Are you thinking about getting into the e-commerce act and building your own online business? It can be a remarkably savvy decision. However, not all e-commerce niches are right for you. Many of them seem like good decisions, but once the shine wears off the trend, they fall flat.
What you need to do is look beyond the flash in the pan successes and choose from eCommerce niches that offer ongoing opportunities for profitability in the long term, not just the next couple of weeks or months. That can be pretty challenging to do for would-be business owners, which is why we put together this brief guide to help you understand some of the most profitable e-commerce niches and what they offer in terms of an online business model.
Table of Contents
Niche Fashion
Fashion is a notoriously fickle industry. It changes quickly, and what’s hot today won’t be accessible in a few weeks’ time. However, you can find a profitable solution if you look beyond the clothing itself and instead focus on the audience. Niche fashion websites focus on specific audiences who have traditionally had a difficult time finding what they wanted with other clothing retailers.
For instance, “big and tall” stores cater to this type of audience. However, that’s just one potential example. What about audiences who want to buy from small manufacturers? What about customers who care about the type of fibers in their clothing? What about consumers who want to purchase clothing that helps them reconnect with their own childhood? These are just a few examples of the benefits of this niche.
Natural Skincare and Beauty Products
When it comes to profitable e-commerce niches, few compare to the potential available in the natural skincare and beauty products segment. In fact, we’ve barely scratched the surface of what is possible here in terms of demand from women. That demand is only going to grow as more people become aware of the harm caused to the body by chemical-laden products, as well as how those same products affect the environment from product development to product disposal.
Think of something as seemingly innocent as micro-beads, which were first included in cleansers to help exfoliate skin and add glow. Today they’re recognized as being a major environmental threat, though, and products containing micro-beads are avoided by savvy consumers. With a bit of research and a little understanding of how natural skincare and beauty products can benefit your audience and the environment, this can be one of the most profitable e-commerce niches to enter.
Subscription Boxes
Unless you’ve been hiding under that proverbial rock, you’ve noticed the explosion in subscription box options on the market today. There are boxes for everything – clothing for men and women. Beer and wine. Cheese and sausage. Entire meals, even. You can turn that trend to your advantage. While there is no guarantee that subscription boxes won’t fall out of favor; eventually, there is evidence that any such shift will not happen soon. Today’s consumers care about having high-quality products but lack time to find them for themselves. They turn to experts to curate products for them. That’s where you come in.
Whether you’ve got an eye for fashion or a passion for craft beer, a discerning palate, or something else that positions you as an expert, put it to use and help your audience find the products they need to live a better life. With that being said, setting up a successful subscription box business may require more time and effort than other eCommerce niches, because you’ll need to first determine trends in your segment, then find quality suppliers and manufacturers to help you serve your audience’s needs.
Health and Fitness
When it comes to e-commerce niches, few compare to the health and fitness segment. Of course, you really need to drill down into the industry to ensure that you’re serving the right niche. For instance, you might work with post-partum moms to help them regain their pre-pregnancy figures. You might work with diabetics to help them learn how to control their condition with less reliance on insulin shots (or even without insulin at all).
Maybe you want to work with aging consumers who are finding it more and more difficult to accomplish everyday tasks around the home. Really, the sky’s the limit, and just about any sub-niche into the broader health and fitness industry is going to be profitable and popular. From supplements to mobility aids, there’s something here for just about any aspiring business owner.
Planners
Think the digital revolution did away with those paper planners? Think again. Planners are hugely popular, whether we’re talking about the conventional day planners or bullet journals. You can quickly build a successful e-commerce empire within this niche, and you can do so in several different ways.
For instance, rather than selling actual planners, you could opt for planning accessories. Stamps alone can be incredibly popular. Other planner supplies include stickers, pens, tape, bookmarks, covers, and a great deal more.
As you can see, there are plenty of profitable e-commerce niches out there. Find one that ignites your own passion and then start to build your audience.
However, don’t neglect your website. You’ll need an e-commerce site to start bringing in money. WordPress and, more specifically, WooCommerce, is a great solution for aspiring online business owners seeking to build their profitability and create a thriving company.
It is also essential that you understand how to avoid common mistakes beginner WordPress users make, and how a right WP ERP solution can improve your business over time.
