How to make waves in niche markets

It’s pretty much a law of hobbies:

The more niche and expensive the hobby, the worse the website.

I’ve unfortunately picked a few extremely expensive hobbies (cars and guns) and one of the downsides (benefits?) of these hobbies are that I am periodically forced to order $400 steering columns and $300 barrels. 

It’s worth the dopamine rush (slicing off the shrink wrap and finding a glistening shock absorber or holosight is almost as fun as the hours you’ll spend fastening it onto your car/gun).

But the process of actually finding and buying the item I need is terrible.
That’s why, if you’re an entrepreneur looking for a market that’s ripe for disruption, you need to look at niche hobbies and unsexy industries.

The more niche, the better. 

By niche, I don’t mean niche like “retro car parts”. I mean really niche. There is a highly successful company with 1970-1979 Super Beetle rally springs as their primary product line.

By niche, I don’t mean niche like “vintage gunsmithing supplies”. I mean niche like custom .308 match barrels for H&K G3 rifles.

There are tens of thousands of these niche markets out there, and every single one of them have millions of dollars of possible revenue.

The universal constant between all of these niches?

Terrible websites.

There are usually 2-3 competitors in each of these niches, and if other hobbyists are anything like me, they’ll have done extensive research and browsing before they make their pick. It’s part of the fun/pain. If I’m going to spend $400 on a part, I’m going to make sure it’s the right one.

And then when it comes time to pull the trigger, I’ll pull it. No pun intended.

These items are not available on Amazon. They aren’t things you can find at your local AutoZone or Cabela’s.

I’ll visit a website, credit card in hand, and try to order a new engine cooling tin.

1) Do I know how much the shipping will cost? Coin toss.
2) Is it actually in stock? Probably not.
3) Does the payment go through? At this point it’s a 50/50 chance.
4) Do I get an order confirmation? Probably not.
5) Is a tracking number emailed to me? No, is this 2021?
6) When do I get the part? Next year.

If you want to disrupt a niche market, get a hobby. And then spend money in that hobby. It doesn’t matter if the product is perfect. It doesn’t even matter if the customer service is decent. Just try to spend money with your credit card and see how soon you get your order.

“Amazon Prime is killing small business,” everyone says in 2021. “There’s no way that we can compete with free same-day shipping, especially when all the retail stores are locked down.”

“Walmart is killing mom and pop stores,” everyone said in 1988. “There’s no way  we can compete with enterprise-level logistics, sourcing, pricing, and they’re getting kickbacks from local cities.”

“Sears, Roebuck & Co is killing department stores,” everyone said in 1935, “because there’s no way we can compete on mail-order selection and pricing.”

“Macy’s is killing the general store,” everyone said in 1898, “because there’s no way we can stock so much merchandise!”

The chances of us little people ever creating the next Amazon, Walmart, Sears, or Macy’s are slim. Let’s be honest. There are 7 billion + people in this world, and anyone in the ~100 folks reading this newsletter aren’t going to be the next Bezos. I am sorry to burst your bubble.

But the chances of absolutely changing the game of your niche hobby is extremely high. What are the chances of totally dominating the niche of Super Beetle sport seats? If you know your hobby, can understand a P&L, and build a decent website, your chances are almost 100%.

The chances of dominating a local service industry? I’m pretty sure if your business just picks up the phone, you’re already in the 90th percentile. Have you ever tried to hire someone to work on your house? The first person to call me back with a intelligible quote gets the job.

It may not ever be a billion dollar industry, but literally every niche market you can imagine has the potential for at least a multi-million dollar industry. 

If you’re okay with that, the American Dream is alive and waiting for you.

If you are waiting for your chance to change the world and get your mug plastered across Life magazine, a stimulus check will be coming your way soon.