Friday, 18 April 2025
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Friday, 18 April 2025
Friday, 18 April 2025
“When you are young work to learn, not to earn”, says Robert Kiyosaki, American author who penned the global bestseller ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad.’ Indeed, young age, especially late teens or early 20s is the best time to embark on entrepreneurship. This is an age when most Indians are studying for higher education degrees at colleges and universities. Hence, they are somewhat dependent upon parents for basic needs such as food, clothing and shelter.
Despite the massive burden of exams for graduate or professional degree, you can open a small business in spare time, using available resources.
Youngsters can acquire great skills by opening a business in their spare time. Firstly, you learn the vital entrepreneurial skills that are available only in theory at top business schools. Secondly, you get an opportunity to identify your Gray areas as entrepreneur, which is vital for success in other business ventures. Thirdly, the time and energy you would waste on fruitless pursuits is spent on constructive ventures.
Though a small enterprise you manage in spare time may fetch you little money, developing it into a full-fledged business later paves way for prosperity. It helps you save for expansion while meeting some part of your personal expenses.
There are countless business ideas you can explore as young entrepreneur;
To help you build a small business in spare time as young entrepreneur, we present 10 business ideas. Before venturing on any of these enterprises, assess your skills and resources required for the business.
This is a small business you can launch with limited money, a good computer and reliable Internet connection. Alternatively, you can use your smart-phone connected to the Internet. Travel arrangers generally facilitate tours and pilgrimages to various destinations in India. They organise small groups of students, senior citizens and others and take them on a trip to great tourist spots.
With limited budget and in spare time, you can restrict such tours to the area where you reside. Often, you will find that your vicinity has tourist attractions that are not explored, neglected for some purpose and even unlisted on major tourism itineraries. This is a very lucrative business. You will have to hire a bus from some local operator to conduct the tours. Advertise your travel packages online for free through Facebook Business, LinkedIn and videos on YouTube. Rope in the assistance of bloggers, where possible.
This is another business that requires almost zero investment, provided you have a computer or smart phone connected to the Internet. Thanks to Skills India initiative and rapid industrialisation of various parts of India as well as Smart Cities have led to massive migration of skilled workers for employment. These migrant workers, especially white-collar professionals, require temporary accommodations such as Paying Guest and short-term apartment rentals.
Develop a network with estate agencies in your area. Find about apartments on rent and PG accommodations available for short term. Click a few pictures and advertise the property on free websites like Quickr and OLX, among others. For every successful transaction, you get a handsome commission from the estate agent, for sub-broking services.
Understandably, you will be pitted against some giants in the field of crowd-sourcing. However, you can start a successful crowd-sourcing business in spare time by enlisting help of classmates or colleagues. Again, you will need to publicise the types of services you offer online, to attract maximum number of clients.
Crowd-sourcing means you collect a group of skilled workers to complete a project. This is an ideal business for those studying professional courses. Get your classmates involved in crowd-sourcing projects. This allows everyone to get on-hands experience in practical work in your academic sphere.
Students and fresh graduates can open a business in spare time as online tutors. There are two types of online tutors nowadays. First, businesses outsourced by established universities and colleges to provide online lectures or demos to students. The other is your own online tutoring business where you provide coaching for a group of students daily or at regular intervals in your spare time.
As online tutor, you will need a webcam, a good computer and high-speed Internet and some basic paraphernalia for conducting the lessons. With massive demand in India for classroom and online coaching, this is a great business for those who are experts in specific fields.
For those uninitiated, this may sound alien. Philately is the hobby of collecting stamps while numismatics relates to coin collection. With limited budget, you can open this business. However, you will require a PayPal account or an international access credit card. Despite taking a heavy beating due to onslaught of email, philately and numismatics continue as cherished hobbies among people of all generations.
You can make ample cash by selling stamps and coins of foreign countries. Sign up as subscriber to philatelic bureaus of postal departments of various countries. Once subscribed, you have to pay some money into your philatelic account at these foreign postal departments. These postal bureaus will alert you about upcoming stamp issues. Book orders from local philatelist and buy these stamps by paying from your prepaid account with the philatelic bureau of foreign postal departments and sell at premium. Coins are sold by apex banks of all foreign countries, to collectors and numismatic bureaus.
Handyman services became popular in India in aftermath of the November 9, 2016 flash demonetisation of India’s Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 currency notes. Citizens saddled with demonetised notes looked for handymen who would wait in long queues outside banks to exchange the defunct currency.
Post demonetisation, the concept has changed. People look for everything from plumbers and drivers to masseurs and cooks for limited work. You can offer these services online and charge the customer for supplying the required labour. Workers are easy to find since most cities and towns have ‘labour nakas’ or areas where such craftsmen wait to find jobs every morning.
Take a short course in repairing smart-phones. These courses are available at small institutes that have sprung up across India. With India emerging among the top markets for smart-phones in the world, the need for repairmen who can fix broken or spoiled handsets is bound to surge.
This business can be done from home or your college dorm. Advertizing is easy and can be done through Facebook Business and LinkedIn. In all probabilities, people from your area will be your clients.
This is a great business for young women entrepreneurs. Buy colored beads of various sizes and threading equipment from any online store like Amazon. You can make necklaces, bracelets and other costume jewellery with these in spare time. Depending upon speed, you can make dozens of these items in a single day.
You will find ready buyers for such costume jewellery among college students and other fashion aficionados. Additionally, you can sign-up on Amazon, Flipkart and eBay as seller, advertize and market your goods on these platforms. They charge a small fee for the service but you make good money for the efforts.
Anyone with basic skills in website designing can open this home or college dorm based business in spare time. In India, web domains and hosting is available at very affordable rates. Hence, lots of small businesses, families and individuals open websites as hobby or to further their business and community interests.
Advertise your website designing business in the social media. Some domain name providers, hosting sites provide you with a list of prospective clients, sometimes for a small fee. With some creativity, you can design websites for small companies and individuals.
As youngster, you will have a wide circle of friends. Utilise this social standing to sell products from international brands such as Avon cosmetics and Amway healthcare supplements. MLM can be done in two ways: You can sell products through and to your social network as well as relatives. Or you can open a Facebook Business page and advertise these products for sale.
MLM also offers you additional opportunities to expand your business and earn profits through their referral programs. Meaning, for every friend you enrol as network marketer, you get an incentive, plus small commissions on products they sell within their circle.
All youngsters are interested in sports. Should you be an expert level player, train amateurs in popular sports like cricket, football and hockey, among others.Everyone wants to become a sports person nowadays thanks to huge money it attracts.
Sports academies in India are very pricey and outside reach of most parents. You can fill this gap by opening your own small scale sports academy to teach a game you are most proficient in. Additionally, there is also a great demand for swimming and bicycling coaches in India.
Every business involves risk but that adds to thrill of entrepreneurship. The ideas we have listed are meant for those who have shoestring budget but wish to try their hand at own businesses. Alternatively, you can look for some great business ideas online and select the one that best suits your budget, skills and location. Remember, your personal skills play a great role in deciding the success of your enterprise. Assess your talents and allot some spare time to venture into these businesses.
