In our previous article we tried to identify some industries Sri Lankan millennials could be sending (or have already sent) to the grave. As always in the world of business, as certain industries fade away, new ones take their place or starts booming. We have tried to identify some industries millennial could be boosting due their life choices, attitudes and income. Here is the list. Since there are many, we have categorized them into sectors.
Online Businesses & Digital Services
Online digital businesses are all the rage with smartphones getting cheaper and network access getting speedier and prolific.
E Retailing - Many millennials would buy things online including clothing items
E Banking and E Financial Services - Another rapidly growing segment. Millennials are not really interested in spending time on bank queue and filling paper forms
Online Job Centers & Recruiters - This has become the preferred method of applying for jobs and job hunting for millennials.
Online Classified Sites and Apps - With newspaper readerships falling coupled with convenience of searching and posting online using smartphones, this segment is bound to grow.
Dating Apps & Matrimonial Sites - A natural extension of meeting people online. It is becoming safer, easier and less embarrassing to meet people and potential partners online
E Books & E Education / Training - Millennial are already used to reading most of the stuff on their phone screens or laptop screens. Most universities and colleges in Sri Lanka have online learning portals where students read study materials and submit their assignments online. This segment is bound to grow.
Online Entertainment Apps and Channels (Including Games, Videos & Music) - Another major growth area. With the decline of TV viewership and millennials spend most of their time glued to screens, most entertainment will surely come this way.
Even-though there is a temporary slowdown of FMCG and retail due to prevailing economic climate, millennials are earning more than their parents and more willing to spend on stuff that make their livers easier and more fulfilling, retail products and services are in for a massive growth.
Organised Retail - As we explained in the dying industries article, people are moving away from traditional shops to supermarkets where there is more choice, air-conditioned comfort and you don't have to wait to get the attention of the mudalali.
Landry Services - Who has time to wash clothes these days? Millennials don't and washing-machines are not cheap either. It is easier to get your clothes washed and dried and even ironed at a professional laundry service than to invest 30K -40K on a washing machine and go through the hassle of washing, drying and ironing.
Bottled Water - Millennials know the benefits of keeping themselves hydrated. Fueling the demand further is the millennial trend of going for workouts, aerobics and keeping fit.
Stationary Shops - These outlets that sell fancy stationary items from those colorful post-it-notes and page tags, rainbow colored highlighters and markers and bewildering arrays of pens and pencils are a hit with the millennial crowed. When we (a Gen Xer) and our parents (Baby Boomers) went to school it was one pencil for a month and a fountain pen for life. Now, pencil cases are full of multicolored pens, pencils, highlighters, post-it-notes, colored paper-clips. Little wonder why Hemas paid Rs.5.7 billion for Atlas, Lanka's flagship stationary company.
Beauty Care and Personal Care Products & Related Services - Looking beautiful and fresh has always been a preoccupation of the fairer gender. With higher purchasing powers, more millennial females joining the workforce as well as more social lifestyles, this is another segment that is booming already.
Food & Dining
Eating out is all the rage. Different types of dining experiences are popping up all over the country including out of Colombo cities and towns. Eating out is not limited to working adults and families. A lot of younger millennials today opt for a degree or a professional qualification. This means three to four yours of higher freedom than school going years with lots of friends and socializing with a meal somewhere. If you take a small town like Malabe, which is full of private university students (SLIIT Campus, CINEC Campus and Horizon Campus), three multinational quick service restaurant have setup shop in this little town. You have Burgher King, KFC and Pizza Hut and all three are mostly patronized by the university students moving through the town.
Multinational Quick Service Restaurants - KFC, McDonald's and Pizza Hut are hits.
Local Quick Service Restaurants - With 9 outlets, Dinemore is the biggest player here and looks like it is expanding.
Local Quick Service Food Outlets - Led by P & S, Fab and followed on by ton of others
Casual Dining Restaurants - In the humble opining of the writer, this segment is led by Chinese Dragon with 8 outlets and there are literally thousands of places to choose from for a casual dine-out.
Affordable Health Foods - Healthier drinks from traditional kola-kanda to imported fruit juice and everything in between is in demand. Apart from the traditional fruit-juice player Smak and MD, newer players like Cargills and Elephant House have launched fruit juices and flavoured milk drinks.
Food Delivery Services - Why bother going out, when hot food can come to you in half and hour, delivered by "death-racer" food couriers on bikes? You can get almost anything on the menu delivered anywhere these days and its popularity is growing.
Millennials are serious of about enjoying life and staying fit and healthy. These industries and businesses are bound to grow.
Social Gatherings and Event Organizing - Events and gatherings organised thorough Facebook is a rising trend. While there are serious health and safety concerns such as the tragic "party drug" related deaths at a organised through Facebook event, these businesses will grow. There is a pent up demand for entertainment for young people and social networks such as Facebook offers a low cost way for organised to reach-out to the target market.
Eco Excursions & Tour Organizing - Another area which is growing with the help of Facebook. There are a lot of local tour organizers arranging trips for nature loving, adventure seeking millennials and reaching them through their favorite social media portal.
Camping & Outdoors Clothing and Accessories - This is another market growing as adventure seeking millennials are taking to camping and outdoors life. Once again Facebook is helping these businesses as well are customers to meet. There are dozens of Facebook groups (and an few traditional online forums such as Lakdasun) dedicated to camping, hiking and trekking. They offer advice and allows tour organizers and equipment sellers/renters to ply their trade.
Sports and Fitness Centers - Gyms, Aerobics Classes, Yoga Classes, Swimming Pools are getting more and more business.
Pubs and Clubs - Millennials and of course others need quality places to unwind and meet up friends. We can see that the demand is growing.
Pubs and Clubs - Millennials and of course others need quality places to unwind and meet up friends. We can see that the demand is growing.
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Education & Care Centers
International Schools - Popular government schools and provincial schools are bursting at seams and many millennial parents do not even consider putting their child to a government school mainly due to the hassle and uncertainty. Educated millennial parents seriously care about the quality of the education their child is getting and international schools are preferred due to the supposedly higher quality education they give to children. Another attraction to millennial parents is the fact that they have more say over happenings in the school. While most well known government schools will simply ignore complaints or concerns (and there is genuine fear of child having to face reprisals from angry teachers) international schools would listen to parental concerns and try to address them. It is in their business interest to do so.
Private Higher Education Institutes and Non-State Universities - Education is serious business in Asia and Sri Lanka is no exception. Parents want their millennial child to have a good chance in life and opt to sell family silver to make sure that they get a degree from a recognized institute or university.
Quality Childcare Centers - One of the main problems facing young millennial parents is who would look after their precious baby. Sri Lanka does not have a regulated maid service and horror stories abound. The lucky ones have supporting parents or in-laws who would willingly take the job. But looking after a growing child can be taxing work and sooner or later parents will have to look for commercial childcare.
Quality Adult Day Care Centers - Looking after elderly parent is another nightmare for working millennials. Some have medical conditions that needs to be monitored. Millennials love their parents and wants to do the best for them but they need to work too. The best solution is elderly daycare and where they are cared for until the children return from work. We can already see such centers popping up and the trend will only increase.Personal Transport
App Based Ride Hailing - Extremely popular among millennial young girls. Apps make hailing and riding three-wheeler hassle free, safer and cheaper with many options and app based price calculations.
Fuel Efficient Small Car Importers & Manufacturers - Unlike in the west, every millennial wants a car. Some may start with a bike and upgrade to a car. Other would start with an entry level machine and later upgrade to a more expensive ride.
Bikes & Scooters - Bikes for boys and scooties for girls. The trend can only be upended by the unpredictable vehicle tax regime.
Birth-control
Safe-sex devices
This topic is no longer taboo and it shouldn't be. Sex is not just for procreation, it should be fun, enjoyable and safe for both parties. Judging from the sustained Durex ad campaigns in the country and the fact that colorfully packed condoms are displayed prominently on the pharmacy counters... it seems millennials are having fun. Lucky them... (just be safe......or else it will be happy fathers day and mothers day a bit too soon...) :D
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