Editor’s note: This article was first published in May 2013. Business details are as of 2013, and the companies mentioned (wigglesdogwigs.com, werentgoats.com, somethingstore.com, RentAFriend.com, Mumbani) may have closed or changed; the prices quoted and the “minimum of 100 goats” are unsourced.
If some people struggle to believe that luxury spas for pets exist, let alone that they are profitable, you will need a very open mind to make sense of the businesses below. They are probably the strangest businesses I have ever seen, but ironically, they work. (Read also: 4 amazingly simple business ideas.)
1. Wigs for dogs
This idea comes from Ruth Regina, a woman who worked as a television makeup artist, where wigs were very much part of the job.
According to her website (wigglesdogwigs.com), making wigs for dogs goes back 20 years, to when her niece asked her for a wig for her dog. Her business caught the attention of the media and even got a slot on a TV show where contestants showed off their dogs. A sort of beauty pageant for “Miss Canine Beauty” 🙂
2. Rent-a-goat weed control
Sometimes the cure for weeds can be worse than the disease. Besides being expensive, some herbicides can contain large doses of chemicals that are dangerous both to human health and to the soil and the environment. That is how werentgoats.com was born: a company that rents out a minimum of 100 goats to landowners who need to get rid of overgrown brush. They describe themselves as a company that uses an eco-friendly way of removing unwanted vegetation while promoting the growth of pasture. Unbelievable as it may seem, the idea has been very well received. In our article 5 one-of-a-kind business ideas, we talked about a company that rented out cows for stress relief. So anything is possible.
3. A surprise gift for $10
For those moments when you feel down and would like someone to give you a surprise present, or when you need to buy a gift for someone and have no idea what to get or whether they will like it, there is a company with a very simple service. For $10, somethingstore.com sends you a surprise gift. What kind of gift? Nobody knows until it arrives. It could be an old book, a perfume, a box of chocolates… it’s a surprise! And equally surprising is the revenue this company is bringing in; it has already been covered by major media in the United States and Canada.
4. A face pillow to prevent wrinkles
It is said that people who sleep on their stomach or on their side may, in the long run, face a problem that back sleepers don’t: wrinkles on the face or forehead can appear sooner. To deal with this, the pillow company Mumbani has created the Mumbani Fresh Face, a facial pillow that supposedly prevents this problem and keeps you looking fresher and younger for more years. Some people will think it’s silly, but the product sells.
5. Rent a friend
Money can’t buy friends, but that was before RentAFriend.com, where for just $10 an hour you can find a friend to go with you to the movies, for a coffee and so on. The website insists that it is not a dating site, is not meant as a way to find a partner, and is certainly not an escort agency. The idea behind the company is the social role of offering company to people who feel lonely. The success of the service has shown just how many people in this world feel alone.
Further reading: more strange and unusual businesses
- The worst business ideas that somehow made their creators millionaires
- Some original, and somewhat strange, profitable businesses
Featured image: Petty Officer 1st Class Michael Wagoner, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
