Businesses of all sizes have had humble beginnings. Apple, for instance, started in a garage. Your garage is a great place to start a business, especially during a pandemic when you have to stay at home as much as possible for your safety. Since the garage is also removed from the rest of your home, locating your small business there is also a good way to keep clients and customers out of your living quarters to maintain social distancing.
Your garage is also a good place to start if you do not yet have the funding to start a mobile business. Your garage is the perfect place for a small business to slowly gain traction. Here are some ideas for a garage-based small business.
Car and bicycle repair
Garages are places for keeping mainly cars, bikes, and their parts. As such, technical and mechanical businesses might be some of the first to come to mind when brainstorming garage-based small businesses. Offer car maintenance services such as tinting windows, car washing, and minor to major repairs. Why stop at cars? You can also extend your expertise to motorbikes and bicycles.
Pet grooming
The pandemic must have been a joyous time for pets – their owners being home all the time means they always have someone to play with and give them attention. Unfortunately, unless their owners are trained pet groomers – or are at least brave enough to try – this attention doesn’t include proper and complete grooming.
According to the American Pet Products Association (APPA), 85 million American families own a pet. Given that this is 67 percent of all U.S. households, you won’t have difficulty finding a market in your region. You can also sell other pet products such as collars, pet food, and food bowls.
Clothing
If you’re not interested in starting a business centered on mechanical work, why not be a clothing retailer? We mentioned earlier that tech giant Apple started in a garage, but did you know that the clothing and merchandise retailer Hot Topic also started in a garage?
Selling apparel in your garage would be just like having a garage sale. But keep in mind that the pandemic has changed our purchasing habits of clothes – among many other things. Attire for going out isn’t in high demand at the moment. The clothing you’ll want to sell for pandemic-era consumers is loungewear and pajamas. This can also include accessories such as sleeping masks and bedroom slippers.
Bookstore
There’s something undeniably romantic about bookstores. And using a home as a backdrop for a bookstore adds even more charm. People have been reading more since the pandemic started, so a bookstore might be the right small business for you.
Food
The great thing about food businesses is that you’ll always have a market for them. But be aware of the competition you’ll be up against. For instance, many people have been creating small businesses out of their baking hobbies. It’s best not to underestimate just how many people have done this – baking ingredients such as flour and yeast became so in demand during the pandemic that many areas experienced shortages.
If you also plan on doing a business out of your home-baked goods, make sure to set yourself apart from them in some way and that this is apparent to your market.
You can also opt to sell specialty foods such as truffles, truffle oils, artisan cheeses, and artisan chocolates.
Plants and gardening supplies
Gardening is another coping mechanism born out of the pandemic. A quick scroll through your social media timeline will show you how many of your friends have become “plant parents” during the lockdown. To accommodate such consumers and encourage their “plant parenthood,” you can become a retailer for gardening supplies. These include planters, soils, fertilizers, seeds, sprouts, and gardening gloves.
Wellness products
Due to rising statistics of mental health issues amid prolonged isolation, people are putting out all the stops in caring for their mental (and physical) wellbeing. With vacations and beach trips out of the question, consumers are diverting their attention to products that can help create or simulate relaxing experiences at home. Apart from exercising, meditating, and partaking in mindfulness activities such as baking and gardening, consumers spend money on wellness products such as scented candles and essential oils.
Other wellness products include weighted blankets and weighted sleeping masks, which promise better sleep through deep pressure stimulation (DPS).
Great things begin at home, and that includes business opportunities. Start a business in your garage and see where it takes you.
