My First Million
The best business ideas come from noticing what's working and doing it better, faster, or for a different audience.
Lifestyle-ification of Functional Categories
Timeframe: Currently accelerating across multiple categories, 5-10 year transformation window
What's Changing
Previously functional, medical, or utilitarian product categories are being repositioned as lifestyle and self-expression vehicles
Driving Forces
Social media making all possessions potentially visible and judgeable
Consumers seeking meaning and identity through purchases
Premiumization of everyday products
Wellness and self-care becoming lifestyle priorities
Winners
- Brands that successfully reposition functional products as lifestyle choices
- Companies that understand aesthetic and emotional desires behind functional needs
- Retailers who curate lifestyle-oriented versions of commodity categories
Losers
- Traditional functional brands that ignore emotional/aesthetic needs
- Generic/commodity products that can't differentiate beyond function
- Retailers focused purely on lowest price for functional categories
How to Position Yourself
Identify functional categories with poor aesthetic/emotional appeal
Research how users actually interact with products beyond stated function
Apply design and positioning from lifestyle categories to functional ones
Create products people want to display rather than hide
Early Signals to Watch
Example Implementation
“Method transformed cleaning products from hidden-under-sink necessities into displayed-on-counter design objects by applying personal care aesthetics and eco-friendly positioning to home care.”