As of 2023, up to 13 full-time employees work from home, and twice that amount work at least twice a week from the comfort of their home offices. We could argue that this is an aftermath of the pandemic.
However, we must agree that while more people want to live a simple life, everyone is searching for ways to strike a work-life balance.
For adventurous folks, the entrepreneurial landscape offers an escape. You can combine your desire for business with the opportunity to numerous family-friendly business ideas catering to various interests and skill sets.
Here are 15 best family-friendly business ideas to explore in the upcoming year.
15 Unique Business Ideas to Try in 2024
Are you looking for family-friendly business ideas to try in 2024? Consider these ideas:
1. Dropshipping
Dropshipping is one of the best family-friendly businesses to start. It involves selling products online without managing the inventory.
The model of dropshipping is built in such a way that you can operate your business anywhere you are. All you need is to find a reliable supplier, create an online presence, and market your products. When an order comes, the suppliers handle the order fulfillment and shipping to customers.
Aside from creating your store on Shopify, other platforms like eBay and Amazon are also good to start your reselling business. Families can also use the opportunity to work together while learning about e-commerce.
2. Online Tutoring Services
With the increasing demand for online education, starting an online tutoring service can be lucrative. These days parents opt for private lessons for their wards to complement the school curriculum. Family members with expertise in different subjects can collaborate to provide tutoring services to students worldwide.
It is important to teach areas you are knowledgeable in and can effectively communicate with others. Let people see how passionate you are about your services.
Online learning tools like Zoom will make teaching easier. Tutor.com and Skooli are some good tutoring sites to connect with students.
Additionally, home tutoring is not limited to the educational curriculum. There are other online tutoring services you can render from home. They include musical classes, foreign languages, swimming etc.
3. Family Owned Food Truck
Food is one basic necessity needed for survival. People will always eat. So, if your family is passionate about culinary arts, the food truck is one home-centric business idea to try in 2024.
Depending on how you run your food business, it can be a stationary truck in front of or close to your home to sell to your community and friends or you can change alternate locations. Going physical is good, however, creating an online presence will benefit your business and increase your revenue.
A food truck business can be fun and profitable ventures for families that are passionate about food. Engage more with the community and other families by selling in parks, local events and festivals.
4. Home-Based Bakery
Family bakery is one of the ideal family-friendly businesses for families passionate about baking. This includes making bread, cakes and other pastry dishes. One benefit of the bakery is that you can start with limited capital, and sell in smaller quantities to smaller groups.
You can start with a physical store catering to the needs of people around you and later proceed to create an online presence. Selling home-made baked foods can be delightful and a profitable venture.
For example, Bartolo Valestro Jr. popularly known as “Buddy” is an Italian-American baker and the owner of Carlo’s Bakery. Buddy specializes in creating cakes and pastries out of dreams and imagination, leaving his clients in awe. Carlos’s Bakery operation and staff consist of his family and friends. Today, Buddy is estimated to be worth about $15 million from his family bakery and from doing what he is passionate about.
5. Organic Farming & Gardening
Recently, people have become more inclined to eat healthily and eat more organic and less processed food. This change in dynamics has resulted in people demanding more organic ingredients and products than ever before. Why not try organic farming this year to cater for the needs of its users?
Luckily, with the introduction of advanced technology and agricultural practices, farming has become easier when compared to the past years. Practices like green-house farming and hydroponics have become more welcoming to individuals to grow organic food produce.
One advantage of organic farming is that little to no soil is required and can be grown within your environment and in your backyards. Additionally, you can add gardening services to your farming to increase your earnings.
Selling fresh produce or offering gardening services can be both rewarding and fulfilling. Start your organic farming this 2024 and keep winning!
6. Handmade Crafts and Products
Creativity is the mother of all inventions is how I will define home-made craft. From pottery to homemade jewellery, moulding soaps or creating scented candles etc. There are no rules or limitations to what you can create.
It’s not just about being creative, it is the ability to showcase your artistic talents while generating income. As more people are venturing into these business ideas, it is paramount to create unique designs and patterns that supersede those of your competition to be able to survive.
To start, consider selling your home-made products at your local farms or create an online presence with Shopify. Conversely, Etsy is a good marketplace for beginners to sell their craft.
7. Home Renovation & Landscape Services
Another family-friendly business to try is Home renovation and landscape services. In today’s world, the pattern of building, aesthetic of houses has improved with sleeker designs. This has led to an increase in demand for home renovators, landscaping and interior designs.
Are you organized, detailed and passionate about home designs? Starting an interior design business will be profitable for you. And not just that, you get to enjoy your job while putting smiles on other people’s faces. Interestingly, it is easy to learn. Watching how others decorate theirs and other online tutorials will give you insight into how it is done.
Likewise for renovation and landscapers? Start a landscape business if you are passionate about gardens, flowers and yard work. Homeowners with big backyards seek ways to modernize and make them high-end fashioned. Showcase your work and turn your hobby into profitable streams of income.
Create a portfolio of your works and display them on social media platforms or other places where they may be needed. Platforms like TaskEasy and HomeAdvisor are great for connecting you with potential clients within your area.
8. Pet Grooming & Dog Walking
Consider a pet grooming business in 2024 if you enjoy treating your terrier or poodles to self-care. People who work far from home often need someone to take care of their pets and walk them while they are away.
Starting a grooming business requires little to no capital, other than marketing and business insurance. Insurance is a necessity in case of bites and accidents. Consider offering home services where you visit the home pet owners’ homes and take care of their pets.
An average grooming session costs $30 to $60 per hour. A good reputation will make you excel in this business and offer promotions to new and existing customers. Good reviews from clients are the best form of marketing for this business, so ensure your customers leave good ratings for past jobs.
9. Stock Photographer/Photography Studio
Photography is one of the few industries that have experienced a major change in recent times. With the increase in modern technology, starting a photography studio has become very easy. As simple as a smartphone, you can create beautiful images that are editorial-worthy.
Therefore, you can consider photography as a friendly family business to try in 2024. Express your creativity through photography and help your clients capture precious moments.
As your photography is vast, you ought to choose the right path you want to take. There are landscape, wedding, abstract, aerial etc.
Similarly, if you are good with landscapes and nature, you can take pictures to sell. Sites like Shutterstock, Pinterest and Adobe Stock are some of the platforms where you can submit your images and you are paid a royalty for every download on their sites.
You can create a family-run photography studio to capture special memories for your clients. Create your photography websites and create awareness for your studio to gain more clients and more collaborations as the case may be.
10. Day/Child Care Services
Establishing a daycare or babysitting service is ideal for families who enjoy caring for children. Starting a daycare is one of the easiest business ideas to try this year. It requires no initial investment or any physical structure. This business can be run from your home or that of your clients depending on the terms and conditions.
Offering a safe and nurturing environment for kids can be both rewarding and profitable. However, you may need to get a permit to start a daycare service and ensure you have insurance plans in case of emergency or accidents while at work.
Running a daycare requires trust and honesty, so ensure you are very transparent to your clients and provide them with daily reports and observations from their wards.
11. Online Fitness Classes
Going to the Gym, taking yoga classes, taking stretches at home or daily walks are fast becoming a global routine.
If your family is fitness-oriented, you can put together group workout sessions and classes. The fitness business is a great family-friendly business idea that can not be overlooked. You can start at home, making videos of your workout routines and healthy feeding.
This business not only promotes health and wellness but also strengthens family bonds through exercise. Start by creating your fitness websites and offer monthly subscriptions for classes and healthy diet plans. In addition to fitness classes, selling fitness gear is another way to make money while doing what you love.
12. Event Planning Services
Event planning is another ideal home-centric idea to try. Do you like envisaging things and bringing them to life? Do you like decorations and design? How about your organizational skills? If you enjoy all these skills, then consider establishing an event planning business.
Event planning is very lucrative and fulfilling. It includes organizing parties, weddings, birthdays, or corporate events. Event planning allows family members to collaborate and showcase their creativity.
It is very easy to start and requires little capital to start. To become a professional, you can register for crash courses to understand the industry and how to navigate through it. Create an online presence to showcase your creativity and create awareness about your business.
12. Fast Delivery Services
Since the inception of e-commerce and online selling, delivery services are fast becoming one of the most lucrative businesses to start. According to UPS, their total revenue is $100 billion in 2022, delivery packages.
Starting a delivery service is quite easy, it does not require intensive capital, and you can start as small as delivering for your communities and friends. Operating an express delivery service may differ for location depending on the laws of the city you live in, you might need a license and permit to operate. Also, courier insurance is needed to run this type of business. These delivery services may include:
Food Delivery Services –Timely food delivery has always been a problem where people wait for ages to get their ordered meals. You can bridge this gap by providing swift meal delivery.
Groceries Delivery – Your business can handle groceries that are too small to be delivered by the company. Your clients order groceries online, and you go to the store, pick them up and deliver them to your clients.
Item Delivery – This can be a piece of clothing, gadget, furniture etc. It is best to start within your location and expand to other locations as you grow.
13. Mobile Car Wash Services
You don’t need heavy machinery to start this business. Humans have, at different times, engaged in car wash services to raise funds for a cause.
Charge moderately at the start to build your client base. With this increase, you stand to earn a substantial profit. Also, use it as an avenue to engage your kids to work for their weekly allowance and learn basic business models.
14. Personal Shopper
Personal shopping is gradually becoming a lucrative family-friendly business. These are people who help others to do their shopping. It’s more like a procurement manager for a company.
People with tight schedules or who are averse to the protocol of queuing at a counter or shifting through aisles in a supermarket can indulge a personal shopper to shop for them. This business is one the simplest to start, and it requires neither certification nor degree.
Your charges depend on your agreement with your client. It may be on an hourly basis or fixed. Become a personal shopper and have fun while working.
15. Coffee Shop
Two people can never make the same coffee. If you love coffee brewing, now is the time to turn your hobby into a serious cash-making venture. With no capital to start from scratch, franchising might be a better option.
Alternatively, deliver to offices or homes around you. Choose corners that have a lot of human traffic to expose your business to a larger audience. As your clientele expands, you can purchase an already-established coffee shop and rebrand it.
Conclusion
Exploring family-friendly business ideas in 2024 presents a unique opportunity for families to bond, leverage individual skills, and create a source of income. Whether it’s in the realm of food, education, or services, there are plenty of options for families to embark on entrepreneurial journeys together,
With dedication, creativity and collaboration, these ventures can bring both financial success and strengthened family ties in the year ahead.
If you’re curious about connecting your new business to Shopify, Adoric helps merchants sell faster and better on Shopify. Schedule a free trial with us to see how business owners use Adoric to convert more and improve sales.
