Identifying Opportunities in Economic & Regulatory Trends

Marcus Manzoni
ENT3003
February 4, 2020

Identifying Opportunities in Economic & Regulatory Trends

Economic 1: Comfortable and sanitary public transit

a. https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2019/10/16/americans-public-transportation-trains-buses

b. Since the use of public transportation is on the rise again (even though it is still lower than it has been in the past) there is an opportunity to make public transportation more enjoyable for the passengers. By making buses/trains cleaner, more comfortable and ultimately more enjoyable, people will be more inclined to take public transportation.


c. The prototypical customer would be people who take public transit. A more specific classification could be people who live in a city and do not own a vehicle. Additionally if we were the ones making the buses, the city government would also be the prototypical customer in the case that they want to partner with our service.


d. I feel like this idea would be relatively easy to exploit; however, not many forms of public transportation pride themselves on the passenger experience in the U.S. Places like Hong Kong and Singapore have a very large percentage of people who use public transport because of how clean and efficient their system is.


e. I found this opportunity mostly through my desire to have a better, cleaner, more comfortable public transit system. I ride the bus to school every morning and it is usually crowded, unsanitary and uncomfortable, but I do it anyway because I don’t have a vehicle. If I did, I would most definitely ride that instead. However, if public transit was better in the ways I described, I would consider taking that instead of my own vehicle because I would save on gas and because public transport is better for the environment.


Economic 2: Durable all purpose shoes


a. https://www.statista.com/topics/4653/apparel-and-footwear-consumer-behavior-in-the-us/


b. According to the article people are starting to purchase shoes more often and one of the main things they look for in shoes/clothing in general is sustainability. Instead of having to buy multiple different pairs of shoes for different occasions and have them wear out really quickly, these shoes could last longer and have certain parts/attachments to aid in different situations. For example, they could have removable cleats, steel toe, traction pads etc.


c. The prototypical customer would be someone who is involved in many different activities and is prone to wearing out shoes quickly.

d. The idea would be a little challenging to exploit. I feel like shoe companies would catch onto the removable parts aspect pretty quickly, but to make the shoes super durable as well, that would be difficult.


e. I think this opportunity exists because although I like to buy new shoes every once in a while, sometimes there are shoes I really like and wish they wouldn’t wear out. Also I am from New York but attend school here in Florida and it is inconvenient to bring a bunch of different pairs of shoes, as well as having to buy different shoes for different activities.


Regulatory 1: Flavored Cannabis Pens


a. https://truthinitiative.org/research-resources/emerging-tobacco-products/e-cigarettes-facts-stats-and-regulations


b. I believe an opportunity may exist because of how large the cannabis market has become, how popular the drug is with young adults and the fact that it's quickly becoming legal across the U.S. Furthermore flavored vapes and e-cigarettes were nearly banned from the market and could still be in the future. If this is the case, then a Flavored Cannabis Pen may be the preferable alternative.


c. The prototypical customer would be anyone 21+ who smokes weed and/or vapes and those who may want to smoke but don’t like the normal flavor of marijuana when inhaled. The pen aspect could also be good for those who want more convenience.


d. This idea would be easy to replicate because all of the marijuana and tobacco industry would look to replicate the idea if it became popular and all that would need to be done is find out how to have flavors and change the vape pen into a weed pen.


e. I personally don’t smoke but I know a lot of people, especially in college, who do. Furthermore the industry is growing really rapidly in places where marijuana is legal. This may get some backlash because of how similar it is to the vape pens (the ones almost banned) and because some people are against the legalization of marijuana.


Regulatory 2: Cannabis Cafe Chain

a. https://www.thedailybeast.com/las-cannabis-cafe-inside-the-just-opened-lowell-cafe


b. I definitely believe there is an opportunity here for a cannabis cafe chain because there is only one Cannabis Cafe right now and it is doing extremely well in California. With the legalization of marijuana in states around the country I think an opportunity exists to put a store in locations all around the legal states. It could resemble a hemp version of Starbucks.


c. The prototypical customer would be someone 21+ who smokes/enjoys marijuana and also enjoys coffee/cafes. Furthermore, it would likely be great for millennial located in legalized states.


d. This idea would be tough to replicate because of all the rules and regulations the store would need to work through in order to operate. It could however lead to other big chains like Starbucks opening a new set of franchises with a similar idea which could be an issue.


e. Like I mentioned above, I don't smoke but I feel like with the amount of young adults I see who grab Starbucks everyday or go to cafes, and the increasing popularity of marijuana I feel like the two could go well together. The issues for this are similar to the pen as well. People will reject/boycott a place like this because of their stance on the legalization of marijuana.