Starting a Manufacturing Business—Need Ideas & Suggestions!

Hey everyone,

I’m a CS major with over 5 years of experience in the ML field, and I’ve been thinking a lot about the future. As much as I love tech, I can sense a lot of unpredictability in the field. So, I’ve been contemplating starting a “boring” but stable side business in the Gurgaon area.

Here are a few ideas I’ve been brainstorming:

Solar Industry: Exploring the entire supply chain for solar products. Setting up something small and focusing on areas where India is highly dependent on imports from China.
E-commerce Packaging: Offering innovative and precise packaging solutions for the booming quick commerce industry. I think there’s a lot of potential here!
Franchise Ventures: Bringing in successful Indian companies like Atomberg, ather and setting up franchises in this area.
Hydroponics Farming: Renting land and starting hydroponic farming for premium, fresh produce. Demand for this seems to be growing fast!
Import-Export: Diving into import-export opportunities—maybe there’s something untapped here?

6: Plant based alternative as a solution (icecream, daily usage items ) : playing on conscious capitalism

These ideas seem to have a mix of stability and potential, but I’m sure there are many angles I’m missing. I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Are any of these ideas worth pursuing?

Do you see gaps in these sectors that could be filled?

Any other “boring” yet high-potential sectors you’d recommend?

I’m hoping this thread will help not just me but others who are also considering venturing into business. Let’s brainstorm together and share ideas that can lead to long-term success.

Looking forward :p

3mo ago

3.9Kviews

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ZippyMochi

Stealth3mo

Forget number 1 and 2 , too many competitors already with thin margins. You'd have an easier time selling existing solar setups from companies to housing societies. But sales is still tough.

Franchise ventures you should actually do the reverse. Take metro city brands to tier 2&3 towns which don't have them yet. Demand is there already.

Number 4 would be better if you buy the land somewhere cheap (ideally tier 2/3 city or village) and then transport it to cities for selling. Only high MRP produce will make sense (avocado for example).

Number 5, exporting Indian goods and services is tax free and best option as a business owner. I used to export, but stopped. Going to try and restart again but will require investment and time.

Number 6, lots of r&d plus experience required. You'll have to find smart partners to work with who aren't already working on some idea. Hard to do imo.

FluffyCupcake

Amazon3mo

Talk to folks in local, boring markets. Ask them about margins, m sure u will learn something more. Example - CAD based ornamental steel structures can be a good start. All cafés, showrooms use them

SqueakySushi

Stealth1mo

You have picked more or less same sectors which i have also thought about at different times. Great one. In some way i have spent time in almost all ideas you have mentioned. Solar industry- i was interested in solar flowers/ inmovative solar panels which are bendable. Also i was thinking of using rice husk ash to convert to super high quality silica which is used in photovoltaic cells in solar panels.

In case of ecommerce packaging - use soent coffee grounds/sugarcane bagasse, leftoevr leaves/fibres of waste materials into packaging products. You can eplsore hexagon or hineycomb structure where paper is changed into fiff forms to provide structural integrity.