For many people, the term ‘investing your money’ means either; putting your money into a savings account with a less than 2% interest rate or hiring a stock broker to invest your money for you in the stock market. On the contrary, there’s a whole range of investment opportunities out there and even various Investment Apps that could be used too! Whether you are rich, poor or somewhere in between, 2017 is a fantastic year to invest. You do not have to follow the crowd and investment in the same things other investors are putting their money into. Indeed, original thinking and finding a gap in the market to invest in is the ticket to making $$$$.
Here are five alternate investment choices for you.
Modern Art
For many decades now, investors have used art as an investment opportunity. For centuries, business people, the super-rich, gangsters, and various other characters have invested into art. The house hold names; Reubens, Van Gough, Picasso, Rembrandt – paintings by artists such as these all either hold their price or go up in value. However, if you want to become an art investor, you must be patient. The aim of an art investor is to purchase a piece, keep it for years or decades while it appreciates and then sell it years later for a profit. The art world is fickle though and this can be hard to do. The average person cannot purchase a Picasso or Rembrandt, but modern art is something anyone can become involved in.
If you haven’t got tens of thousands of pounds to spend on conceptual art works you may consider the option of sponsoring and promoting a new and upcoming artists in exchange for a percentage of sales made on his or her work. If you really enjoy the artist’s work then this need not only be a money making opportunity, you could get a lot out of becoming friends with the artist and discussing his or her work. Alternatively, there are lots of modern art galleries and workshops that sell their paintings at affordable prices. It is difficult to know exactly what kind of pieces are likely to sell and what will flop, but the internet is your friend and contains lots of information on art investment.
When it comes to contemporary art, hype is a big factor. The market relies on hype to build up certain artists but inevitably this hype does not last long. “Don’t buy what everyone else is buying” says one investor. Collectors buy art work because they love what they’re buying whereas investors have to be a lot savvier and buy when the price is low and sell when it is high.
Energy efficient investment
Invest in the world of tomorrow. Will the Earth ever become greener? That is up to us humans. Despite the majority of governments doing nowhere near enough to decrease their reliance on fossil fuels, you can invest in a greener world which will ensure that both the world and your bank balance is in a healthy state. What can be better than an investment which potentially offers financial return as well as social good. Although the ship has sailed on the Tesla investment, there are lots of other green businesses that are looking for investors to have faith in them. Solar energy, wind farms, electric cars, alternatives to fossil fuels, organic foods, organic farming – all these offer fantastic opportunities for investment.
Wine
Alcohol is something that you can be sure won’t ever fail to sell and wine is one of the most popular alcoholic beverages out there. The first lesson is; don’t get drunk off your own supply – if you’re going to invest in wine, ensure that you don’t drink away your investment. Secondly, unless you are only going to invest in several bottles, you will need to pay for professional storage. The wines which have increased in price the most over the past five years have been
‘Petit Mouton’ and ‘Krug, Vintage Brut’. There prices have increased over 150% in the past five years so there is certainly money to be made.
Esports
Esports; the wildly successful and exciting entertainment sport is open to investment. Esports has exploded in popularity over the past few years and there are lots of investment opportunities in this industry. You can invest in game developer start-ups, if you have a promotable product you could potentially sponsor esports teams or players. Esports also have a live odds betting market where audiences are able to place a variety of bets on esports matches and tournaments. If you have knowledge of esports then there is money to be made on betting. Esports have such a diverse range of games/franchises; fantasy games, sports, shooters, racing, these are some of the types of games that sit under the esports umbrella.
Crypto currency
By now, plenty of you will have heard of bitcoin – the virtual currency that would have made you a millionaire if you had the foresight to invest as little as $100 in it seven or so years ago. Unless you foresee another massive up trend in the price of bitcoin there is little point in investing in that particular currency. However, there are various other crypto currencies besides bitcoin which are growing in worth. Don’t expect the bitcoin boom to happen to other virtual currencies, but, again, with the right investment, there is money to be made.
Investment offers the chance to not only put your money into fantastic opportunities but also to invest into your passion. Whether you want to create your own wine cellar, design your own art installation in the spare room in your house or help grow the billion dollar environmentally friendly business of tomorrow, investment can be both fun and fascinating as well as economically enriching. Just be sure not to invest more than you can afford. Be responsible with your investments, never risk what you cannot afford to lose, there have been many circumstances of investments turning sour. Take nothing for granted and always stay safe.
