Top 16 summer business ideas in 2024

Best 16 summer business ideas

It can be hard to decide which business idea is worth your time and money, So we took our time to help you and gathered 16 summer business ideas that will be profitable in 2024.  

Beach equipment rental

Beach equipment rental caters to beachgoers who want a hassle-free day at the shore. Imagine tourists or locals who don’t live near the beach, or those who simply don’t want to buy and store bulky beach gear. A beach equipment rental service allows them to rent chairs, umbrellas, coolers, and other essentials for the day, eliminating the burden of lugging them to and from the beach. This convenience can be a major selling point, especially for families or those traveling light.

How much you can make: $30K – $100K annually
How much does it cost to start: $10K – $50K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Outdoor fitness classes

Outdoor fitness classes involve coordinating and leading wellness activities like aerobics, yoga, and calisthenics for groups at scenic public parks, trails, or recreation areas instead of dedicated gym facilities to promote healthy lifestyles through immersive nature connections. The adaptable model also reaches clients hesitating to enroll amid pandemic nerves or avoiding crowded indoor spaces for accessibility and air quality preferences already.

By optimizing peaceful outdoor settings from forest preserves to corner recreation grounds, the concept also sustains instructor autonomy from studio operator politics or rental overheads subtracting from earnings over time as direct bookings accelerate. Attendees similarly gain freedom picking closer-to-home locations benefiting unique site qualities like mountain, waterfront, or big city skyline scenery boosting program ambiance.

How much you can make: $30K – $100K annually
How much does it cost to start: $5K – $20K
How long does it take to build: 1-3 months

Ice cream truck

Ice cream truck involves operating a vehicle selling cold desserts like ice cream bars and popsicles by driving through neighborhoods and playing cheerful music announcing sweet treats have arrived curbside. Providing convenient access, the roving ice cream oasis delights families and builds community connections as custom orders and payment exchanges are directly onsite.

For operators, prime seasonal months sustain success without requiring major retail leases, while music novelty and classic treats attract recurring multigenerational business. Rather than customers traveling to stationary shops, daily routes through child-dense areas bring time-strapped families affordable indulgences adding special joys to routine moments.

How much you can make: $30K – $100K annually
How much does it cost to start: $10K – $50K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Pool cleaning business

Pool cleaning business offers cleaning and maintenance services for residential and commercial swimming pools using techniques and equipment tailored to preserve water safety and quality standards that owners struggle to uphold alone between busy personal schedules. Crews handle scrubbing tile lines, checking chemical balances, clearing debris, and sustaining filters to alleviate customer burdens managing a key summer asset benefiting households and venues.

For operators themselves, concentrating niche competencies raises perceived value over generalists with route flexibility working site by site at their own pace. As pools multiply on plots amid lifestyle prioritization shifts favoring home amenities despite labor deficits, trusted assistants uphold family safety and real estate investments against gradual damage from improper care and neglected cleaning.

How much you can make: $50K – $200K annually
How much does it cost to start: $10K – $50K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Gardening services

Gardening services involve offering scheduled garden maintenance and landscaping for residential or commercial properties to augment curb appeal and usability of outdoor spaces as seasonal demands vary. Customers lacking time, ability, or interest in tending planting beds, lawns, and walkways themselves benefit from the hassle-free oversight ensuring year-round aesthetic quality and function outlasting DIY attempts often.

The professional also optimize soil, irrigation, and plant health for reliability despite weather shifts. Whether clearing last autumn’s debris to start fresh or decorating business storefronts with floral colors to attract shoppers, gardening proactively cares for community surroundings beyond merely reacting to emergencies. For the small operator, flex scheduling sustains income stability as they creatively oversee nourishing implants enriching mental and ecological health over time through natural artistry.

How much you can make: $30K – $100K annually
How much does it cost to start: $5K – $20K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Souvenir business

The souvenir business involves designing and selling custom locally-themed gifts and memorabilia to tourists visiting new places looking to bring sentimental keepsakes back home. Signature products like decorated maps, postcards, artwork, and apparel showcase beloved landmarks while driving area foot traffic to storefronts themselves becoming must-do destination check-ins.

Beyond basic gift shops, creative operators co-create merchandise with community artists supportive of cultural sharing balanced against over-commercialization. Through products inspiring continued connections, souvenirs sustain fond memories stirring future return journeys versus quick forgettable trinkets that some mass retailers peddle.

How much you can make: $30K – $100K annually
How much does it cost to start: $10K – $50K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Local event planning and setup

Local event planning and setup is an event management service that specializes in planning and producing community-focused events supporting area businesses and regional culture since local municipalities, charities and chambers of commerce have limited staff to arrange public festivals, street fairs, farmer’s markets, and community causes alone.

The specialist event team would handle event logistics like sourcing vendors, coordinating equipment rentals, managing promotion efforts, booking entertainment, securing permits, and on-site setup/teardown production for seamless event execution. It helps community organizations stage popular public experiences celebrating hyper-local food, art, and entertainers through turnkey assistance with the complex coordination details required when large crowds assemble publicly.

How much you can make: $50K – $200K annually
How much does it cost to start: $10K – $50K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Open a local retail store

Open a local retail store is a small business operating a boutique shop carrying specialty goods from area artists, makers, and growers for community shopping. The retail store would curate a frequently updated selection of rotated offerings like artisanal baked goods, handmade craft goods, natural skincare products, or gourmet food items produced locally.

It helps provide artists and growers with direct customer outreach in their hometown while offering community members unique goods reflecting regional culture. Celebrating talented neighbors through convenient township shopping allows money to circulate locally boosting civic engagement, tourism, and entrepreneurship.

How much you can make: $50K – $500K annually
How much does it cost to start: $50K – $200K
How long does it take to build: 6-12 months

Start a farmer’s market

Start a farmer’s market is an open-air market allowing regional farmers and artisans to sell fresh produce, baked goods, dairy items, meat, and craft items directly to the local community. This can be a promising small business idea because farmer’s markets satisfy growing consumer demand for healthy, sustainable food options while providing important supplemental income to small-scale growers and family farms.

The market venue would handle vendor recruitment, scheduling, promotion, and setting fair rules that foster a vibrant weekly gathering place benefiting both customers and independent stands. It helps connect people with producers passionate about nutritious, humanely-raised food reflecting the seasonality of a distinct agricultural region. Supporting area farming viability also preserves surrounding open spaces and rural heritage.

How much you can make: $30K – $100K annually
How much does it cost to start: $5K – $20K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Original crafts and art

Original crafts and art involves designing, producing, and selling unique arts and crafts products like paintings, ceramics, jewelry, decor items, and more either online or through local consignment stores and craft fairs. Leveraging creativity, small-scale manufacturing, and direct retail channels sustain independent incomes aligned with purpose instead of traditional office jobs reliant on impersonal corporations.

Fans also support local artisans upholding cultural heritage through handmade craftsmanship. Whether drawing on rich traditions or pioneering new mediums, genuine works stand out from mass-produced replicas that flood big box stores lacking cherished imperfections subtly distinguishing the remarkable from the uniform.

How much you can make: $30K – $100K annually
How much does it cost to start: $5K – $20K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Photography business

A photography business involves offering professional photography services to clients for various needs. A photography business allows one to turn a creative passion into a profitable career. It provides clients with high-quality images to document special memories and milestones. Key services one could offer include portrait sessions, event and location photography, post-processing, photo editing, digital delivery, and print packages.

Running the business involves tasks like securing equipment, establishing a portfolio, getting credentials if needed, marketing services, booking and meeting with clients, taking exceptional photos that meet client needs, delivering final edited photos in a timely manner, and managing the financials and logistics of operating this small business.

How much you can make: $30K – $100K annually
How much does it cost to start: $5K – $20K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Transportation services

A transportation services business involves providing transportation to customers in need. This can be a promising business idea because there is an ongoing need for reliable transportation whether for individual customers, business travelers, freight delivery, and more. A transportation business allows one to build a company by offering much sought-after transportation options. It provides customers the ability to get to their destinations whether across town or across the country.

Key services one could offer include ride-hailing, private car service, shuttle transportation, vehicle delivery, moving support, and freight transport. Operating this business involves tasks like obtaining proper licensing, securing vehicles and equipment, establishing competitive pricing, marketing availability, dispatching vehicles, sustaining a pool of quality drivers, coordinating schedules and routes, tracking vehicles and inventory, and managing finances and expenses.

How much you can make: $50K – $200K annually
How much does it cost to start: $50K – $200K
How long does it take to build: 6-12 months

Summer camps and workshops

This type of educational and recreational business provides fulfilling summer memories along with new skills and personal growth for the participants. Meanwhile, this seasonal business offers a reliable income stream for the business owner. Promoting high-quality, thoughtfully-run summer camps and workshops can become a valued community offering.

How much you can make: $50K – $200K annually
How much does it cost to start: $10K – $50K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Water sports and activities

Offering water sports and recreational activities allows one to run an exciting outdoor-based business. This could involve setting up guided excursions, rentals, lessons, and camps focused on water adventures. It is a promising idea because outdoor and adventure experiences appeal to people of all ages for enjoyment, thrills, and health benefits.

By starting a water sports company, one can capitalize on this interest while sharing useful skills like boating, sailing, kayaking, canoeing, rafting, surfing, and snorkeling in a beautiful natural setting. Key aspects include obtaining appropriate waterside locations, purchasing and properly maintaining all sporting gear and transportation vehicles, developing varied programs and lesson plans, hiring staff if needed, handling participant registrations and program logistics, and ensuring top-quality safety precautions and preparations are in place before launching excursions.

How much you can make: $50K – $200K annually
How much does it cost to start: $10K – $50K
How long does it take to build: 3-6 months

Summer food and beverage stands

Operating seasonal food and beverage stands allows one to run a refreshing, in-demand business over the warm months. This could involve setting up booths or kiosks selling chilled drinks, ice cream, snacks, and more in public locations with good summer foot traffic. It is a promising idea because people crave cold, sweet treats and refreshments when spending time outside in the warmer months.

By starting a summer food stand business, one can fulfill this demand while providing an affordable, convenient service to customers looking to grab a quick bite. Key aspects include obtaining permits, strategically selecting high-traffic spots, designing the menu, sourcing ingredients and supplies, safely preparing offerings, handling payment collection, keeping things clean and chilled, hiring friendly staff if needed, and efficiently serving long lines.

How much you can make: $30K – $100K annually
How much does it cost to start: $5K – $20K
How long does it take to build: 1-3 months

Summer apparel and accessories pop-up shop

Running a temporary physical store or online shop to offer these summer staples can take advantage of this peak buying period. The pop-up model provides flexibility to test concepts and products before committing to year-round operations.

How much you can make: $30K – $100K annually
How much does it cost to start: $10K – $50K
How long does it take to build: 1-3 months

Conclusion

As you can see, there are many exciting business opportunities you can pursue this summer. So, do your research, make a plan, and jump in. Stay focused on providing excellent service and value to your customers. Learn from any setbacks and keep pushing forward. With passion and determination, you can turn your summer business idea into a thriving success. This could be the beginning of an exciting new chapter in your life.