Businesses with a difference leading the way in growth stakes

by Startacus Admin
Even though the downturn ended quite some time ago, trading conditions are still pretty tough for many businesses throughout the US. Companies large and small appear to be fighting a losing battle against low consumer confidence, stagnant wages and expensive overheads. However, there is a small yet significant band of enterprises who are managing to swim against the tide, but how?
These companies manage to sell products and/or services which occupy a niche market almost on their own, while their images are also anything but conventional. Irrespective of how different they are, they are managing to grow at extraordinary rates, seeing revenue treble, quadruple or expand by even more in a three-year period. We look at a few examples of these businesses.
Men and boys
Selling a diverse and unique range of novelty gifts for men including cocktail shakers and golf-themed barbecue utensils, HomeWetBar have followed this template expertly. In the past three years, revenue has shot up by around 750%, owing to some degree an increase in demand for quirky gifts that men are likely to love.
Keith Winter (CEO of Homewetbar) said “This business was born out of my passion for high-quality home entertaining, and we will continue to provide the most unique products to our customers and bring jobs to the Oklahoma City area.”
From adults to kids, Superfly Kids might seem like an ordinary fancy dress retailer, going on what you might see on their homepage. However, aside from all the fancy dress costumes kids could possibly want to wear for birthday parties and other occasions, they also sell customised superhero capes exclusively for younger children.
Tech to the fore
Goal Zero is one business which is using unique technology to help boost its profits. The company create solar power generators to fire up domestic appliances such as refrigerators as well as smaller gadgets like smartphones and tablets. Surfing the green wave, they have managed to make their expertise count as far as revenue growth is concerned.
Another firm using their tech expertise to their advantage is Lumosity. Developing brain-training games for a variety of platforms including smartphones, they also work alongside universities in researching cognitive development in adults. The latter helps a great deal with the former, giving them an almost fool-proof business plan.
If you like this post - you might also like; That’s so crazy - it might just work! Some of the worlds most bizarre businesses...
Join Startacus - the Self Start Society!
Subscribe to our newsletter
If you would like to receive our startup themed newsletter, full of the latest startup opportunities, events, news, stories, tips and advice, then sign up here.
The lowdown on the Regional Winners of Tech Nation's Rising Stars competition - some of the UK's most promising early stage tech companies.

Loop Not Luck aims to improve social mobility via its innovative job board designed specifically to connect underrepresented candidates to tailored career opportunities.

75% of LGBTQ+ tech founders and investors actively conceal their gender or sexuality from peers in the ecosystem, says first of its kind report.

Leading AI startup Aiir Innovations secures major investment to support global expansion and help set a new standard for engine inspections.

The lowdown on OneThird, the foodtech startup that's tackling food waste via its innovative solution for predicting the shelf life of fresh produce.

Karen Meager, co-founder of Monkey Puzzle Training shares some insights on how leadership has changed in the last decade, and what it takes to be a great leader today.

Freight rate management platform Freightify raises Series A investment to support further international growth and mission to help more freight forwarding companies digitize their operations.

Crowdfunding success for Omni, the vegan dog food brand, reaffirms the recession-proof growth of the pet nutrition industry.

Want to learn a new language? Weeve is an innovative startup that has created an innovative, creative and effective way to help you do just that.

Want to build an investable, scalable tech startup? The Raise Accelerator programme is now open for applications and will help you do just that.
Published on: 5th March 2014
If you would like to enable commenting via your Startacus account, please enable Disqus functionality in your Account Settings.







- Tech Nation reveals 33 early stage scaleups to watch in 2023 8th Feb 2023 The lowdown on the Regional Winners of Tech Nation's Rising Stars competition - some of the UK's most promising early stage tech companies.
- Loop Not Luck, the UK’s first intersectional diversity recruiting platform launches 7th Feb 2023 Loop Not Luck aims to improve social mobility via its innovative job board designed specifically to connect underrepresented candidates to tailored career opportunities.
- New report reveals the tech community's LGBTQ+ Crisis 7th Feb 2023 75% of LGBTQ+ tech founders and investors actively conceal their gender or sexuality from peers in the ecosystem, says first of its kind report.
- Aviation startup Aiir Innovations raises over €2M to transform aircraft engine maintenance 7th Feb 2023 Leading AI startup Aiir Innovations secures major investment to support global expansion and help set a new standard for engine inspections.