Novel ideas for a book

1:40pm Monday 14th July 2008

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Looking through Terry Kyle's new book, I can't decide whether the person who has decided to market an MP3 player in the shape of a crucifix is insane or a millionaire-in-the-making.

While many of us cherish dreams of an independent life running our own business, fewer people take the action needed to make it happen.

Kyle, 43, who lives in Finchley, has capitalised on our entrepreneurial fantasies to kickstart his own business venture.

His book, 400 Latest and Greatest Small Business Ideas from Around the World, is the first work to be published by his own publishing company, TheWorldsBiggest Books.com He says: "So many people are hungry to get out of nine-to-five jobs and have more control over their lives, and the book may help people to do that. If they see an idea they like they could decide to do something similar, or see it as a franchise opportunity.

"But I also hope when people read the book they are stimulated to think up new ideas themselves and don't get into that mindset of everything has already been thought of', because it hasn't."

Indeed, it is amazing what people have come up with.

One inventor has created The Beerbelly: when worn under clothes it makes the wearer appear a little tubby, but actually contains a secret cavity where beer can be stored and accessed through a hidden straw. Another designer has put all his hopes into producing sex dolls for dogs.

Many ideas rely heavily on what Mr Kyle describes as "consumer boredom."

People with nothing better to do might enjoy watching bread toast in their transparent toaster, while another company sells candles designed to look like they've already melted.

Other ideas have more practicality about them, such as the Lotus 23, an inexpensive umbrella that retracts fully inside its handle, squeezing out rainwater as it does so, or the German company offering baby clothes for rent so that parents don't waste money on children quickly outgrowing their wardrobe.

With all the start-ups and upstarts out there, it took Kyle a year to sort through them all to find the most original, wacky, and clever business ideas, using skills he had learnt while working in advertising.

He says: "I found that rather than doing that much marketing for companies, I spent a lot of time teaching them what else was happening out there. We started to put together a bulletin where we would subscribe to trade journals and e-zine websites and compile information about their industry. With this book I had the same kind of approach."

Though becoming self-employed may be hard work, Kyle hopes his book will inspire dreamers to turn their business concepts into reality.

"Some people find that running their own business just suits them better than being in a big bureaucracy," he says. "I think with all of our professional lives we're just trying to find the right fit for our personality."