6A: Identifying Opportunities

Opportunity #1: Economic Trend in Credit Card Terms

https://www.thebalance.com/credit-card-terms-everyone-should-know-4687035

This article is about comparing various credit cards, annual fees, points, etc. and which one you get the most bang for your buck. It discusses annual fees, credit scores, and minimum payment on the cards. I think there is an opportunity in this because people always want to spend the least amount of money, while getting the most reward back. I believe there is an opportunity out there to create a credit card where you get rewards, cash back, and do not have to pay fees simply because everyone is always looking for something better, and I believe that I could create something better in the credit card industry. The fact that the article discusses all the expenses you have to pay for a credit card proves that there is an opportunity that exists. The prototypical customer for this would be and established adult who uses a credit card for many things. They would be most inclined to use this because they want a credit card that makes them feel like they are saving money and/or getting something in return. I believe the idea of this is relatively easy, yet it is more difficult to exploit simply because you would need investments, banking, etc.

I saw this opportunity because I know how many have certain credit cards for certain reasons. For example, if someone flies a lot, they are more inclined to have that airline’s credit card to accumulate points, essentially justifying why they are spending so much money on the credit card. I feel like there is an opportunity out there to create a credit card that gives you rewards in various places, while also not charging you all those fees everyone else does, making my product more appealing than the average product.

Opportunity #2: With Fresh, Healthy Grocery Stores Closing, New Opportunity Emerges

https://www.supermarketnews.com/retail-financial/lucky-s-market-reportedly-closing-most-its-stores

Recently the grocery chain, Lucky’s, has announced all of its stores are closing in Florida, except one, and others closing across the country. They were losing moneys, forced into bankruptcy, and thus closed its doors. They have been having sales until the product was gone, causing chaos at the stores. Now, these shops will remain empty, hoping for someone to take over them. I believe there is an opportunity for something like this, simply because the only other competitor in Florida is Publix, which can easily be competed with. I used to shop at Lucky’s and I loved their product. I think there is an opportunity for a store like Lucky’s to exist, but also to have common, cheap essentials that they did not offer before. As a customer, I needed to go to Lucky’s and Publix, simply because Lucky’s did not have the products that I needed, which is why I feel like they did not succeed. I think this is opportunity relatively easy because there is not a lot of competition in this field. The prototypical customer would be anyone who is buying groceries, specifically healthy, cheap products.

I saw this opportunity because there is not a lot of competition in this field, specifically in Florida. I think it is appealing to people to shop somewhere that is clean, fresh, and convenient. I think Lucky’s lacked the convenience aspect of it, therefore it failed. Yet I think if I apply the convenience side, along with the rest of the appealing aspects, then it could be successful.

Opportunity #3: Regulatory Marijuana Selling

https://www.hcn.org/articles/rural-economies-get-high-on-legal-cannabis

As marijuana becomes legal in more and more states, there is obviously a market for opening up these shops, specifically when it is legal for recreational usage. I realized in this article that this is an opportunity because it describes how rural places, in this case Colorado, are making large profits off of opening stores, simply due to access and location. Compared to big cities in Colorado, the rural areas do no have access to lots of marijuana stores. Therefore, they opened up a business in the rural parts of the state, to appeal to the local people and making it much more convenient for them. The prototypical customer would be someone that lives in the rural parts of Colorado, who do not want to drive to a city to get their marijuana. They would be much more willing to drive 10 minutes down the street to the shop, rather than 30-60 minutes to get to the city. I think this would be relatively easy for many reasons. One the customers are there because you are not competing with anyone really. Another reason would be because you are in a rural area, so you have lots of space to grow your product.

I see this opportunity because it is so new, that places have not thought of these ideas yet. And if they have, they are in popular cities. For example, Gainesville has 3 cannabis stores that I can think of off the top of my head, all within ~2 miles of each other. However, I doubt there is a cannabis store between Gainesville and Valdosta, yet there are definitely people who live in that area that would go there. Of course recreational marijuana is not legal in Florida yet, but when it is, it would be easy to open up a shop in between those two cities and have lots of customers.

Opportunity #4: Non-Plastic Straws

https://www.wcjb.com/content/news/Gainesville-business-gets-warning-about-plastic-straw-ban-566389201.html

Gainesville recently outlawed plastic straws in the city, forcing companies to use paper straws. However, paper straws are horrid and become soft after a little time in the drink. I think there is an opportunity to make a straw out of recycled material, or simply anything other than paper because paper straws just do not work. There is an opportunity for this because no one likes paper straws, as well as they do not work, yet they are forced to be used because it is outlawed to use plastic. As someone who is a consumer, I personally know there is an opportunity because I do not like paper straws, and I know many other people that agree. The prototypical customer would be businesses that use straws, (ie restaurants) because they want to give out a product that their customers enjoy, rather than paper straws. This opportunity is relatively easy because there is a big market out there (every single restaurant in Gainesville) who would be interested in this because no one likes paper straws, yet everyone is forced to use them.

I see this opportunity because the only competition is paper straws, which no one likes. Therefore, I could make biodegradable straws, straws made out of wood, plants, or really any other type of material than paper. I would make them strong and not malleable like the paper straws become. There is definitely an opportunity simply because plastic straws are outlawed, and paper straws are not the answer.