Unlikely businesses

If the world at large is full of oddities (and trust me, it is), the small business world is certainly no exception. Sprinkled among the dime-a-dozen coffee shops and clothing retailers are all sorts of strange and unlikely niche businesses.

Here's my favorite:

Ardon's Shaver Service, located in midtown Eugene, Oregon, between the Suds 'Em Yourself dog wash and a mortuary, has been in business for 30 years. They focus, apparently, on repairing a single commodity item that lasts for years and costs maybe $75 to replace, and they've apparently been doing this with enough success to continue doing it for decades now.

Perhaps there's more a business here that I would think: a quick Google search for "shaver service" finds  ElectricShaver.com (in business since 1939), the Shaver Service Center of Austin, A-1 Appliance & Shaver Service in Raleigh, and lots more. Maybe it's time to add a shaver service business plan to our free samples.

Got your own favorite example of an unlikely business to share? Let us hear about it in the comments.

Josh Cochrane
Director of Online Marketing
Palo Alto Software

Comments

[Steve Lange]

I've had Ardon fix a couple of my electric razors over the years. In our over-consuming, throw-away culture/economy is great to find someone who can still actually fix things.