The first month of 2020 is half way through and we have yet to see a shortage of business ideas for anyone wanting to start an ecommerce business. But the thing is, which ones are worth pursuing and which ones are not? Sifting through huge data can be at the very least daunting. That's why I have taken the liberty, in behalf of all of you, to search and look for that data to help you on your way to having your own cash cow.
To put this in context, there are over 1.92 billion people(1 in every 4 persons in the world) buying things online today and growing at an unprecedented rate, that's a ton of potential buyers for your ecommerce store. This makes it a worthwhile endeavour for those wishing to find a good source of income. So if you are wondering which ecommerce business niches are worth a try, keep reading on.
Importance of building your ecommerce shop on a good system
However, before we dive into the list of the 20 most profitable ecommerce niches, I just want to mention the importance of knowing what ecommerce system you need and building one yourself of having others build it for you.
Building an online shop has never been easier in this day and age. All you need is to get a good domain name(yourgoodstore.com, for example), website hosting, and some sort of ecommerce website builder. Even if you don’t have any design and coding skills and experience, you can have one up and running within minutes.
This is thanks to what is known as website builders, and there are plenty of them available. The most popular website builders require no coding or website building experience. However, they tend to cost a good deal.
Alternatively, you can design an online shop for FREE with WordPress and use a plugin like WooCommerce to handle the ecommerce side of things. Or thirtybees and prestashop. They are great cost-effective solution, compared to monthly charged conventional website builders.
Below are recommended reading about ecommerce platform or system available to you.
Prestashop 1.7 vs Thirtybees: Vulnerability, Data Security, Efficiency and Cost
Thirtybees Ecommerce Review, Empowering Merchants to Increase Sales
Learning prestashop-thritybees
20 Most Profitable Ecommerce Niches to Try
On top of providing you with a large customer base, there are plenty of reasons why having an ecommerce store makes sense. For example, it is estimated that in 2019, 13.7% of all retail sales will come from ecommerce sales. Figures like these show that ecommerce is becoming a major player in the global commerce game. So without further ado, here are twenty of the best ecommerce business ideas that you can try in 2020 and beyond.
#1. Senior Living is #1 in the top 20 most profitable ecommerce niches
This one is a BIG surprise for me! USD $1 trillion! Didn't expect it coming. But here it is! Senior living is the most profitable niche today!
Senior communities range from homelike to the luxury of a high-end cruise ship or hotel, and they definitely don’t feel institutional today. Most seniors who have moved to assisted living or independent living communities report that they prefer life at their new home to living alone.
Age-qualified communities, also known as 55+ communities, active adult communities, lifestyle communities, or retirement communities, are often planned communities that offer homes and community features that are attractive to 55+ adults. These might include a clubhouse or lifestyle center with a good many activities, sometimes with indoor and outdoor swimming pools, exercise facilities, craft rooms, demonstration kitchens, and decks and patios for gathering.
Source
#2. Online travel = USD 817 billion
This one is another eye opening for me! To be the second most profitable niche this year is unexpectedly almost a trillion dollar niche!
An Online travel website is a website that is dedicated to travel. The site may be focused on travel reviews, trip fares, or a combination of both. Over 1.5 billion people book travel per year, 70% of which is done online.
#3. Augmented reality and virtual reality = USD 767 billion
This one is also unexpected! What is augmented reality anyway. Here is what we can find from augment.com
Augmented reality and virtual reality are inverse reflections of one in another with what each technology seeks to accomplish and deliver for the user. Virtual reality offers a digital recreation of a real life setting, while augmented reality delivers virtual elements as an overlay to the real world.
Source
#4. Fashion = USD 713 billion
This niche currently stand as the 4th best ecommerce business niche in the world projecting to reach 713 Billion. Fashion e-commerce is a brutally competitive online business. Standing out means knowing what your customers want and using several tools of the trade of both fashion and online commerce business.
Fashion is the largest B2C eCommerce market segment and its global size is estimated at US$518.9 billion in 2018. The market is expected to grow further at 12.2% per year and reach a total market size of US$922.0 billion by the end of 2023.
See resource from statista.
#5. Waste management = USD 484 billion
The waste management business is basically vast and comprises small as well as large businesses. Thus, picking the niche can be trickery for you. Here is a list of the areas of waste management:
Toxic waste disposal business
Medical waste disposal business
Electronic waste disposal business
Nuclear waste management business
Construction waste management business
Green waste management business
Industrial waste management business
Chemical waste management business
Waste management are the activities and actions required to manage waste, it includes the collection, transport, treatment and disposal of waste, together with monitoring and regulation of the waste management process.
If I have to recommend a niche, this would be it!
#6. Automotive tire market = USD 453 billion
The automotive tire market is another surprising niche that entered the top 20 on this list! Spurred by increased production and sales of high-end cars, growing focus toward fuel economy, rising demand for convenience, and high maintenance or replacement costs of conventional tires.
The automotive tires market is expected to register a CAGR of 8.22%, during the forecast period, 2019-2024. Some of the major factors driving the growth of the market are increased production and sales of high-end cars, growing focus toward fuel economy, rising demand for convenience, and high maintenance or replacement costs of conventional tires. However, end-usage limitations may hinder the growth of the market.
Source
This is another niche that, if I have to recommend top 2-3 niche for ecommerce shop, this would be it!
#7. Home healthcare = USD 447 billion
Home health care can include broad care given by skilled medical professionals, including skilled nursing care, physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy. It can also include skilled, non-medical care, such as medical social services or assistance with daily living from a highly qualified home health aide.
#8. Cloud migration = USD 411 billion
The cloud has seen a outstanding growth, that can be contributed to its rapid pace of adoption, taking precedence over traditional on-premise hardware. If one follows the growth path of cloud carefully, he/she will be able to easily understand that the adoption of cloud services has seen a rise across all industry type and the size of business.
Source
Cloud migration takes up #8 on this top 20 most profitable ecommerce niches to try in 2020 and beyond.
#9. Dietary supplements = USD 349 billion
We pick up the following definition from Wikipedia regarding dietary supplements:
A dietary supplement is a manufactured product intended to supplement the diet when taken by mouth as a pill, capsule, tablet, or liquid. A supplement can provide nutrients either extracted from food sources or synthetic, individually or in combination, in order to increase the quantity of their consumption.
Source
More than two-thirds of American take dietary supplements each year. If this seems like a lot of people, you haven’t seen anything yet. If predictions hold up, the value of the global supplement market will increase to $349 billion by 2024.
#10. Technology = USD 351 billion
The technology niche is one of the most over-crowded niche but surprisingly it is still growing at a rapid pace taking the top 10 spot.
Technology niche is good if you are working online most of the time. One of the most common question asked is, how to get latest tech topics. Start subscribing to popular news breaking tech blogs email newsletter, Facebook fan page updates.
Here is a really good read if you want to know if this niche is still a good niche for you. This post will clear some of your most FAQ related to technology niche, and should you have a blog on tech or not.
The second half of this article will be publish here: #11 to 20 most profitable ecommerce niches.
#11. Athleisure = USD 350 billion
#12. Gardening = USD 299 billion
#13. Graphic Processing Unit(Graphic Cards) = USD 157 billion
#14. Webhosting services = USD 154 billion
#15. Cooking = USD 143 billion
#16. Wireless connectivity = USD 127 billion
#17. Cloud Storage = USD 112 billion
#18. Baby care = USD 109 billion by 2026
#19. Kitchen appliances and equipment = USD 112 billion by 2025
#20. Home decore = USD 100 billion by 2023
Google released this 1000 list of most profitable niches for the next 5 years.
In Conclusion
If you're struggling to decide, or you need more data to work with, use the following five steps to find your niche.
Identify your interests and passions. This may be something you've already done. ...
Identify problems you can solve. ...
Research your competition. ...
Determine the profitability of your niche. ...
Test your idea.
Helpful resources
Data-Driven Ecommerce Strategy: 5 Easy Steps to Implement
Where Should You Focus Your Ecommerce Marketing Efforts First?