Regulatory and Economic Trends

Regulatory Trend- Gainesville bans Plastic Bags

-             I found this information in an article from The Alligator. https://www.alligator.org/news/the-plastic-ban-gainesville-will-be-percent-waste-free-by/article_4be9d1d4-1aec-11e9-9b28-dfc39205fdd9.html

-             Banning plastic bags is a huge step for environmentalists and will help Gainesville become a much more environmentally friendly city. Gainesville should be completely plastic free by 2040 and a place found distributing plastic bags can be fined up to 250$. I think this ban presents an opportunity for businesses to become more green and invest in alternate ways to bag their products. In addition shoppers can find new ways to buy products that do not involve plastic bags like using reusable totes or paper bags. I think this opportunity is very easy to exploit because the idea behind it has been around for so long and many people were already exploiting it before the ban. Some businesses charged for plastic bags and my family has found many ways to avoid plastic.

-             I think I saw an opportunity in this because I am very into protecting the environment and conserving our resources, I believe single use plastic is so dangerous for the environment. I am always looking for ways to preserve the environment so after reading this article something immediately clicked and I knew it would be a great opportunity for businesses and customers to save money and help the environment at the same time.

Regulatory Trend- Ban on Florida oil drilling

-             I found this information in the Pensacola News Journal. https://www.pnj.com/story/news/2018/11/06/florida-amendment-9-voters-approve-ban-oil-drilling-vaping-indoors/1911490002/

-             Voters approved a ban on oil drilling on Florida’s coast. I think this presents a large opportunity for Floridians to start investing in alternates to oil and help conserve the environment. It prohibits oil and gas drilling for exploration and extraction. I think this opens a market for alternatives like electric cars, especially in Florida, a state facing many environmental concerns. Scientists say Florida could be underwater in 25 years. I think this opportunity is easy to exploit because there are so many environmentally conscious people living in Florida and many people willing to adapt to change to avoid natural disasters.

-             Again, I saw this opportunity because I keep up with environmental news and progress. I know that this ban can bring real change and finally bring new innovations to life. I always see young entrepreneurs coming up with solution, but they do not come to life often, many times because people are complacent to change their ways.

Economic Trend-  Digitization of Currency

-             I found this information on the PWC website. https://www.pwc.com/us/en/services/consulting/risk-regulatory/top-policy-trends-2018.html

-             This article listed the many popular economic trends in 2018, one of them being the digitization of currency. Many people nowadays do not carry cash with them and want to rely on their smartphones to pay for products they buy. This led to the creation of apps like Cashapp and Venmo and ApplePay. I think there is a big opportunity to make digitizing currency quicker and more efficient. I think the prototypical customer would be anyone who does not carry cash with them and is willing to handle their money through other outlets like their smartphones or other innovations. As this opportunity is already being exploited, I think it would be relatively easy to keep improving and finding more ways to find better solutions to this trend.

-             As an avid user of apps like Venmo and Cashapp, I immediately saw an opportunity when reading the digitization of currency is one of the most popular trends in 2018. As a college student, I do not like carrying a lot of things with me so I often times never go out with a wallet and rely on my phone to pay for things.

Economic Trend-  Baby Boomers are not retiring

-             I found this information on “The Balance” https://www.thebalance.com/top-usa-future-economic-trends-3305666

-             Because baby boomers are not retiring, there is a lack of job opportunities for millennial. They have to find non traditional jobs or keep studying and get higher degrees. I believe an opportunity exists for both baby boomers and millennials, to help them retire easily and be able to find viable jobs in this complex market. I think this is a relatively difficult opportunity to exploit because the job market is so complex and it is a problem dealing with thousands of people in two completely different generations.

-             I found this trend as an opportunity because of my interest in economics and the many economics classes I have taken. I enjoy reading the news and knew this could make a good opportunity, like a job search tool.