Top 10 business ideas & opportunities for 2014!!!

!!

!YOUR WEEKLY FIX OF ENTREPRENEURIAL IDEAS ! !!

!

Top 10 business ideas & opportunities for 2014!!!

!!

We’ve selected 15 new business ideas this week that will provide entrepreneurs with plenty of inspiration. Spotted from

countries all around the world, these ideas offer a taste of what’s to come.!

!YOUR WEEKLY FIX OF ENTREPRENEURIAL IDEAS ! !!

!

Hospitals are never fun for kids, and we’ve seen a number of ideas in the past attempt to make their experience more comfortable, from pirate-themed CT scanners to fun robots. But being able to interact with other children is still a major bonus, something denied to kids who need to be kept in isolation or quarantine. From the Netherlands, Konnekt is a hospital isolation barrier that doubles as a two-way toy, enabling collaborative play among chi ldren that have to be separated.!

Read more about Konnekt »!

1.   Social hospital toy lets isolated young patients play with other kids!

While platforms such as Oyster are using the Netflix model to help readers find new e-books to read, a new app called Uncovered is working to avoid the disappointment consumers feel when a title doesn’t live up to its cover, title or author — using only short excerpts to entice readers to purchase.!

Read more about Uncovered »!  

2.  Discovery app stops readers from judging books by their covers!

Dining and health are intimately related, so it’s no surprise that in the past we’ve seen ideas such as Japan’s Tanita Shokudo cafeteria, which offers dietary advice sessions alongside its menu. Now Stanley’s Pharmacy in New York is aiming to recreate the warm atmosphere of community drugstores of the 1950s, providing herbal teas and sodas alongside its medicines and remedies.!

Read more about Stanley’s Pharmacy »!

3.   Community pharmacy doubles as a healthy drinks bar!

Weird Of The Week: This is part of a series of articles that looks at some of the most bizarre and niche business ideas we see here at Springwise.!!Nowadays, it’s easy to defer to a s m a r t p h o n e w h e n e v e r w e n e e d directions, but an internet connection isn’t always available in underground subway stations. For business commuters, a fashion label in Japan has developed the Subway Map Tie, which discreetly hides a plan of the Tokyo metro system on its inside.!

Read more about the Subway Map Tie »!  

4.  Business tie features secret subway map"

Waiting is an activity that most people receiving healthcare have acutely experienced, whether it’s being put on a list for treatment or simply passing time before a GP visit. Cutting waiting time is something that can drastically improve patients’ experience, and in the past we’ve seen ideas such as HealthSpot use telemedicine to deliver healthcare advice remotely. For accidents and emergencies that require more hands-on attention however, a new platform called ER Wait Watcher enables users to determine which nearby hospital is likely to see them first.!

Read more about the ER Wait Watcher »!!

5.   Interactive map helps patients find the fastest emergency!healthcare!

Owning a masterpiece is not a pleasure the average consumer enjoys, but being able to hang some art on the walls is something most people would like to do. While some services such as ARTtwo50 have brought the price of original works down to a fairly affordable USD 250, Artkick is an app pursuing a different route by broadcast ing renowned paintings and photography into living rooms through the TV.!

Read more about Artkick »!  

6.  App lets homeowners stream art through their TV!

Smartphones have placed high definition cameras into the hands of many consumers, enabling them to easily capture their lives on digital film. However, tools to edit and organize this raw footage with the same ease are few and far between. While apps such as Cinch are going some way to give users complex editing tools, Wordeo is a new app that lets amateur filmmakers quickly organize their clips and add their own text to tell a better story.!

Read more about Wordeo »!  

7.  App enables users to add typography to their video messages!

While startups like Caviar are helping to unlock high quality restaurant menus for takeaway in San Francisco, another venture is focusing on another aspect of food delivery in the area. Palo Alto-based Fluc is helping businesses plan their food takeouts from any chain up to a year in advance.!

Read more about Fluc »!  

8.  Food delivery service takes orders for 365 days into the future!

During emergency relief efforts, a common tactic among responders is the practice of triage, which involves placing color-coded tags onto patients to determine the severity of their injury and allow medical help to be distributed more efficiently. Now the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Information Technology has developed eTriage, a digital wristband system that lets emergency services track injured citizens on the ground. !

Read more about the eTriage »!

9.   Electronic tags deliver real time patient data to responders!during disasters!

Consumers don’t often have an intimate knowledge of where the food they buy at the supermarke t o r consume in restaurants comes from, but we have seen efforts to greater inform customers, most recently with the Harney Sushi restaurant, which details its sustainable fishing practices through edible QR codes on the meals themselves. Going slightly further, however, Cisse Trading Co. is now including QR codes on its baked goods and hot drinks that enable customers to send a message to the farmers that harvested the ingredients.!

Read more about Cisse Trading Co. »!  

10.  Packaging lets consumers message the farmers that made their! food!

Enjoying exercise tips from expert instructors at home has been around since the age of fitness VHS tapes, now updated as live streamed sessions through platforms such as Peloton. Offer ing an element of personal communication with fitness and general wellness trainers, InstructorLive enables users to get responses to their questions in real time.!

Read more about InstructorLive »!  

11.  Streamed fitness and dance classes offer real time Q&As!

3D printing has for a while been touted as a game changer in mass production, and we have already seen how the technology can be applied to consumer-facing business — for example, the Netherlands’ Zazzy platform, which lets customers design their own jewelry. Now a new marketplace called Dyo offers ‘artisanal’ mass-produced items that each feature individual design quirks and can be customized by the consumer.!

Read more about Dyo »!  

12.  Marketplace’s mass produced, 3D-printed products are never! exactly the same!

While family members may be flung across the far corners of the world, there are now many ways to keep in touch more easily, from video calls to social media. Now a new startup called bob is hoping to change the way families use their TV, with a USB stick that transforms the screens into an interactive dashboard to keep track and connect with distant relatives.!

Read more about Bob »!  

13.  USB stick lets distant relatives watch TV and chat together!

The ocean is full of waste produced by humans, and beaches often end up collecting the debris that washes ashore, which is unsightly and potentially deadly to marine animals. While cleanup initiatives have the obvious benefit of ridding trash from coastlines, the recyclable waste can also be used for creating products and opportunities. In the past we’ve seen schemes in the UK develop the Sea Chair — a stool made entirely of trash trawled from the ocean — and now Plastic Bank is enabling those participating in beach cleanups in Peru to exchange their help for training, micro-loans and access to 3D printing facilities.!

Read more about Plastic Bank »!  

14.  In Peru, beach cleanup scheme helps disadvantaged people! become entrepreneurs!

A beer could perhaps be said to be the greatest way to unwind — something the UK’s Deskbeers has tapped into with its Friday afternoon office delivery service. However, it’s not the most healthy method of relaxation, thanks to the calories, its dehydrating qualities and the next-day hangover. Lean Machine Ale aims to change that, offering a variety of fitness-enhancing qualities.!

Read more about Lean Machine Ale » !  

15.  Fitness beer is actually good for the body!

What is Springwise?!

!Springwise scans the globe for the most promising, unique and innovative business ventures, ideas and concepts that are ready for regional or international adaptation, expansion, partnering, investments or cooperation.!!Springwise headquarters is in close contact with more than 17,000 Springspotters in over 150 countries worldwide, who provide us with details of the latest innovations in their countries. These are compiled and assessed by our editorial team, and the best examples are published to provide entrepreneurial inspiration to our readers around the world!!!Springwise publishes a Daily and a Weekly newsletter, to which you can subscribe for free, they are sent to more than 170,000 people. !!Established in 2002, Springwise is headquartered in London, United Kingdom.!

© 2002-2014 SPRINGWISE! FOLLOW SPRINGWISE!