Do you want to start a business in Qatar as a foreigner or expat? If YES, here are 50 best small profitable business ideas & investment opportunities in Qatar.
Qatar is a very small country lying very close to Saudi Arabia. Though small in terms of land area, the country has a very strong economy, and it’s a much better place to do business than many other countries. In fact, it’s one of the best places in the world to do business; partly thanks to its rich deposit of petroleum and natural gas from where the government earns high revenue from the export business.
The standard of living of the average Qatari is quite high when compared to other places in the world. In addition, the country’s openness to global commerce enhances the possibilities of becoming a leading financial and business hub globally.
Furthermore, the business environment is conducive to the operation of new companies. There is no income tax or domestic corporate tax.
With many investor-friendly policies put in place by the government, Qatar should be on the list of anyone looking for a good place to start a business, especially in the Middle East. However, foreign corporations operating in the country are subject to a flat 10 percent corporate tax rate.
Aside from customs duties, there are no other major taxes. Furthermore, the tax burden equals 5.2 percent of GDP, and government spending amounts to 31.4 percent of GDP. So Qatar is one of the best places for starting and doing business for the new entrepreneurs. Here is a list if 50 best business opportunities in Qatar.
Best Business Investment Opportunities in Qatar
1. Handyman Business
A handyman is a person who is skilled in performing a wide range of general maintenance and home repair jobs. This is one of the best low-cost business opportunities in the service industry in Qatar.
Additionally, you can start and operate the business from home. A handyman business is simply providing small services or tasks for clients who lack the skill or time to complete the work themselves. The working area of a handyman service business is wide.
2. Information Technology Related Business
The IT industry in Qatar is booming just like in most places and like any field that it is booming, it presents lot of business opportunities. This includes software, networking, biometrics, mobile, digital entertainment, content delivery, mobile wallet technology, internet of things and so on. Depending on your investment capacity, you can start an IT related business in Qatar.
3. Interior Designing
Due to the high standard of living in Qatar, the country is full of luxury living. And definitely, interior designing is a flourishing industry in the country. Interior designing is a perfect career option for the individuals who are passionate about design, art, and home decoration.
Any individual of any age can start this business from home. A degree in interior designing is always useful to start and run a successful interior designing business, though it is not a necessity.
4. Leasing and Renting Business
Starting a leasing and renting business is one of the many businesses in Qatar that can make you a lot of money. It is because although not everyone can afford to purchase luxury or recreational equipment, they can afford pay the rent. The startup cost of leasing and renting businesses can be high. However, it hugely depends on the types of products and equipment that you purchase to rent.
5. Martial Art School
When you consider the amount of income that this business is able to turn in, you will realize that it is a very profitable business. Generally, martial arts are the different systems of self-defense. You can say it is an art to physically defeat opponents and defend against threats. Martial arts are very popular in Qatar. Even it is a well-accepted form of workout.
6. Mobile Car Wash
Qatar may be a small country, but there are a lot of cars there when compared to other countries. And what’s more, the vehicle population is increasing very rapidly. Almost every family has more than one car.
Therefore, starting a mobile car wash business is highly lucrative in Qatar. Running a mobile car wash business is a smart way to make a lot of money without taking much risk of capital investment. The business also eliminates the requirement for a retail business location.
7. Dog siting
The pet industry is growing rapidly worldwide. People are buying more pet nowadays and spending a lot of money on them to give them ultimate comfort. The attitude and sentiment behind this is that the majority of the population now consider their pet to be a member of the family.
In this scenario, starting a pet related business from home is just a wise decision in Qatar. There is serious money to be made in the business opportunity especially if you are a lover of dogs.
You can start this business by making fliers and distributing it around your neighborhood. You will be surprised by the amount of response you will get. You can also add other services like grooming, simple teeth cleaning and nail cutting to set your business apart from other dog sitting businesses.
8. Photography Business
Qatar’s tourism and hospitality industry is building momentum. Therefore, starting a photography business is one of the best business opportunities for the professional photographer. A photographer is a professional that focuses on the art of taking photographs with a camera. A photographer generally works in a freelance capacity and is hired for specific jobs by different clients.
Of course as a photographer with a good studio, you will not only attract people to your photo studio, but you will also have the opportunity to cover events such as wedding ceremonies, birthday parties, concerts among others. So if you are a professional photographer, you can consider opening your own photography business in Qatar.
9. Real Estate
The shortage of available accommodation created upward pressure on rents in both the apartment and villa markets, with annual growth of between 5% and 10% per annum evident throughout the Doha market. The supply of new residential accommodation has increased in recent times. In addition, this trend will continue throughout the year as a significant number of apartment projects reach completion.
10. Recycling Business
There is a lot of money to be made in the recycling business. Each day, the amount of garbage that is generated continues to increase. Even though a lot of people are quite aware of the many dangerous effects of not recycling used materials, a lot of them are not aware that recycling can be a lucrative business. You must know the process recycling of the specific product that you want to recycle. This is also an eco-friendly operation.
11. Resume Writing
Resume writing is one of the most profitable business ideas in Qatar. And any individual can start a home based resume writing or CV writing business on a part-time basis. As the business is purely knowledge based, startup capital requirement is very less.
You can also offer other allied services like writing a cover letter, career counseling and interview guide. This is a self-rewarding business as you are helping people to better themselves and their lives.
12. Tailoring, Dressmaking and Clothing Design
The is one of the most lucrative home business opportunities for women entrepreneurs in Qatar. All over the world, the demand for self-made cloths is constantly on the increase.
A lot of people want designs that are tailor made for them according to their own specification. Tailors can also help to alter and repair clothing so that they can be a better fit for the wearer. People who have passion and knowledge for sewing can start the business from the comfort of their home. In addition, this business is perfect for housewives and moms also.
In any case, any individual can make a lot of money from his or her sewing business. Furthermore, a home-based accommodation allows operating the business from the comfort of the home. Additionally, if you are into tailoring, dressmaking and clothing design, you can teach other people how you make cloths for a fee.
13. Transportation
Transportation is one of the world’s largest industries. Different types of specific demand with the changing lifestyle habit have introduced several innovative and profitable startup opportunities in the transport industry.
Transportation and logistics sector is growing rapidly in Qatar. The success of transportation and logistics companies depend decisively on the quality and qualifications of its employees. Broadly, aviation, shipping & ports, land transport and road freight & logistics are the majors.
14. Gym ownership
In Qatar, fitness is gaining a lot of popularity and this is the ideal time to open a fitness center, preferably in Doha. Qataris are workaholics and to relive their stress they need to have a counter option. So, lots of people prefer to spend some time in fitness centers to exercise and stay fit. It is mostly a source of relief for them from the daily life depressions.
You can start a gym with all sorts of fitness equipment’s which people can use for their various workouts. To increase your gym’s chances for success, make sure to plan and properly finance your business idea.
But before you start a gym business, however, you must research the fitness and health market in your local area and assess the competition. Franchise gyms offer significant advantages to their owners, but require a steep initial investment. Franchise fees are often beyond the financial means of most first-time business owners and franchise terms typically dictate the type of services that can be offered by franchisees.
Independent gyms, by contrast, require a somewhat smaller investment and allow more freedom to the business owner. Hours and services can be tailored to meet the specific needs of your prospective customer base, helping you to build loyalty and ensure repeat business.
15. Restaurant Business
A large portion of the workforce in Qatar are made up of foreigners. And they sometimes miss having the delicacies that are easily available in their home country. You can come to their rescue by starting a restaurant business. You can start a restaurant that sells only American or Chinese foods or offers a wide range of outlandish cuisines.
16. Maintenance Services
Technological tools are used in the everyday life of average Qataris. And as these tools are used, there will be need to repair them. It is cheaper to maintain installation and infrastructure than to replace it. There are huge opportunities in Qatar for businesses that offer maintenance services for mechanical, air conditioning, electrical, plumbing, and other facilities.
17. Laundry Business
It is a credit crunch-free business that you can easily start in Qatar. On average, the adults in Qatar remain busy in their office work. So, they don’t have enough time to do their laundry and such things. Most of the people prefer to get laundry services from the service providers.
You can start an online laundry business in which people contact you through their mobile app and you link them with the washers easily. In this way, you will be able to earn a handsome amount of commission from both the parties. You don’t need enough capital for starting this business.
18. Open a Garage
Qatar is one country with a lot of cars. Most of the people find it difficult to deal with their car issues. Therefore, opening a garage in Qatar can be a great idea. It is one of the Qatar business opportunities in 2019. Auto repair business is amongst the highly thriving and profitable easy to setup auto services related business idea an entrepreneur can successfully start.
All over the world, car repairs is one business that never goes into extinction. This is because daily, fleets of cars are being added to the garages of people, so whether it is a brand new car or a fairly used one, you can be sure that sometime in the future, car repair would be inevitable.
As long as people use their cars and trucks regularly, there will always be reasons for them to visit an auto workshop if indeed they want these vehicles to continue to ply the roads. This is because you can never rule out wear and tear when a machine is in use.
People visit auto garages for different reasons; it could be for routine servicing, major repair works, or for refurbishing their cars. For whatever reasons; auto repair garage will always translate to money for the owner of the repair garage.
19. Business of Clothing
There are a number of people in Qatar who make contracts with clothing administrations. This is because the people in Qatar mostly remain busy in their work and they don’t have enough time for their wardrobe, especially the businessmen and elite class of the country. Therefore, starting a clothing business in Qatar can be an amazing idea.
20. Building materials
Even though Qatar is a developed country, the country keeps on growing with many new buildings and infrastructure erected on a daily basis. So, there is a huge market in Qatar for materials used for building and construction purposes. And since most of these materials are imported, smart investors can start businesses that sell or manufacture building materials locally in Qatar.
21. Car Wash Business
Another easy to establish but highly thriving and profitable business an entrepreneur who is all out to make money should consider starting in Qatar is to open a car wash.
The market for car wash is driven by the purchase of cars and the increase in consumer spending – in essence, as the general economy of a country grows, more people will buy cars and more people will patronize the services of car wash, especially if their driving habits encourages them to do so. It’s easy to start without any qualifications. And it’s recession-proof, too.
22. Sale of Auto Spare Parts
As long as people still use automobile on our roads, auto spare parts will continue to be in demand. Auto spare parts business is indeed a profitable business because the replacement of damaged or worn-out auto parts is compulsory if you want your vehicle to continue to be on the road.
If you are looking for a business to start in Qatar and you have interest in the automobile industry, then you should consider starting your own auto spare parts business. Although you don’t need a college degree to establish your own auto spare parts store, but you would need some form of informal training, you might have to work as an apprentice with someone who owns an auto spare parts store.
It makes it easier for you to learn how to manage your own auto spare parts store. It is important to point out that the auto spare parts business is one the businesses that can’t go out of fashion because of the role it plays in the auto industry.
23. Beauty and wellness
Because Qataris are becoming more aware of the health benefits of being physically fit, they are now squeezing some time out of their busy work schedule to engage in fitness activities. So, there’s a booming demand for well-equipped fitness centers in Qatar.
Similarly, as busy as they may be, Qatari women would always find time to keep themselves in good shape. So, businesses that improve or maintain women’s beauty in one way or another are always in demand in Qatar.
24. Foods and snacks
Processed foods and snacks sell well in Qatar, probably because people are always busy and have very little time to do some cooking. You can start a business that processes foods and snacks or imports processed foods and snacks such as canned foods, yoghurt, et al.
25. Professional services
In Qatar, there is constant demand for professionals such as engineers, accountants, building and construction experts, healthcare experts, and so on. So, if you have a solid background in any of these professional specialties, then you can start a business that offers services to individuals and businesses.
26. Start a Landscaping Business
Another easy to start business in Qatar is landscaping business. Landscape architecture is all about the art, planning, designing, management, preservation and rehabilitation of the land and the design of a large man- made construct; it beautifies our environment.
Any entrepreneur who intends starting his or her own landscaping business and making huge profits from it must be very creative and must be ready to go the extra mile to convince clients that he or she can deliver an excellent jobs and he or she must prove beyond every reasonable doubt that they are competent.
27. Home Painting Business
Home painting business is yet another highly lucrative and profitable home improvement business that an entrepreneur who is interested in making money should consider starting in Qatar. One of the easiest ways of improving the appearance of your home is first to paint your house. This goes to show that there are indeed loads of business opportunities for professional painters.
So if you are looking towards starting a business, a business that requires very minimal start-up capital and a business that you can successfully operate alone or with one or more employees, then one of your options is to go into home painting business. It is important to state that you would be required to acquire training as a painter before you can successfully launch this type of business.
28. Start a Roof Maintenance and Restoration Business
Roof maintenance and restoration business is yet another profitable business that an aspiring entrepreneur can successfully start. No doubt, roofs are subjected to wear and tear due to the exposure to hash climatic conditions which is why after a period of time you will find out that a roof is leaking when it rains.
It is the duty of roof maintenance and restoration companies to help fix leakages in roofs and also to replace worn out roofs with new ones. So if you are looking for a construction related business to start in a small town, then one of your options is to start a roof maintenance and restoration business. It is safe to classify this type of business as post construction maintenance business.
29. Editorial Services
If you are detail oriented, creative and have good knowledge about rules of grammar, then you can offer editorial services. Here are some of the editorial services you can provide right from the comfort of your own home:
- Copyediting. This involves checking facts making sure that a copy is free from any grammatical, stylistic and typographical errors.
- Proofreading. This is the last stop for a “finished” piece. The proofreader makes sure the copyediting changes have been properly made and no new errors are created in the process.
- Indexing. There are indexing courses available and you can get indexing software in order to help you carry out this job.
- Developmental editing. A developmental editor works with a manuscript on big-picture things like organization and content issues.
- Book doctoring. This is an editorial service provided for manuscripts written by experts. They create a manuscript as best they can and then a book doctor puts it into publishable shape.
- Ghost Writing. As a ghost writer, you actually do the research and write the book and someone else’s name is attached as the author.
- Copywriting. Also known as business writing, this is writing that promotes a product or a service.
- Book writing. Do you have an expertise in something professional, such as accounting or interior decorating? Then you can write a book about it and make a lot of money from it.
- Magazine article writing. Magazines and newspapers are a great way to get your writing published before tackling the daunting task of writing a whole book.
- Web page content provider. Providing content for a web site is a good way to make some money writing.
30. Translation service
If you can read and write English and Arabic or other languages, you can always monetize this skill to make money by offering to help people translate written and spoken words from one language to another. You can be an independent translator and offer your services on freelance websites.
31. Beauty Salon
A beauty salon business is perfect in Qatar. Additionally, you can start the business in several ways. Either you can start the business from home or as mobile basis or from a good retail location. When the first two options demand small capital investment, the third option ensures maximum profitability.
32. Catering
It is quite easy to start a catering business and in addition, this business is quite profitable. In fact, a small scale catering business is one of the most profitable food business opportunities. Also, it is a self-rewarding business.
In addition, you can offer numerous customized services to your customers. Also, you can work with other event planning or party planning companies. You can also specialize your catering service to offer halal food since Qatar is a majorly Muslim country.
33. Computer Related Business
Everyone knows that the importance of computers in business cannot be overemphasized. It has improved the operational aspects in the business. There are several ways of initiating computer based businesses as home based also. In addition, the computer related businesses in service industries have huge potential.
34. Corn Roasting
The entertainment and tourism industries are hugely growing in Qatar. Therefore, starting a corn roasting business is perfect there. Corn roasting is a profitable and lucrative low-cost venture. And any individual can start this business as the full-time or part-time basis. Roasted corn is ready to eat food. Additionally, you can offer various creative foods to your consumers. It is a popular snacks item throughout the world.
35. Delivery Business
Delivery service businesses are gaining popularity worldwide. This type of services helps to save time. Instead of, having to drive to the local supermarket, your consumers can get items at their doorstep. Furthermore, it is more convenient when people can access the service online.
Nowadays, most of the people lead extremely busy lives. Therefore, busy schedule, increasing spending capacity and changing lifestyle are the major reason of gaining popularity of this service industry globally.
36. Financial Services
By a lot of standards, Qatar can be considered to be a rich country and the GDP rate is increasing very fast. This has presented an opportunity for starting a financial service business. Additionally, there are several services and products that you can offer for different needs of the people. Also, this is probably the largest industry sector under the sky. This is an industry that doesn’t demand specific educational background in the most of the cases.
37. Greeting Cards Making
This type of business is best suited for people who are creative and would like to turn their talent into an income generating venture. This is a business that you can do from the comfort of your home and still make a lot of money. People need greeting cards for many reasons like birthdays, anniversaries and as well as for business reason.
38. Senior Care
On a yearly basis, the number of elderly people in Qatar (just like in almost every other country) keeps increasing. Therefore, the demand for senior citizen care will always be high. Health-related or non-health services like cooking, running errands, driving, body massage, can be rendered to these senior citizens.
There are also business opportunities in retirement real estate. This involves selling real estates to retired people in choice areas mostly suitable for senior citizens. Also, you need to have good knowledge of real estate business. You need to be patient and friendly if you are rendering health or non-health related services to this type of people.
39. Vlogging
Every day, over 5 billion videos are watched on YouTube and your video can be one of them. When well-managed, a YouTube channel can be just as or even more profitable than a traditional blog. For starters, you don’t require a domain nor do you need to spend money on hosting your channel. You also have a large audience and a readymade platform for you to work with.
Furthermore, AdSense approval through YouTube is easy and what’s more, you can start earning from the very first day you create your account and make a post. You can just go to YouTube, upload a video and you can get started from there.
There are tons and tons of niches to choose from like online reviews, comedy, how-to, real estate, business, gaming, and motivation channels et al. You can get paid by enabling Google AdSense on your channel, through sponsored videos and through sale of your services or the services of others on YouTube.
40. SEO specialist
The internet is filled with millions of websites and one easy way that people get to find and visit these websites is through various search engines such as Google, Yahoo!, Bing et al. Due to the fact that there are a lot of websites in the internet, for a website to appear in the first page of a search engine it has to optimized.
This is the job of a search engine optimization (SEO) specialist. A lot of websites now realize the importance of SEO, thus, this service is in high demand.
The work of an SEO specialist is largely online based and as such it can be carried out from anywhere as long as there is a steady internet connection. Also the work hours are very flexible. You can learn about this business right from the internet without even attending any other training.
41. Vacation Rentals
If you have a spare room in your house, you can put it to good use and make money from it by renting it out through websites like airbnb. However, you should have in mind that vacation rental falls into the hospitality industry and such it is much more hands on when compared to house rentals.
As such, you will need to be available to help your renters and change the sheets and linens between guests. If you don’t have a house to rent out, all hope is not lost.
You can still partner with someone who has a house to rent but does not have the time or chance to do it by themselves. Due to the tremendous growth in online vacation rental, you are bound to find someone who is willing to hire you to take care of their rental especially if you stay in a very populous city.
42. Halal bookshop
You can open a bookshop where you can sell the Holy Quran and other religious books on the Muslim religion. There is a large market for the Holy Quran and other religious books especially if you have done your homework before stocking your bookshop with books.
Even though e-books are taking over there is still nothing that can totally replace that feeling of coiling up on the sofa with a hard copy book. In addition to operating a book store from a physical location, it will also be advantageous to also have an online store from where your customers can easily buy your books.
43. Corporate English trainer
The official language of Qatar is Arabic and as such there are a lot of people who would like to increase their knowledge of both the oral and written English. The work of an English trainer will then have to be to coach such individual on the language whether in person, through the phone or over video service like Skype.
The training may be in form of making conversations with them or even following an already existing syllable. This work is best suited for native English speakers who have the love for interacting with people of other ethnicities while also impacting knowledge in them. You will also need a high speed internet connection and of course basic computer skills and knowledge if you are doing this business over the internet.
44. Day Care Service
The market for daycare is really huge! You can start in either your home or in the workplace. Corporations may consider providing you with free space if you provide day care for their employees’ kids. Safety and licensing are essential for this business. You can quickly build a steady income and a valuable business.
45. Personal trainer
Do you have a passion for being in fit and in shape? Then you can help to share your knowledge and passion with others for a fee. As a personal trainer, you can work hand in hand with your clients to help them fulfill their fitness goals and still get paid for it.
To become an elite fitness trainer, you will need to be certified from a recognized body. A good fitness trainer is expected to have a good knowledge of how the body works and should also have extensive knowledge on personal fitness and how to motivate individuals to work out.
46. House Cleaning
This is one of the most popular small businesses because almost everyone wants a house cleaner. The work is repetitive and continuous, but if you can show up on time and do a good job consistently you will build a healthy clientele. And if you can charge enough so that you can delegate, you can grow this into a large business.
There are many directions you can take this business. If you want to work during hours when no one else does, you can focus on office clients. You can focus on retail businesses and keep your customers clumped into one or two blocks.
Restaurants are in great need of daily thorough cleaning and can be a great source of steady clients. Many times, with cleaning services, you don’t have to spend lots of money on advertising or marketing because your customers will come by word of mouth and as such it can be a really good business for a young school leaver.
47. Computer Repair
These days almost all households in Qatar has a computer with a vast majority of them owing more than one. With continual use, it is unavoidable that these gadgets will eventually breakdown and will thus require repair.
This is where the services of a computer repair technician come in. To be able to carry out the task of a computer repairer, it is expedient that you will have to be technologically inclined. It is really important to invest in computer diagnostic tools so as to make the work easier.
48. Pool Cleaning
Pool owners often hire professionals to keep their pools clean and ready for use throughout the summer. This requires some experience or know-how, but not much in the way of technology.
49. Food Truck
A food truck is one of the various types of mobile vending business. This type is food business is quite advantageous because you can easily move your truck to another location that has more potential customers than your present location. Many Qataris have a busy routine and as such they may prefer to grab a bite on the go. Starting a food truck business requires little investment, yet with proper management, it can really yield a lot of turn over.
50. Pizza Delivery
Pizza delivery is one of the popular and successful food delivery businesses today. You can start the business by two ways. One is by owning a franchise of a reputed pizza company. And another option is setting up your own pizza delivery company. You can offer different types of pizza with different flavors and tastes. In addition, you can offer several other snacks items and soft drinks to go with the pizza.
Pizza delivery business is not only a profitable kind of business because of the high profit margin, but it is a popular choice of food delivery. If you enjoy unique creations and like to cook, you would find the pizza delivery business to be an enjoyable venture.
You first have to develop a comprehensive business plan, where you will outline your ideas, objectives, obstacles and possible pitfalls that you might encounter. After getting a good location, you would need to prepare a menu and tweak them to the standard your customers would enjoy.