Did you know there are wild scorpions living in the UK? I didn’t until this week when I stumbled across this article. For nearly 200 years a colony of scorpions have been living in the walls of Sheerness Dockyard on the Isle of Sheppey. Nobody knows how they got there for sure but they’ve certainly made themselves at home with the colony now estimated to number 15000.

In today’s email:

• The Big Idea - local tool libraries, repair cafes, and buy-it-for-life (BIFL).

• Replicate This - are fortune cookies an untapped ad market in the UK?

• The Side Hustle - hyper-local subscription boxes.

The recommendation: another of my favourite newsletters, Marketing Examples by Harry Dry. Easy to read with insightful marketing and copywriting tips - plus the graphics make me envious.

THE BIG IDEA

BIFL > Repair > Replace

Times are changing with 55% of UK adults choosing to repair rather than replace and 42% paying more for longer lasting items. The era of cheap, throwaway items is over with consumers favouring robust items and sustainability.

Undoubtedly this is compounded by economic uncertainty but is largely driven by changing priorities with Gen Z leading the way.

So, what are the opportunities here?

There’s a whole economy needed to support such a significant change in priorities. Within this though there are three key strands:

Help people find BIFL items.

There’s already a rapidly growing sub-Reddit catering to this with r/buyitforlife now boasting 1.9m subscribers.

But there’s room to become a UK authority on the subject - put items through rigorous testing to find those that are truly BIFL.

There’s a lot of fun to be had with something like this, for inspiration check out the classic YouTube channel ‘Will It Blend’ by the blender company Blendtec.

There’s also an opportunity to create a BIFL marketplace selling only tested and approved products.

Repair items for people.

Repair cafes are starting to pop up all over the UK. These are generally run at community centres every few months and staffed by volunteers who will help repair items for free.

Whilst more of a social initiative than something that’s gonna get you that Lambo there’s definite opportunity here.

This is an obvious bolt-on to an existing cafe or coffee shop and ideal to bring in business during the typically quieter mid-week periods.

Mobile repairs are also an opportunity here. Not everyone will have the time or inclination to attend a community repair cafe but will gladly pay for someone to come and fix the item in their own home.

Help people repair their own items.

The main thing that stops people from repairing their own items is access to the right tools.

So solve that problem with a local tool library.

Library Of Things is already doing really well with this model across London but there’s still loads of opportunity. They will even licence their technology and support those looking to build such a service.

Helping people with actually how to repair things is also a great opportunity. We’ve all been there trying to find the right YouTube video to help us sort something and having to wade through countless options of varying degrees of quality. There’s definite room to become an authority here with high quality, consistent videos.

REPLICATE THIS

Fortune cookies - an untapped ad market?

Open Fortune certainly seems to think so. And it seems industry experts agree with them with Gary Vaynerchuk investing last year.

With partnerships with 47,000 restaurants across 99% of US zip codes they’re dominating the US market.

Brands work with them to develop a bespoke fortune cookie which is then distributed to restaurants.

Some of the messaging is hilarious so it’s not surprising 6% of those seeing these ads are then sharing on social media. My personal favourite is the Manscaped ad - check out the case study.

This is a simple lift and shift but don’t be put off by their in-depth targeting and reporting tools.

If you haven’t got huge sums to invest just start small with restaurants in your home town and market to local businesses. You can then slowly expand from there.

THE SIDE HUSTLE

Hyper-local subscription boxes

This is a new section I’ve decided to start including all about side hustles.

Not everyone wants to build a full time business, some just want a little bit of extra cash in their pockets each month.

Don’t worry, from now on there will be an idea each week catering to just that.

This week’s idea - hyper-local subscription boxes.

Have a think about what is produced in your local area, maybe you can’t think of anything but I guarantee you there will be a raft of things being made right under your nose.

Restaurants cooking up signature sauces and chutneys.

At home baking businesses knocking out delectable treats.

Local artisans producing all manner of items.

2024 is the year of shopping small and local, so help those in your area discover what’s on their doorstep.

Partner with these local businesses and craftspeople to produce a monthly subscription box giving a taste of what’s in the local area.

Businesses both sell produce and expand awareness in their local market.

Customers discover amazing things they maybe never knew existed.

That’s all for today.

As always hit reply to this email with any feedback or if you just fancy a chat!

See you next week,

Adam