Whatever Floats Your Boat: Maritime Business Ideas to Dip Your Toes In

Businesses by the waters aren’t the most sought after, but they’re definitely not forgotten. There aren’t many people that will actively look for a business close to a body of water or even over a body of water, but there are many untapped opportunities for brave individuals to tackle if they’re looking for unique maritime business ideas that will always be in demand.

From shipbuilding to transportation, here are just some of the many maritime business ideas that you can look into and invest in that involve more sea than land.

Luxury Cruises

One of the most lucrative markets in the maritime industry is the luxury cruise business. Sadly, enormous luxury ships cost a fortune and you can’t expect to operate a luxury cruise startup without considerable amounts of money and backing. Fortunately, cruises are always sought after and some of the most popular tours around the world are conducted on enormous ships that draw in thousands of holidaymakers every week.

There are a lot of considerations when it comes to creating your own luxury cruise ship or service. You have to worry about staffing it with potentially a thousand or more employees, you need to worry about all the entertainment services, food, security and even hygiene issues. You’ll also need to hire a specialized marine mechanic team to fix any problems your ship might have and to maintain the behemoth machine when it’s docked.

There is the option of starting small with yachts and other smaller boats. You can rent these out for parties, short-term cruises or even keep them docked and run a restaurant inside of it. Upgrading from a smaller boat into a large cruise ship will take a hefty investment, but running a smaller-scale operation is a good way to gauge if this type of business is right for you.

Transportation

Another option is to transport goods across the sea. Although companies like to use air transport and land transport for smaller goods or loads, they still use the sea to ferry over enormous shipping containers that hold anything from cars to computer components. Sea transport is still, and will continue to be, a vital component to any business that operates on a global scale.

For this, you will need to ensure you have set your business up for international trade. That includes being able to keep the money flowing – for instance, you may need to work out a good way for a money transfer to Philippines. You’ll also need to consider whether or not you have the staff available in your target country. Once you’ve done these things, you’ll find it can make it a lot easier.

Getting your foot in the transporting and logistics industry is difficult because there are many well-established global transportation services operating right now, and it’s difficult for a company to trust a startup with potentially millions of dollars worth of cargo to an inexperienced business. However, smaller boats and shorter distances could help you get your foot into the industry.

Alternatively, you might want to consider starting on land or in the air to make a name for your business before you move onto the sea. Cargo is usually much more expensive if it has to be transported via a large freighter, so make sure you consider all of the potential pitfalls before investing millions or even billions of dollars into a transportation business. Get noticed by networking with well-known companies and improving your relationships and you’ll soon find yourself receiving requests from some very prominent figureheads in every industry.