154 Examples of Small Business

John Spacey, November 22, 2021

Small business is any risk-taking and profit-seeking pursuit with less than 50 employees. These are a massive force that are collectively larger than big business. It is estimated that small businesses generate 50% of global GDP and provide 70% of employment. Nevertheless, it is difficult to compete with larger firms such that small businesses rely on business models that leverage strengths such as creativity, relationships and local knowledge. It is also common for small businesses to serve niche customer needs that are underserved by larger firms. The following are common examples of small businesses.

Activities (e.g. yoga classes)	Adaptive Reuse (e.g. converting factory into loft apartments)
Adventure / Niche Travel Services	Advertising Agency / Services
Agritourism	Antiques
Artist / Art Gallery	Automotive Customization
Bakery	Bed & Breakfast
Brokers (e.g. insurance broker)	Business Consulting
Business Outsourcing	Business Services
Business Training	Cafes
Cakes / Pastry Shops	Candy Products
Catering	Cleaning
Concessions (e.g. airport gift shop)	Conferences & Events
Construction Services	Contractor (trades such as carpenters)
Convenience Stores	Cosmetic Products
Craft Beverages	Craft Supplies
Craftsperson	Creative Management (e.g. music management)
Creative Reuse (e.g. repair cafe)	Customer Support Services
Dance Schools / Studios	Data Entry / Data Analysis
Daycare / Childcare Services	Deconstruction
Delivery Services	Driving
Dropshipping	Dry Cleaners
Ecommerce Retailer	Environmental Remediation
Environmentally Friendly Products / Good Business	Equipment Rentals
Event Management / Production	Event Planning
Event Services	Event Vendors
Event Venues	Farmers Markets
Farming	Fashion Brand
Fast Moving Consumer Goods	Film Production Services
Florist	Food & Beverage Tourism
Food Products	Food Retail (e.g. vegetable shop)
Food Trucks	Footwear Brand
Franchising	Freelance Design
Freelance IT	Freelance Writing
Furniture Craftsperson Gardening	Gyms
Haircare / Beauty Services	Handmade Products
Handyperson	Health Food
Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning	Home Improvement Services
Home Inspector	Home Staging
Homebuilding / Renovation	IT Consulting
Ice Cream Shop	Import / Export
Jewelry Making	Junk Removal
Landscaping	Lawn Care Services
Legal Services	Liquidation Goods
Maintenance Services	Marketing Services
Massage Therapist	Media Services
Mobile Apps	Moving Company
Music Industry	Music Schools / Lessons
One Stop Shop	Painting
Personal Services	Personal Trainer
Pet Services	Photographer
Podcasting	Pop-up Shops
Private Schools	Product Customization
Professional Services	Professional Speaking
Professional Training	Property Management Services
Publicity Agency	Publishing
Pubs / Nightclubs	Real Estate Agency
Recreational Facilities	Recruiting Services
Repair Services	Reseller
Restaurant	Secondhand Goods / Auctions
Senior Care Services	Sewing & Alteration
Social Media Marketing & Management	Software Development
Solar Energy Installation, Maintenance & Repair	Souvenirs
Spas	Speciality, Niche and Boutique Retail
Sports Brands	Staffing Services
Store Within a Store	Street Vendors
Subscription Boxes	Sustainable Building Retrofits
Systems Integrator	Tailor
Talent Agent	Tax Preparation, Accounting, Bookkeeping
Technology Services	Technology Support
Technology Training	Thrift Stores
Tour Operator	Tourist Attractions
Toy Products	Training
Translation Services	Transportation Rentals (e.g. Bicycle Rentals)
Tutoring	Upcycling
Vacation Rentals	Value Added Reseller
Vehicle & Equipment Trading	Vending Machines
Videographer	Vintage Items
Vlogs	Woodworking Products

Deconstruction is the process of salvaging value from a building that is about to be demolished. For example, removing doors and other valuable items and materials and selling them.

Fast moving consumer goods are supplies that consumers regularly repurchase such as food, toiletries and stationery. For example, a niche brand of organic tea.

Systems integrator is a type of consulting that specializes in getting different technologies to work together as one. For example, building a connector that allows one cloud service to feed into another cloud service.

Upcycling is the process of reusing things by creating things of greater value. For example, building walls with old bottles.