IN 2018, new businesses which found success tended to look towards well-established industries for answers rather than go down newer and more innovative paths.
The figures from 2017 showed what the most lucrative sectors to get into were, with the health industry being at the top with a total revenue of $36.3 billion [2]. Financial services along with consumer products and services were also flourishing. Other start-ups have emerged in rapidly growing sectors, such as online lottery betting and micromobility.
While the health sector covers a lot of ground, there were certain aspects of it which gained more attention in 2017. Women’s reproductive health was found to be one of the best fields in which to start a business in 2018. This was because greater numbers of women were opting to track their fertility or buy products to do with organic menstruation.
An astonishing 7.5 million women in the US [3] alone experience issues with fertility, so there is a booming market for products which assist with these issues. Fertility tracking tools help women select the ovulation day in order to give them the best chance of conceiving. Some successful start-up apps in recent years include Natural Cycles, Progyny (which has been described as the Uber of the fertility industry), and Maya by Plackal.
Another sector which has emerged as a lucrative industry for start-ups is the lottery. Lotteries have been in existence for decades but the way people play them is rapidly changing.
In the past, players were generally restricted to playing the lotteries available in their geographical location. In the USA, people had the options of their own state lotteries or countrywide games like MegaMillions.
In the internet age, things are changing, and lottery betting apps are allowing players to stake on various lotteries all over the world. Lottoland, an online lottery provider [4] doesn’t sell tickets for the draws, but instead allows its users to place a bet on the outcome.
This enables them to offer a multitude of different draws. Sites like this could lead to the traditional method of playing the lottery to die out, so it is proving a fruitful sector for start-ups.
A field being touted as a great one for start-ups in 2019 is micromobility, due to its success in 2018. This is a new form of transportation which is taking the world by storm, and it includes e-bikes, e-scooters, and e-skateboards.
The industry gained attention after Ford bought e-scooter start-up Spin for $100 million in November. Investors pumped $3.7 billion into the sector in the first ten months of 2018, and that funding looks set to continue for this fun method of getting around in the city.
Health, lotteries, and mobility all proved to be excellent industries for start-ups in 2018, and are set to offer opportunities in the year ahead. Those looking to start a company in 2019 should opt for well-established industries or up-and-coming sectors to give themselves the best chance of success.
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