BOOK REVIEW: 'The Risk Takers': Entrepreneurs Who Found Underserved Niches -- and Filled Them

In their new book "The Risk Takers: 16 Women and Men Share Their Entrepreneurial Strategies for Success" (Vanguard Press, a member of the Perseus Books Group, 288 pages, $25.95) Renee and Don Martin provide inspiration -- and useful advice -- for people trapped in the corporate world, looking for a way to develop their brilliant ideas into a business that they control.

All of the entrepreneurs profiled -- including co-author Don Martin -- were what the authors call "ordinary" people, all with good ideas, who faced daunting challenges, but took a leap of faith and started their own businesses.

I would dispute that "ordinary" tag: Ordinary people don't usually do what the entrepreneurs profiled in "The Risk Takers" did. A typical climbing-the-corporate-ladder executive wouldn't do what Maxine Clark, who was president of the Payless ShoeSource discount chain, did: Leave a seven-figure salary and beaucoup benefits to start Build-A-Bear Workshop, which gives kids the opportunity to create their own personalized teddy bears and other animals.

"The Risk Takers" describes the personal and professional journeys of sixteen men and women who built hugely successful, multimillion dollar companies. They started with very little, opted to strike out on their own, and struggled with disappointment and failure.

They overcame adversity and ignored the warnings of naysayers -- and through persistence and resiliency -- determined their own destiny.

The companies profiled are familiar to many Americans: Geek Squad, Curves, Liz Lange Maternity, Kinko’s, Paul Mitchell, Spanx, Amy’s Kitchen, along with nine others. Don and Renee Martin, successful entrepreneurs in their own right, personally interviewed these men and women whose inspiring stories demonstrate it’s never been easy to start your own business and navigate it through all the inevitable storms to ultimate success—in any economy, in any era.

But, as the people profiled demonstrate, it can be done.

The authors say that whether you're considering starting your own business -- or looking for ways to expand an existing enterprise -- there are three time-tested, business strategies that can help you to create a new business or push your company to the next level of success:

1. Go on a treasure hunt and find an underserved niche
2. Buck the conventional wisdom
3. Spot a new trend and pounce

If you adopt these strategies as your entrepreneurial mantras you're more likely to identify and take advantage of real opportunities to expand your company's product line and customer base, the authors state. The strategies are:

Go on a Treasure Hunt and Find an Underserved Niche

In the business world, there's nothing more exciting than finding an underserved niche that represents a lucrative market that everyone else has failed to spot and target, the Martins write.

That's what happened to Gary and Diane Heavin, founders of the Curves International fitness franchise system. When the company launched in 1992, the Heavins had just $10,000 in savings to invest in their company. Today, Curves is the world's largest fitness franchise system, with 10,000 franchise locations in 65 countries.

Instead of competing head-to-head with fitness giants like 24 Hour Fitness or Bally Total Fitness, the Heavins opted to serve the fitness needs of three underserved niches: middle-age and older women who are eager to get in shape but might feel intimidated by large gyms teeming with young, hard bodies; busy working women whose schedules could more easily accommodate the Curves 30-minute workout; and budget-conscious women who simply couldn't afford the pricey monthly membership dues charged by the major gym chains. Early on, Curves clearly distinguished itself from the pack of gym competitors; its services and clientele were different.

Targeting an underserved niche is a path that small start-ups can take. Even a huge multi-billion-dollar company can't offer everything for everyone. Targeting the right niche -- one that other business owners have neglected or ignored -- can help build a strong and loyal customer base while limiting competition.

Liz Lange was another entrepreneur who followed this strategy. She launched a phenomenally successful designer maternity clothing company -- Liz Lange Maternity -- which eventually sold for an estimated $50 to $60 million in 2007. She also partnered with Target to launch a secondary, discount version of her line.

Like the Heavins, Lange reached the heights of success by targeting an underserved niche. In her case, that meant zeroing in on the needs of pregnant fashionistas -- women who refused to let a pregnancy deprive them of their fashion sense. Lange used newly developed stretch fabrics to create chic, fitted and stylish maternity clothes. They were nothing like the tent-like and frumpy maternity clothes widely available in department stores.

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