hey

looking to start my own business but dont want to do the same run of the mill thing like everyone else does, food franchise, coffee shop, ect--theres just too many of them already; im located on the east coast of cda in a medium sized city that is growing at a fast clip;
id love to get a small little mall business or kiosk thing going with just a few employees including myself but not sure what product i should look at; i have an open mind but dont want anything food/drink realted; any ideas?;

Figure out something people need or want then work from there. You can't just pick an idea and go with it. You have to find a niche if you want to do well as a small business, I feel. Research is key.

WiMax stuff

Open 2 stores. One store will sell ties, one store will TIE the ties. It's genius!

I know this killer magazine called RX Tuner you can invest in :)

write a book about writing books to start a business.

you'll be rich! :D

That market is already saturated. You should look into knocking over a bank. :p

Pizza & a movie!

Imagine having Pizza Hut & Blockbuster under the same roof. Free delivery if you get a pizza or something like that.


I dont know, best I could come up on short notice.

I'm not sure what ye rlooking for bro... nobody is gonna give you their "good" ideas for busines.. they'd just do it themselves....

pay-per-minute internet kiosks in the malls. You would have to get several malls involved, but you won't have to actually be there all day.

I have a great idea. But, you'll have to buy it from me.

The best one I saw was when I was in Egypt. Toilet use was free, but you had to buy the toilet paper from a little kid in the corner.

why do you think there are so many food businesses and such??? b/c food is something people will always need. coming up with a totally new idea is very risky. chances are, it'll flop. take bubble tea for instance. over here on the east coast, many haven't heard/tasted it. it was HUGE on the westcoast. after a couple years, it just as popular as on the west coast. especially amongst the asian community. chipotle is huge right now...and it's such a simple fast food restaurant. if you can come up with a tasty item and expand on it, i guarantee it'll make more money than some kiosk and a product that might not be useful.

coldstone creamery...the idea is old fashion. but the way the store presents itself brings in so much business. vietnamese pho is really popular right now, it's just a regular dish to vietnamese, but a phenom to everyone else. chipotle is a freaking burrito, but it's HUGE.

IMHO, i think humans are comfortable with what they know and accustomed to. so if you take something of the norm and give it a slight twist or upgrade...it's sure to sell. that's just my opinion.

oh, and another thing. any kind of buffet will bring in money. who can resist affordable food that will leave you more than satisfied??

I'm going to create Chinese-Irish fusion cuisine and call my restaurant "McWong's."

danomite; good points; you are correct, food and drink are things people need and therefore they make good businesses, plain and simple;
i dont want to try and reinvent the wheel, just looking to do something a tad different form the norm;
i think the main reason why i dont want to do food is b/c im not really into it myself; id much rather sell something that i am passionate about and that i can really get behind; based on that i guess its stupid to be asking yall what you think, but i was just throwing it out there to see if there was anything that would catch my eye;

hey man...i think about it all the time. but in reality (i hate sugar coating things) people just like being in their comfort zone. taking risks just isn't an option, it's much easier and safer knowing where your money is going to be spent. that's what business is all about. i'm no business man, but i'm definately a consumer. so from a consumer's point of view, i'll tell you exactly what i will invest my hard earned money on. definately food! don't get me wrong tho, if you can figure out a totally original product and turn it into a huge trend...then you're up in the bill gates status (ok, maybe not bill gates...you know what i'm saying)

another thing that has come to mind is the age range you want to attract. teenagers isn't a good target. yes, they are willing to try new things and are easily manipulated. but majority of them don't have money. people in their 30-40's are now settling down with a decent job, family, etc. etc. they a little smarter with their money and won't be so willing to spend. my target would be for the people around my age. the 20's...we're still young at heart and definately looking for some excitement. usually making decent amount of money where we can get what we want. i'll tell you right now, if i see something interesting or anything that catches my eye...i won't think twice about getting it (bad habit). but that's how business' make their money.

anything dealing with food, night clubs, cafe (or any place open late where you can lounge), computer cafe (koreans call it pc bang), you get the idea.

nothing wrong with following a trend, it's guaranteed business. everyone does it b/c obviously it works. japanese made a car going around a turn a bit more exciting by drifting. it's a twist and people are crazy about it.

ok, sorry for the babbling :D it's late

My friend and I meet and talk about business ops. Like you, we talk about something unique without re-inventing the wheel. Without giving any of our ideas out, we focus on how lazy people will pay for stuff. The philosophy is that the customer believes that they are taking advantage of us when in reality we are the ones with their money.

OTOH, if ideas we're money everyone would be rich. An idea is only that until a risk is taken.

One word....Plastics.

Plastics? Pffft. I got a better word: Underpants.

Phase 1 - Underpants
Phase 2 - ???
Phase 3 - Profit

sex always sells.....
can anyone say PIMP....

Plastics? Pffft. I got a better word: Underpants.

Phase 1 - Underpants
Phase 2 - ???
Phase 3 - Profit

Been there, done that. ;p

http://www.dollardays.com/images/j11/27136lrvt.jpg

i dont know if your going to like this idea or not but a pool hall. i basically have a business plan for this.

Pizza & a movie!

Imagine having Pizza Hut & Blockbuster under the same roof. Free delivery if you get a pizza or something like that.


I dont know, best I could come up on short notice.

Seen one before, I think in Temecula ;)

chipotle is huge right now...and it's such a simple fast food restaurant.

Chipotle is owned by McDonalds. Might explain why they went from 1 in my neighborhood to like 40 in a 3 block radius.

There is a new type of business that is flourishing in Asia right now that you might consider implementing here in the states. Especially if you live in a very metro area.

They're called PlayStations. Basically it is like a pc-bang (lan gaming centers) but instead of computers you are in a room with a big screen tv and a bunch of game consoles. PS2, XboX, N64, etc. You punch in what game you want to play and it comes up on the big screen.

I thought it was a retarded idea at first (I mean, come on, who doesn't have a playstation at home?) but then I tried it out and it was pretty fun. And cheap to boot. At around 5 bucks an hour me and about 4 other people got to lounge on some very comfortable chairs and couches. The screen was a HUGE plasma tv thing. And we could pick up the phone and order food and drinks from the kitchen. That and the fact that the place had EVERY game imaginable really helps.

Since the PS3, Xbox360, and the Nintendo Revolution is coming out and very expensive, it'd be pretty nice to have a place in the neighborhood where I can go and hang out, and try all the games that are out before I cough up $50 to buy my own copy. And all at about the same cost as it woudl be to rent it at blockbuster.

The bulk of your profit comes from food/drink sales. The place I went to served alcohol so by the third game of Madden 2006, we were at our 3rd pitcher of new castle.

Just something to think about I guess.

You know, I have another idea that isnt original.

I wish to GOD that someone would open up a 21+ only movie theater.

With really soft and high chairs to suppor the neck and head. As well as built in permanent arm rests that are big enough for TWO elbows at once. Like you see in those fancy home theaters.

I'd be willing to pay $10~$15 to watch a movie in a nice theater, with cushy chairs, some cold alcoholic beverages, and a GUARENTEE that there will be absolutely no kids in the theater.

Shit, if I had $10million or so I would probably do this. The lobby area would be a giant bar. There would be an outside patio for smoking, which would be nicely decorated. Each theater would have amphitheater like seating with ample space and a maximum of like 100 seats per theater. I'll put up big burly bouncers at the door to kick out all those noisy kids and those couples that bring their babies to scary movies.

As far as business plans go I would need to know more information such as (capital, time, available resources, experience, risk factor that you are comfortable with, etc). Here are a few ideas:

Food:
McDonalds franchise: average cost of opening one over 1 million dollars
Subway franchise: average cost of opening one $50,000.00

Restraunt / Entertainment:
Pool hall - Approximately $90,000 in capital investment for building, leasing equipment, cost of licensing, and misc expenses.
General Bar - I would recommend this in a college town in a heart beat nothing but pure profit and you do not have to have much invested other than have people that will actually check ID's and not get you fined out of business.

Optional business oppurtunities:
Horse stable - low cost / time investment required
Jet Ski Rental - seasonal, lease equipment
Gas Station - Low cost, most major oil companies will supply all your needs and set everything up for you.

Already paying 10$ to see a movie in some places, and they are crappy =(

I hear there is a place here in San Diego that offers really nice seats and like a nice dinner and alcohol, I think they are more expensive than 15$ though. Wish I could remember what the name was.

It would be cool to see more of them though =)

really impressed with the constructive ideas being thrown out here; thanks people; really liked rx8blisss' lan room; tons of room for cross selling there and you could start it small;
str8cold, all good ideas but you are right i should give more info; ive got access to about 200k to start so it would have to be in that range and would have to at least break even or show some decent potential before i had access to more; i would also work there full time with no salary; i have no experience as a business owner;

You've got investment capital? Holy crap. XD

Just as a general tip, keep things small and accomodate as you grow. Don't dump all your money into a facility that can handle a large amount of what you're doing when you can easily accomplish it by using half the money. And for the love of capitalism, don't rush things. My feeling with the 9/10 businesses failing in the first year is that it's caused by people not planning or trying to do too many things too fast and burning out.

Open a Bubble Tea stand. Damn I am addicted to those little slimy balls.

They're all over the place here. :D

Never had a bubble tea. In fact, I only just heard of them very recently. :batman:

Just now showing up in DC. Though there are some asian bakeries that have had them for a while. Dude, all you need is some tapeoka (sorry for the spelling) some flavoring and coconut milk and a heat sealer for the top. $0.35 to make $3.50 to buy. Really, same goes for those shaved ice stands, but they are passe.

Bubble tea is a small meal. I only get it when I want a snack. And yeah, it's really cheap to make, all you need is the tapioca and Kool-aid. :p

Bubble tea is a small meal. :lol: