Are you an entrepreneur living by the veganism philosophy? Then, it’s time to get rid of the notion that you may not profit from starting a business that caters to vegans. The number of vegans in the US is increasing. And there’s data to back it up.
In a 2017 report (the latest available), six percent of Americans identified as vegan, a welcome increase from only one percent in 2014. Additionally, the plant-based “meat” market is expected to reach $5.2 billion by 2020 – with pea protein rising as a popular choice in the global protein market.
While being a vegan alone is a huge help in preserving the planet, promoting the veganism philosophy is a better way. How can you do so? Here are some business ideas for veganpreneurs:
Salad Bar for Vegans
When you think about vegans or vegetarians, you think about salads. Apart from being healthy, salads are made mostly of plants. However, regular green salads could have eggs or chicken strips. If you’re starting a salad bar that is exclusively for vegans, keep these ingredients off your menu.
How about dressing? No mayonnaise, please, as one of its ingredients is egg. Even regular salad dressings may not be the best option for your salad bar, as some of them may contain honey or animal fats and oils. Instead, try to make your own dressing. If you do it right, your homemade salad dressing can become the reason for repeat business among your vegan customers.
Also, only source your greens from local farms that supply organic produce.
Retail Store for Source of Protein
Humans need protein to repair tissues, produce hormones, and build muscles. You will find protein mostly in meat like chicken and beef. So, where can vegans get their protein? Your store can be their source.
You can open a store that sells protein-rich ingredients as alternatives to meat. These include tofu, tempeh, lentils, seitan, and beans. Jackfruit is also a known meat substitute because apart from being a good source of protein, its texture is similar to that of pulled pork.
Pre-planned Vegan Meal Delivery
It can be time-consuming to prepare vegan meals – from sourcing ingredients and finding alternatives to preparation itself. Not everyone has the time for it, but you can be the solution.
Start by planning a vegan menu. You can take one-off orders or create a weekly meal plan for your friends, relatives, neighbors or officemates (if you have a day job). With your service, your customers won’t have to worry about not having the right ingredients or enough time to cook – you can do it for them.
Cruelty-Free Cosmetics Shop
Being a vegan goes beyond diet. Veganism also values cruelty-free products, such as cosmetics. Many giant cosmetics brands are known to test their products on animals, while some use animal-derived ingredients.
If you’re not certain how to develop a vegan beauty product from scratch, you can opt to resell products from these companies, which the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals recommends.
Vegan Cake Shop
Just because someone’s a vegan, it doesn’t mean they can’t celebrate their birthdays with a cake. Regular cakes are made of a lot of animal-derived ingredients (eggs, milk, butter, and honey). But, there are other options.
If you’re starting a cake shop catering to vegans, here are some things you can use as replacements for non-vegan ingredients:
- Banana: A substitute for eggs, mashed banana may add a bit of flavor to your cake, so make sure it is compatible with your recipe.
- Ener-G Egg Replacer: This is available in many grocery stores. It is made of potato starch, non-dairy calcium lactate, and tapioca starch flour. It does a good job in binding baked goods.
- Milk and Oil Alternatives: As an alternative to cow’s milk or buttermilk, you can use milk from coconut or almond. For butter, you can use canola, olive, or coconut oil.
Just because vegans aren’t as many as meat-lovers doesn’t mean business opportunities are limited. They are a growing market – and for a reason: they want the world to be as cruelty-free as possible. As an entrepreneur, you can do your part in promoting this advocacy, and you can start by providing vegans with food and products they need.