Businesses That Flourish In Downturn
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Do you know what type of business that flourish in downturn? In fact, this type of business seems to be flourished during the economic slump.
I am talking about the repair business. As people tighten their belts during the slump time, they will go for repairing rather than replacement as it is much cheaper to go along this option. It is indeed one great way to cut spending and help us pull through the recession that we are currently experiencing.
For most of us, the consumers, getting our bags, shoes, car, electrical appliances and items around the house fixed can help in bringing our expenses down but also it can also bring immense self satisfaction especially when we are fixing the damaged goods ourselves (DIY). Aside from that, we are contributing to the environment as we are generating less waste and demand for more new goods.
Fixing certain things such as your long owned car can also bring out sentimental value towards the concerned item. This feeling is indeed something that money cannot buy.
Don't be surprised that fixing can also make the goods last a long time.For example, by getting an extra sole for a pair of shoes, its usefulness lifetime can be greatly extended. For most of us with lots of clothing or want to preserve certain clothing that passes down to us by our parents, we can look for a tailor to get them altered.
With the tumbling of giant motor car companies ( I hope that won't be more to come), it signifies that less and less people are getting new cars. This simply means that they are keeping and using their present aging cars. Even if the economy is down, we still need to travel to work and do our shopping chores. So I guess that is the reason I see so many smiling faces on those car repair owners around town as they must enjoying booming business due to the downturn.
But the same good demand cannot be said on the cellphone and pc repair business. It seems that people would like to get a cheaper new phone when their current cellphones are faulty. Guess that cell phone nowadays are so cheap that it does not justify to get them repaired. Aside from that, the short warranty period that given after the repair job does not encourage us to go for such option. As for pc, the prices has come down so steeply that it is wiser to get a new one rather than spend money to repair the once high performance pc that we own.
Maybe the second hand businesses are also thriving in this bad times. For the lower and middle income groups, they might want to trade in or sell off their audio visual equipments such as Hi-Fi or mini compo before getting a replacement unit. Some of them may also go for a second hand unit instead of getting a brand new unit.
Of course, the best thing during this bad time is not to buy things but come on, we are humans and we DO have some basic needs! Life is short and why not make the best deal in getting our basic needs met?
Posted byLeoCW at 12:13 AM