Driving to work this morning, I heard an interview on local radio with a lady who makes and markets nose warmers. At first I thought this was a bit of a pocket money enterprise until she revealed that she was looking for an apprentice, sells her products around the world and currently produces over 3,000 nose warmers a year.

When I googled the company, I found that it has been featured on national TV a number of times with the likes of Lorraine Kelly, Alan Titchmarsh and Doctor Hillary have been pictured wearing the products. I suspect they’re mainly bought as a novelty gift and rarely used for their purpose, but that’s what’s interesting…if you can come up with something newsworthy, there’s an opportunity to make money on the back of free publicity.

I notice the company has already expanded into beard warmers. Is there anything else that needs warming…or maybe even cooling? I’ll leave you to think about it.

http://nosewarmer.com/

Kris Sanchez joined Twitter in 2009, primarily to follow Britney Spears! Short of anything interesting to tweet himself, he started tweeting interesting facts he’d found online. This mushroomed into Uber Facts, a business that now makes half a million dollars a year by building galleries and tweeting links. The operation now has a presence across Twitter (9.4 million followers) Facebook (1.27 million likes)  and Instagram (468,000 followers).

Not everyone can (or will) make a fortune on Twitter, but it costs absolutely nothing to try. What other business could you start from your mobile phone for nothing and turn it into half a million dollars a year within 5 years?

Ask a millionaire what’s the most satisfying thing to spend money on and he won’t say Ferrari’s or mansions…he will say experiences. That’s the market being targeted by Special Operations Agency, who offer James Bond-style luxury adventures, complete with special forces and secret service training.

The company is  run by ex-military personnel who offer customers a range of packages aimed at adventurous individuals and groups, as well as businesses looking for team building activities. Experiences are flexible and can be tailored to the customer’s needs, but they all incorporate training in four key skill sets — weapons, demolition, espionage and sere (survival, evasion, resistance and extraction). Customers can opt for a day-long hostage rescue mission in an Eastern European city or an explosives training day at a UK elite forces facility.

Is there a unique experience you could offer to companies and well-heeled  thrill-seekers?

Website: www.specialopsagency.com

We often see ideas on Dragon’s Den that we’ve featured here months…and sometimes years..earlier. The first two businesses last week were ideas we saw in the United States a couple of years ago. The first was a subscription based gourmet food delivery service, and the second was a company that had got UK distributorship for a Segway style personal transportation device.

So is it a case of great minds thinking alike…or are our readers picking up ideas here and then taking them to the den? Let me know if you know the answer.

Not everyone wants the same thing from a holiday. While some look forward to meeting new people and doing exciting things, for others it’s their worst nightmare. That’s the situation that prompted the launch of The Sacred Introvert Tour Company which offers slow paced and relaxed coach holidays for people who want to take things slowly and don’t like getting involved in small talk.

Travelers get their own room and a series of tours to churches and historic buildings with plenty of time to spend time alone and no compulsory socialising. That sounds boring to most people, but it’s like a breath of fresh air to a committed introvert.

It seems there’s no end to the number of niches within the lucrative travel industry. I’m sure there are other interest and personality groups that haven’t yet been catered for. Identify one and it could form the basis of a viable business.