6A: Identifying Opportunities in Economic and Regulatory Trends

1. Climate Change is Causing More Natural Disasters (Economic Trend)

a. Source: https://www.thebalance.com/top-usa-future-economic-trends-3305666

b. I believe this to be a valid opportunity because it has been factually proven that global warming is increasing the overall temperature of the planet which leads to more dramatic natural disasters and droughts. This causes the destruction of crops, arable lands, and commercial buildings even in extreme cases. Wildfires also occur more frequently as a result.

c. The customer with the opportunity here is farmers and those who deal directly with the land. By coming up with a crop or product that protects against these natural disasters and increased temperatures, farmers (the prototypical customers) can be more prepared and still earn a profit despite the increased risks due to climate change.

d. I think this opportunity is relatively difficult to exploit due to the unpredictability of the natural disasters themselves. Also, due to the variety of natural disasters, coming up with a “one size fits all” solution would be nearly impossible.

e. I saw this opportunity because I grew up around farmland constantly. My grandparents are farmers who frequently have to deal with the unpredictability of Florida weather. My grandfather has personally told me how much worse the weather has gotten too since he first entered the industry.

2. The Economy needs more workers, last month it got fewer (Economic Trend)

a. Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/07/upshot/jobs-report-economy-needs-workers.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FEconomic%20Conditions%20and%20Trends&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=4&pgtype=collection

b. I believe that this is a valid opportunity because again facts show that the work force and economy is nearing its maximum capacity and for this level of growth to be sustained, more workers are needed. If the economy continues to see a drop in the labor force, the current growth rate will become unsustainable and a collapse could ensue.

c. The prototypical customer is anyone aged 25-56. This is the case because these years are seen as the prime years for workers. People have to want to work and have to actively seek out jobs for this growth to be sustained. Entrepreneurs who create jobs and see this need to sustain growth could help immensely with this opportunity.

d. I think this opportunity is relatively difficult to exploit because many people in this generation do not have as big a desire to work as previous generations have had. This generation is sometimes perceived as feeling entitled and less motivated than ever, which can definitely make this opportunity very difficult to exploit if the will to work in the workers does not exist in the first place.

e. I saw this opportunity because of my experience this summer. I worked in the landscaping industry for six weeks this summer and the turnover of laborers I saw was astounding week to week. People were simply just not willing to put in the effort it takes to be successful, and I know that landscaping is not the only field to experience this.

3. Sales Tax Regulations: E-commerce businesses no longer get to pay no sales taxes (Regulatory Change)

a. Source: https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/7671-regulatory-issues-changes.html

b. I believe this is a valid opportunity because the Supreme Court literally decided the issue. In the case South Dakota v, Wayfair the Supreme Court decided that E-businesses can no longer pay no sales taxes due to the fact that they don’t have a physical presence in the state where their merchandise is sold. It is now illegal to not pay sales tax so therefore it is unavoidable.

c. The prototypical customer is the E-businesses themselves who now have to analyze different state tax laws and implement them accordingly to wherever they conduct their business or ship their merchandise. This can affect overall prices of E-businesses merchandise now that they have to factor in different sales taxes, so it will affect the individual consumer as well.

d. I think this opportunity is relatively easy to exploit due to the fact that it is unavoidable now because the Supreme Court made an official ruling on the matter, so it must be followed.

e. I think I saw this opportunity because I know how influential E-businesses like Amazon have become in the marketplace, so I looked up regulations having to do with e-businesses.

4. Tariffs and Trade Policies of the Trump Administration and Resulting Backlash (Regulatory Change)

a. Source: https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/7671-regulatory-issues-changes.html

b. This is a valid opportunity because it came from President Trump himself. His tariffs on other countries products and the resulting backlash from those countries aimed at the United States makes this opportunity extremely valid.

c. The prototypical customer for this opportunity is any business that deals with overseas products whether that be importing or exporting. It also affects overseas vendors trying to get their products into the United States for sale.

d. This opportunity is relatively difficult to exploit because it is unavoidable because it is an executive order made directly by the President himself. All businesses must comply accordingly whether they like the tariffs and trade policies or not. By buying or selling essential products now before the policies go into effect, one can somewhat bypass these new regulations on tariffs and trade.

e. I came across this opportunity because I am a political science major and therefore am very interested in things such as executive orders and how they affect the overall economy all the way down to the individual consumer.