Looking to start your own business in 2025? At Simply Business, we’ve delved into our customer data (plus what’s trending online) to reveal the latest trends among small businesses and the self-employed.
What are the most popular new business ideas, and how has rising cost of running a business impacted these trends? Here’s what we’re predicting for 2025 – hint: we’re definitely a nation of foodies.
7 fastest growing trades for small businesses
We analysed all new Simply Business business insurance policies taken out in 2023 and 2024 to find the fastest growing small business sectors.
Learn more about the top seven trades expected to grow the fastest in 2025:
| Business idea | Growth rate (2023-2024) | Key takeaway |
| Takeaway food | 16% | High demand from home-based consumers. |
| Security guard | 14% | Growing need for professional protection. |
| Handmade crafts | 12% | Strong market for unique, personalised goods. |
| Greeting cards | Breakout Google Trend | Low start-up costs, creative opportunity. |
| Food stalls | 9% | Portable, flexible, and great for travel lovers. |
| Virtual assistant | 140% (Google searches) | Minimal start-up cost, fully-remote, and flexible. |
| Fast food | 2% | A stable, growing industry with high demand. |
1. Takeaway food
Takeaways top our list as the fastest growing business idea – with a 16 per cent growth from 2023 to 2024.
Takeaways can be a great business opportunity as more people are choosing to eat in their homes rather than at a restaurant. Recent studies from Statista show that people aged 30 to 49 spent an average of £5.80 a week on takeaways in 2022.
Takeaways naturally lend themselves to a range of cuisines, so if you’re passionate about a specific food, takeaways could be a great way to share it with a wide market. To get started, you’ll need top notch cooking skills, business savvy, and an understanding of food hygiene regulations.
Fish and chips is the nation’s favourite
Almost half (44 per cent) of UK consumers have voted fish and chips as their favourite food to order from a takeaway restaurant, according to a Simply Business survey in July 2025. This is closely followed by Chinese (42 per cent) and pizza/Italian (41 per cent).
We asked 2,000 people in the UK to vote for their favourite, and respondents could select up to three cuisines.
Interested? Learn more about how to open a takeaway in our guide.
2. Security guard
Our second fastest growing business was security guard, with a growth rate of 14 per cent. And with the Office for National Statistics reporting that the number of crimes recorded in the year ending March 2024 reached 6.7 million, it’s easy to see why.
While being a security guard requires a good level of physical fitness to get started, it also comes with low start up costs. And depending on your interests, you can dedicate your time to things like guarding valuables or public surveillance.
Read our full guide to becoming a security guard to help you get started.
3. Handmade crafts
Whether it’s online or through market stalls, selling handmade crafts was our third fastest growing business – with insurance policies rising by 12 per cent in 2024. Crafting covers a wide range of talents, so whatever you’re good at, there’s opportunity to start a business.
As well as your chosen trade, selling handmade crafts will involve a good knowledge of marketing, as well as bookkeeping and general business skills.
Leah is the owner of a small craft business, Ethereal Jewellery, and she says: “I started my business with less than £20. I was buying necklaces and bracelets from charity shops and then repurposing them into new earrings. I had so little money, my friends and family were donating their old jewellery to me.”
Learn more about how to sell your handmade crafts in our guide.
4. Greeting cards
Greeting cards are a breakout subject from small business ideas, according to Google Trends. With little start up costs, this can be a good business opportunity for those with design skills and creative ideas.
There are plenty of platforms available to sell your designs on, including specialist greeting card platform Thortful. You could also look to sell on Etsy – or even look to stock them in local shops or market stalls.
Keep an eye on current popular culture trends or memes in order to keep your designs current and don’t forget to promote them on social media.
5. Food stall
Our second food-related business on the list – food stalls saw a growth rate of nine per cent. One benefit of starting a food stall rather than a typical restaurant is its portability. Many food stall owners travel the country, pitching up at festivals or popular tourist attractions – making it a great option for those who love to travel as much as cooking.
Make sure you read up on the regulations needed to start your own food stall – we cover everything you need to know in our guide to street food businesses.
Michelle, owner of Mama Chen’s in London, sells dumplings at pop-ups and food stalls as well as running events and workshops. She said: “Pop-ups are one of the best ways to showcase your brand and what you have to offer. You never know who might be at your pop-up, and it’s a fantastic way to speak to your customers, grow your community and increase your social media following.”
6. Virtual assistant
Being a virtual assistant is another trending business idea – with a 140 per cent increase in Google searches in the last twelve months. Virtual assisting is popular as it’s fully remote, requires little start up costs, and can be flexible to fit around existing commitments.
On top of admin and secretarial tasks, virtual assistants can also take on marketing, accounting, and project management roles, making it a varied business opportunity for those looking for flexibility in a business opportunity.
You can learn more about the skills needed to become a virtual assistant (plus tips on getting clients) in our guide.
7. Fast food
Fast food restaurants finish off our list, growing two per cent from the previous year. In fact, there are currently over 48,000 fast food restaurants in the UK – and it’s increasing every year.
If you’re looking to open your own fast food restaurant, make sure to do some market research and see what’s missing in your area. There may be a surplus of burger joints but a lack of pizzerias.
When it comes to fast food, burgers and fried chicken are among the favourite cuisines, according to a survey of UK consumers – both got chosen by 26 per cent of people in our takeaway survey.
Natasha founded The Vegan Patty Lady, a food business with stockists in London. She said: “The biggest challenge for me was the transition from a dark kitchen into somewhere that would be retail ready. That was a very expensive hurdle that we had to overcome. We’re launching into our first nationwide retailer imminently. So it was a big hurdle, but it was worth it.”
Check out our full guide to opening a restaurant for more tips.
Opening a business checklist
Remember, you need more than a basic idea to open a business. If you’ve found the perfect business idea but need a little more help getting started, here’s some things to know:
- Make sure there’s a gap in the market – this can make sure your business stands out from the rest and you’re not trying to compete with hundreds of people doing exactly the same thing
- Choose the right business name – here’s some tips on how to pick a good one. Make sure you buy the domain name and claim your social channels before anyone else can use the name you’ve chosen too
- Write a business plan – this can help you set realistic goals, understand market trends, analyse competitors, and even get funding
- Find funding opportunities – check out whether you’re eligible for any grants or loans to kick-start your business, and keep an eye on government announcements for new funding in your industry
- Register as self-employed – you’ll need to register for Self Assessment and then file your tax return and pay your bill to HMRC every year – we cover everything in our guide
Don’t forget business insurance
Even the smallest businesses have risks involved, which is why it’s important to consider business insurance – public liability and product liability are the first ones to think about. And if you hire employees then you’ll also need employer’s liability insurance as a legal requirement.
For example, a takeaway business could have an accident with a fryer, or a claim made because you didn’t label allergens correctly. Business insurance covers you in case you cause injury, illness, or property damage to a member of the public while running your takeaway.
In summary
Takeaway restaurants are the fastest growing trade in the UK for 2025, but previous years we’ve seen food stalls, project management, and home baking all surge in popularity. So it’s important to keep an eye on trends to see what might be in demand in your area.
There’s lots to consider before starting a business, and growing numbers of similar businesses is just one factor that can indicate an idea is viable. It’s also important to consider how much it’ll cost to get started, as some industries have more rules and regulations or you might need a premises – all of which adds to the startup costs.
So whether you’re looking to scale up your hobby into a side hustle or are thinking of going all in with a business idea, it’s vital to spend time at the beginning thinking about how you’ll make it a success.
More guides and resources for starting a business
- Small business ideas – best businesses to start yourself
- How to start a business in 9 steps
- 11 of the best online business ideas
- Why do I need business insurance?
This article was first published on 7 January 2025.
Methodology: Simply Business analysed policies that were trading less than a year in 2023 and 2024 to find the fastest growing sectors.
Looking for self-employed insurance?
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