The Best US Business Opportunities in 2025

Looking at the data we collected, we determined that the following five sectors underwent the greatest increases in year-on-year sales between May 2023 and May 2024, making them ideal investment opportunities going into 2025:

• Clothing and clothing accessories stores – saw a sales increase of 5.6%
• Miscellaneous store retailers – saw a sales increase of 5.4%
• Electronics and appliance stores – saw a sales increase of 5.0%
• General merchandise stores – saw a sales increase of 4.1%
• Food and beverage stores – saw a sales increase of 2.9%.

Together, these figures show that a combination of everyday essentials, home appliances and more general items are seeing a significant increase in year-on-year sales across the USA, rather than luxury items and bespoke gifts.

Clearly, Americans are now more focused on buying things that make a difference to their everyday life and their overall well-being, with more expensive purchases being put on the back burner.

With a general look at the best industries for growth covered, let’s now take a look at which US states are achieving the strongest year-on-year sales for each industry we analyzed:

• Building material, garden equipment and supplies dealers – Nebraska was the only state to see an increase in this area at 0.7%, while North Dakota and Kansas had slight decreases of -0.9% and -1.1 % respectively (the lowest decreases overall).
• Clothing and clothing accessories stores – the best-performing states for this sector are Michigan, with an 8.9% increase, Washington (8.2% increase), and California (7.2% increase), showing a clear growth in this sector.
• Electronics and appliance stores – Wyoming has seen a significant increase in this industry of 19.2%, while Colorado is a close second at 17.5%. Meanwhile, Michigan has also seen a considerable increase of 17.0% year-on-year.
• Food and beverage stores – for the food industry, Rhode Island saw the biggest increase of 7.6%, while the District of Columbia saw a 6.8% increase and New York a 5.5% increase.
• Furniture and home furnishings stores – North Dakota (23.9%), New Mexico (22.7%) and Iowa (16.0%) are all experiencing large increases in this sector.
• Gasoline stations – New York (6.9%), Kansas (5.3%) and Oklahoma (5.1%) are each seeing strong year-on-year sale increases for gas purchases.
• General merchandise stores – our stats show that South Carolina had the largest increase of 11.3%, while Maryland (10.7%) and Vermont (9.3%) are also in the top three states.
• Health and personal care stores – the largest increase in this sector was 11.9% in Washington, along with 7.6% in New Hampshire and 5.8% in West Virginia.
• Motor vehicle and parts dealers – this sector’s best states at the moment include the likes of West Virginia (5.9%), Wyoming (5.6%) and Kentucky (5.4%), all of which saw excellent growth in this area.
• Sporting goods, hobby, musical interests, and bookstores – Both Ohio and Kansas have seen a 2.2% increase in sales for all things hobby-related, while West Virginia performed similarly well with an increase of 2.1%.

In contrast to the best states for the industry sectors we looked at, in order to give a balanced analysis, we’ll now focus on which US states achieved the worst year-on-year sales for each industry:

• Building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers – Colorado (-6.6%), Minnesota (-6.4%) and New Mexico (-6.0%) have seen the largest decreases in year-on-year sales in this sector.
• Clothing and clothing accessories stores – while all states have seen a rise in sales, Tennessee (2.8%), Minnesota (2.5%) and Alabama (2.2%) are the states with the smallest increases overall.
• Electronics and appliance stores – like clothing, this sector has also seen universal increases. However, the lowest figures are in Alabama (5.4%), Georgia (4.2%) and Tennessee (3.1%).
• Food and beverage stores – New Hampshire has seen the largest drop in year-on-year sales at -2.1%. Meanwhile, Kentucky saw a decrease of -1.2% and Louisiana -1.0%.
• Furniture and home furnishings stores – Maryland had the biggest reduction in sales at -11.0%. While Virginia also changed by -9.7% and the District of Columbia by -9.4%.
• Gasoline stations – this is another sector where all states have experienced an increase in year-on-year sales, though the states with the lowest increases were Oklahoma by 5.1%, Illinois by 4.9%, and Montana by 4.4%.
• General merchandise stores – the largest decreases for this sector are in Minnesota (-5.9%), Montana (-1.7%) and North Dakota (-1.6%).
• Health and personal care stores – South Dakota (-3.1%), Arizona (-2.8%) and Arkansas (-2.5%) are the states with the greatest decreases for this sector.
• Motor vehicle and parts dealers – Nebraska has seen a relatively large decrease of -7.2%, followed by the District of Columbia (-2.0%) and New Jersey (-0.9%).
• Sporting goods, hobby, musical interests, and bookstores – by far the largest decreases in year-on-year sales for this sector were in Rhode Island (-15.9%), Vermont (-10.5%) and New Jersey (-8%).

Hopefully, this data will help you to make an informed decision on whether or not your state is performing well in your chosen sector, and whether or not you should start a business there.

But for those who don’t have their hearts set on a particular industry and want advice on how to start any business successfully, our five essential tips below are a good place to get started: 

Now you have a good idea of how various markets in the US are performing and where to look should you be considering starting your own business in the future. However, one core aspect of starting any business is funding, which is where Swoop can help.

If you’re thinking about starting a business, stay up to date on all things business finance by joining the 75,000+ businesses receiving the Swoop newsletter. In the meantime, read our guide on how to start a new business.