Businesses I Wouldn't Start Today

Tech consultant Gene Marks on why he'd avoid anything involving food, kids, or franchises, among others

By Gene Marks

One good thing about getting older is I get better at avoiding things I don't like to do. For example, I don't like to answer my phone at night. I figure if I wanted to talk, then I'd be the one calling. I do not like driving my teenage sons and their flatulence-prone friends anywhere beyond 10 minutes from my house. I never eat at Taco Bell. And, in an effort to save my very last shred of masculinity, I prefer that my wife doesn't drive the car when I'm in it. (Sometimes she lets me have my way.)

There have been a bunch of recent stories in the news about all these great companies started during the previous recession—and there's no question that a lot of the good, smart people who've recently been laid off will be looking to start their own businesses.

To them, I say "Do it!" I've run my own 10-person company for nearly 15 years, and worked with hundreds and hundreds of other business owners. But if I was starting up now, there are a few I'd avoid.

Food or Kid Businesses Spoiled for Me

To start, I'd avoid starting a business that has anything to do with food. I can't believe there are people in this world who would willingly give up their days, nights, and weekends to work in a kitchen preparing food for people they don't even see. Or serving complicated coffee drinks to people who think they're really cool when they order a complicated coffee drink. I get stressed out just watching Kitchen Nightmares. Restaurants have a reputation for failing at an alarming rate. (Though do take a look at this story on research that shows the failure rate isn't as high as most people think.)

The super-successful ones are few and far between. At best, you can earn a decent living running one, but the quality of life seems to really suck. The government breathes down your neck. Growth is built largely on word of mouth and repeat business, which can be easily shattered (one employee with a cold or a vendetta against a customer can ruin your reputation). People start restaurants envisioning romance, but many of them wind up with way too much work for way too little profits. (Mario Batali sums up a few uncomfortable realities in this interview.) Other food-related companies, like distributors and manufacturers, are weighed down by government regulations, excessive storage costs, and too many challenges managing perishable items. The food business, in any shape or form, just isn't my cup of tea.

I wouldn't start a company that caters to kids. Not because I don't like kids. O.K., actually it's because I mostly don't like kids. I especially don't like child care businesses. There are just too many annoying, finicky moms with their annoying, finicky demands. Building one of these things from scratch means a lot of investment. Insurance costs are high. Customer service costs are high. Scheduling is a nightmare. Getting qualified, trained people to supervise is a challenge. And, after dealing with my own pain-in-the-neck kids, I'd get pretty sick of dealing with other people's kids, too. And then when the kids grow up, they have to be replaced. Not for me.