Business for 500,000 rubles: current ideas

Hello, friends and readers of the site. Today we will focus on what kind of business to open with 500,000 rubles. This amount cannot be called “great”, but it opens up a lot of opportunities for its owner, because with it you can organize the same thing as with 200-300 thousand, only with a higher quality (on a grand scale). This fact will subsequently give an advantage in the market over competitors with less starting capital. Today I will talk about what a business niche is and how to choose it based on a given amount of capital. Let's also talk about high-margin goods, find out how they differ from their low- and medium-margin counterparts. I will definitely supplement all “new knowledge” (not to be unfounded) with specific business ideas. So read, delve into it, take your time and decide where you want to invest your precious half a million.

Choosing a Niche

Business niches are a conditionally free place in the market that an entrepreneur should occupy because the demand for something is great, but there is not enough supply. When choosing a niche, you need to consider the following factors:

Demand. It’s clear here that if there is no demand for a specific product or service, then it’s not worth doing.
Competition. A niche is only where the demand is high and competition is low.
Market conditions, that is, the ability to organize exactly what you intended, for example, technical factors.
Finance. Certain types of activities require different investments; you should choose only what you can initially handle.
Knowledge. It is very difficult to do something that is unfamiliar, because already in the process of understanding the basics you can make a lot of mistakes and “break a lot of wood,” so you need to rely on your skills and knowledge.

Friends, in fact, in every field there are many free niches, since the world is dynamic, fashion changes, new technologies appear, people themselves develop. And sometimes it’s enough to add a bit of creativity and your own flavor to an old, already hackneyed idea, so that the business becomes popular and profitable again. Below, for each individual area, I will give several of the most popular business ideas in the past and relevant in the coming year.

Investments in mutual funds

Mutual investment funds are no longer nearly as popular and profitable as they were in the early 2000s. Nevertheless, investing in shares today is not at all pointless. Such investments allow you to receive relatively high income with low risks.

By buying mutual funds, citizens invest money in shares of domestic or foreign companies. Moreover, the management company purchases securities of organizations from various areas of the market, which makes it possible to diversify risks well and protect capital from unforeseen circumstances.

In general, the algorithm for the operation of the share is as follows:

An investor buys a certain number of shares at a price, for example, 10,000 rubles.
The management company uses the investor's money to create an investment portfolio containing securities of domestic and foreign companies.
Brokers trade shares on the stock exchange.
As the price of shares increases, investors receive a certain profit.
After the expiration of the contract, the management company returns to the investor his capital and all profits received minus his interest.

There are three types of mutual funds on the market:

Open. Anyone has the right to buy the asset. The sale of shares can be carried out at any convenient time.
Interval. Any citizen can purchase, but the asset can only be sold at a strictly defined time.
Closed. The purchased security can be sold only after a long period of time.

Advantages of investing in mutual funds

The main advantages of investing in mutual funds can be formulated as follows:

the funds are managed by professionals from the management company;
high profitability;
the possibility of passive income;
relatively low barrier to entry into the market;
possibility of long-term investments;
every citizen has the opportunity to purchase a mutual fund;
huge selection of projects;
state control over securities.

The disadvantages of this financial instrument are:

Quite expensive expert services;
presence of risk;
difficulty in choosing a fund.

What is important to know about investing in mutual funds?

Investing in mutual funds does not guarantee profit.

The fact is that most management companies on the market operate at zero or even a loss, so this must be taken into account when choosing a financial instrument for investment.

Nutrition

We have digressed a little from the essence of our article. Let me remind you: given - 500,000 rubles, goal - business, question - which one can be opened for this money and where (in a small town or metropolis). In any locality, the most win-win option invariably remains the sphere of public catering, as they say, “war is war, but you always want to eat, lunch is on schedule and things can’t be done on an empty stomach.” How do you feed people with half a million? There are a lot of options, of course, you can’t open a cool restaurant with this money, or even some kind of trendy bar. This is not necessary at the start; it is better to start small in order to gradually understand all the intricacies of this craft.

Great ideas:

Fast food kiosk - pancakes, donuts, shawarma, pies, salads and so on.
Mini coffee shop. In addition to several varieties of high-quality coffee, which you can drink there or take with you, it’s a good idea to additionally sell high-quality tea or coffee beans.
Kiosk with dried fruits, candied fruits, nuts and juices.
A small section with original sweets - jellies, gummies, marshmallows, macaroons, cotton candy and others.
Student or factory canteen, buffet in a hospital or clinic. Rent in such places is usually low, prices should not be raised too high, revenue will still be due to the huge influx of visitors at certain hours.
A point of draft beer, where you can additionally sell all kinds of snacks by weight - crackers, salted peanuts, fish, and also draft lemonade is in good demand among those who do not drink, but want to “hang out” with friends.
Pizzeria. Pizza is a favorite dish of millions of people, why not take advantage of it, just come up with some twist that will set you apart from your competitors.
Sushi, rolls and other dishes of other nations with home delivery.
Department of semi-finished products. This idea is especially relevant in large cities, where the always busy population does not have enough time to stand at the stove for hours, and they also do not want to eat fast food. Stick with dumplings, wrap more cabbage rolls, slap on cutlets, locate your point in a residential area and money will flow to you like a river, especially during the hours when humanity returns home from work in unison. This is a very profitable business, which you can start with for 500,000 rubles in Moscow.
Delivery of prepared food to offices. In this case, it is advisable to have a website, good advertising and an agreement with several large companies.
Vending. I'll put it in the same category. In recent years, vending machines with drinks and food have been rapidly gaining popularity, as they are convenient - there are no queues, prices are reasonable and you can have a snack on the run, without putting off important matters, or while waiting agonizingly in a public place. The machines can be loaded with snacks, pies, coffee, juices or drinking water, chips, sweets and much more.

beauty

Half a million is enough capital to realize it in the beauty industry. With this amount you can easily organize a small family hair salon, a manicure or hair removal salon, an eyelash extension or eyebrow drawing shop. It is not necessary to open all this from scratch; you can rent a separate corner in an already promoted salon, and use the capital to purchase good equipment and the necessary funds. Here’s another idea for a business in the beauty industry, which is equally relevant in both small and big cities - you can not provide these services, but sell professional supplies for beauty artists or cosmetics for those who are used to taking care of themselves.

Investments from 500 rubles - summing up and 1 more way to invest funds

The above methods will not allow you to form solid capital, but will give you the opportunity to try different instruments.

There is one more way to invest funds profitably - use them to improve your own financial literacy . For example, you can attend a successful investor training or watch an online webinar. New knowledge will allow you to avoid many common mistakes and increase the return on your investment. This is discussed in more detail in our special article.

Services

Friends, the service sector has always been considered the most successful for beginning businessmen. Any business in this category is a high-margin business (we’ll talk about what this means a little later). Five hundred thousand rubles is enough to purchase tools and create good advertising for yourself. Regardless of what you do - babysitting other people's children, walking or fostering animals, gluing wallpaper, fixing plumbing, cleaning, giving injections, writing term papers, repairing computers or household appliances, teaching foreign languages - without high-quality advertising for you not enough. How else will potential clients find out about you? Therefore, some part of the start-up capital must be spent on advertising the service.

I will include marketing in this category, since this is also a service. Advertising is a great thing. It is necessary for everyone who wants to become successful. And you can make good money by creating it. Make advertising posters, booklets, business cards, banners, sound and audio advertising, promote “those in need” on social networks and so on. And spend the money on creating a website, renting an office, workshop and purchasing printing equipment.

Internet

Business on the Internet cannot be called a separate sphere, but you definitely shouldn’t forget about this option. Learn to create websites and promote them, and the same advertising that you place will bring you profit. But in order for those interested to appear, your site must become popular, which is where the starting money will go. Today there are a lot of services and technologies that can do the “dirty work” for you for a certain amount of money.

The Internet is also useful in the previously described areas. People most often order food for home delivery via the Internet, rather than by phone, as was the case before. They also learn about the list of services and their costs via the Internet, and to sell anything, it is not necessary to open a retail outlet, an online store is enough.

Certain types of business on the Internet are blogging, creating master classes and online trainings, providing information, educational, design, auditing and other services, as well as joint purchases and resale of goods from third-party sellers.

Trade

Friends, we have smoothly approached the sphere of trade. To begin with, I propose to understand what the highest-margin products are. These are products that are in constant high demand with minimal supply on the market. There is always a high markup on them, which does not prevent them from remaining in demand. Margin is net revenue, that is, the difference between the costs of a product and the cost of its sale. The higher the margin, the more profitable it is for the seller.

However, charging exorbitantly high interest rates on everything is not a smart decision. Overly expensive items will not be sold (why would buyers give you their hard-earned money if a competitor has something cheaper?).

All offers on the market can be divided into three categories:

Low margin. This includes everyday items. They are bought with a bang, but they are also sold everywhere, so the lower the cost, the more people will buy them from you. In this case, profit directly depends on turnover. This includes food and household chemicals.
Average margin. There are significantly fewer such goods on the market and the markup on them is higher, but to sell them you need good advertising. Examples include household appliances or building materials.
High-margin. These are trendy products, that is, those that sell well on the “here and now” principle. These could be technological innovations (new models from Apple), seasonal offers (skis, tubing, seeds and fertilizers, swimsuits, rubber boots, etc.), something from popular brands, where following fashion is more important than cost, precious metals, real estate, jewelry decorations and so on.

Where to begin the path of a successful entrepreneur in the field of trade, with only half a million to your name? Start with something that is difficult to burn out on. These can be goods from any category, the main thing is that they are in demand at a given time in a specific area, that is, the niche is relatively free. You can reduce the costs of organizing such a business if you don’t bother about a retail space, but give preference to an online store. Then most of the capital will go to purchasing goods and advertising.

...and bonds

Bonds are securities, just like stocks. The only difference is that owning shares gives the investor the right to own part of the issuing company. Bondholders do not have this right.

According to Vladimir Krokhalev from Investment , it is optimal to have an investment portfolio consisting of 50% stocks and 50% bonds. “In bonds, it is worth choosing issues from the most reliable issuers, the corporate sector, as well as sovereign debt obligations. Novice investors should not buy bonds with long maturities, as well as high-yield bonds of companies and banks with low ratings,” he notes.

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The principle of how bonds work is as follows: the investor invests in securities, thus giving, says Murad Shikhmagomedov, head of the Department for the Development of Banking Products and Projects at Freedom Finance Bank .

The risk of investing in bonds is the bankruptcy of the company that issued the bonds, he adds. In the case of government bonds, this risk is practically zero.

Production

Friends, now I will answer those who asked whether it is possible to open a production facility for 500 thousand rubles in a small town. My answer is definitely yes, regardless of the size of the locality. Here is my selection of ideas for this area:

Eco-products. The topic of environmental products is very relevant at the moment. You can produce notebooks, string bags or paper bags, toys, fireplaces, wooden utensils, biodegradable seaweed straws, all kinds of containers and packaging, washing, cleaning, care and cosmetic products that do not contain chemicals or are not tested on animals.
Food products - berries (fresh, frozen, preserves, jams), popcorn, mushrooms (demand is greater for champignons), chewing marmalade and other sweets, seasonings, protein bars, peanut butter and much more.
Something from the 3D category - wallpaper, self-leveling floors, relaxation systems, spare parts using a 3D printer, paintings.
Equipment for outdoor recreation - tents, barbecues, umbrellas, skewers, coal and means for lighting fires.
Educational toys for children - tactile dolls, rugs for babies, busy boards, construction sets.
Furniture, including from pallets.
Other options are candles (floating, church, souvenir, gel), bath accessories (brooms, tubs, aromatic oils, hats), cabins for workers, lumber, stained glass, photo tiles, flexible stone, colored crushed stone, solar collectors, foam blocks, aerated concrete and expanded clay concrete, clothing, toys, food, pet stuffing, photo books, yarn, personalized spoons, florariums, slings for carrying babies, leather belts, refrigerator magnets...

The list can go on for a very long time. When choosing an idea for production, both the demand for future products and your own passion for the business are important.

Franchising

Friends, finally I would like to draw your attention to franchising. This is a certain form of cooperation in which one party (a well-promoted brand) transfers to the other (a budding entrepreneur) under certain conditions (premises, investments, percentages of profits) the right to engage in activities under their name. Unclear? Look here. There is one that benefits from opening branded outlets in every corner of the country. But why do it yourself if you can entrust it to someone else. There are a lot of advantages - the products are sold, and there are a minimum of problems. The benefit of the entrepreneur is also obvious - the brand is promoted, there is no need to think about organization, advertising, or purchasing goods. You come to everything ready-made, work and make a profit.

Among the franchising offers on the Internet you can find many interesting types of business with guaranteed high profitability. Of course, in this case we should not forget about demand and competition. At the same time, an amount of half a million is often quite enough. That's all. Go for it. Until next time.

Is it profitable to invest half a million rubles in a PAMM account?

Recently, thanks to the efforts of the mass media, almost all residents of the Russian Federation have learned about PAMM accounts in the Forex market. PAMM accounts are a form of money management in which the management of assets is available to one person. The remaining participants are forced to only observe the process, receiving passive income.

The method of investment is somewhat similar to the purchase of shares, however, in the case of PAMM accounts, the broker trades securities directly on the exchange.

What are the advantages of this investment method?

The main advantages of investing money in PAMM accounts are presented:

the possibility of passive income;
good profit of 100-200% per annum;
lack of need for specialized education and any market knowledge;
the ability to withdraw funds at any time convenient for the investor;
good tools for capital control.

Significant disadvantages of investing in PAMM are:

large financial risks;
difficulties in choosing a competent trader;
the need for constant control over money.

Features of investing in PAMM

In case of unsuccessful transactions and bad play, a trader can easily lose all his capital. This scenario has a non-zero probability, so when investing in PAMM, you should weigh and think about everything.