, no doubt)

Anything that supports developing technologies in the US and around the world. I know many people here are screaming Depression, but from my perspective the use of the internet (for data delivery and communication) is only going to grow, exponentially.

Just my .02. I am more positive than most, based on the business I'm in and where I see these kinds of things going.

[Vinnie From Indy]

48. It is the AUCTION business that will thrive.

going...going...gone!

[Mr. Ected]

51. Professional Translation Service

Train and certify bilinguals in medical, legal, etc. translations.

Trust me, the industries lack them and need them desperately.

[ComerPerro]

53. Why don't you tell us what your talents are, what you want to start

and we can go from there? Find a way to expand on that. Otherwise your serious suggestions are way too broad.

[hang a left]

57. talents??

hmmmmm let me think.........................................................
............................................................................
still thinking..............................................................
............................................................................
can't come up with anything. Have a little cash though.

[ComerPerro]

62. lol. Well, reason I asked is becasue I don't want to suggest, say, something in financing

if the OP doesn't have experience or desire in that field. So I'm wanting to guage the interests and abilities, to see what kind of business can be started from that.

[Neecy]

54. auto repair

A lot of people won't be able to afford new cars and will have to keep the old ones running.

[electprogdems]

56. any sort of handyman services

You just can't find one around here, and the contractors will not even return your calls for small jobs, meaning stuff like fence repair, roof repair, small plumbing/electrical jobs.

Like us, most families here are 2 income, and any service that makes our lives easier would be appreciated, anything involving childcare, child transportation, meals, housecleaning, stuff like that.

[jeffrey_X]

58. Hair is neve going to stop growing...

how about some type of product or service revolved around the hair industry??????

[kineneb]

59. anything hands on that cannot be offshored

auto repair, plumbing, electrical work, shoe repair, etc.

Practical things that people will continue to need for maintenence of what they already have.

Just my ideas.

[Decruiter]

60. I'm amazed no one yet has suggested geriatrics. Lots and lots

of seniors are going to be needing lots of health care and personal services.

Assisted Living, anyone?

Even outside of the US.

[eridani]

61. Repairing just about anything n/t

[treestar]

63. Something medical

Medical billing, etc. Baby boomers are aging. Anything medical or purporting to help in the areas of health and aging. Services that drive the elderly around, or do their errands for them. Repairing of aging housing, plumbing, etc. Providing nurses and other home health care professionals.

[Parche]

64. Oil Business

Call it 'Hangaleftiburton'

[The2ndWheel]

65. Hang A Left's Wheel and Axle Shop?

Survive AND thrive? You might want to just look into one. Why be greedy? Although I guess if you corner the market in wheels, you could end up like a Wal-Mart, Monsanto, Exxon. Everyone would protest you. Down with Hang A Left's Wheel and Axle shop!

[Wcross]

66. A private prison? n/t

[Lorien]

68. Organic landscaping and pest control

seriously. A friend of mine started such a company in CA four years ago, and within two years it was so successful that she had to hire ten employees and was pulling in a six figure income. She started by going to seminars given by a biologist who had developed "organic lawn teas" that replaced lost microorganisms in depleted soils. People are becoming aware that chemlawns can kill small pets and sicken children, so many are seeking an alternative.

[librechik]

69. My husband is a baker.

People always need bread, no matter what, where or when. And flour is cheap. At the Entenmann's factory they spend about 3 cents on materials for each loaf they sell for 3.50. Volume volume volume.

It's a happy business, with some art and science in it. We know some folks who run tiny bakeries in little towns in the mountains and are happy as clams.

I've seen complete bakery equipment for sale in the want ads for pennies on the dollar. The only thing is, it's hard work and you have to get up early.

Good luck!

[AngryAmish]

70. C.H.U.D. protection service

[Bluedogvoter]

71. and thats when the Chuds came after me!

[lpbk2713]

74. Buy a moving van and rent it out.

There are about to be a mountain of foreclosures thanks to BushCo economics.

[Matariki]

76. or a 'house staging' service for the coming competitive home sales market

[Matariki]

75. alt energy. recyclables, green waste management

health care products for the growing ranks of aging baby boomers. inexpensive community oriented entertainment.

most importantly, don't start a business catering to your fears - or you'll end up like those people who were selling Y2K survival kits. Start a business that speaks to what you know and love.

[Ugnmoose]

77. Buying foreclosed houses

There's lots of them around and more coming.

[ray of light]

78. funeral home. We're all gonna start kicking the bucket earlier and earlier.