Top 10 Tech Startup Business Opportunities In Saudi Arabia

2017-Nov-06

 Saudi Arabia, which is known for its reserves of oil is now digging its feet in other ventures to diversify the revenue generation process from different sources as it was earlier mostly dependent on the oil production only.
 The government along with foreign institution and investors are helping the citizens who have ideas to change the landscape of the business in the country and therefore if you are looking for opportunities to invest in Saudi’s market now, tech startups are one of the most promising ventures you can invest into.[irp]
 In line with the Vision 2030 project of the government, where it pledges to develop the country in every sector, science and technological developments have already acquired a pace and making a cut in the market steadily.
 With a view to building 600 startups in this sector by 2030, almost half of the number has been achieved. There are various opportunities in this market at present time out of which ten are listed below.
 
 1-Food delivery app: The mindset and the taste of the people of Saudi are changing and there is a massive growth in the online food delivery business which has been observed in the past few years. In 2017, revenue from the delivery of food amounted to $654 million which is huge from only one segment and that indicates the growth and the hidden potential of this sector.
 With the technological advancement, online food delivery apps are increasing the scope of this business by providing the ease of ordering food from the couch of the home. Thus if you are looking for building tech startups, food delivery app making can top your priority list.
 2-App for on-demand roadside assistance: Roadside assistance for vehicles is a need for the present generation because of the huge population of cars, imported vehicles and most importantly driving without proper measures.
 In Saudi Arabia, imported vehicles are there in almost every household because of the high standard of living and thus there is always a need for maintenance of these vehicles. Moreover, now women are allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia so this tech business will be high in demand.
 If you are into technology development and want to start your own startup, then investing into the development of apps for roadside assistance can be a profitable venture depending upon your tie-ups with the service and maintenance companies of Saudi.
 
 3-Online payment processing tool: Online payment, earlier, was considered to be very risky ventures but with the modern day technology and secure apps, people across the world are now comfortable in making online transactions.
 In Saudi, people spend a lot of money and that can be gauged by the transaction value from “digital payment” segment which amounts to $21,710 million in this year, 2017. This indicates the potential of generating income from online payment apps in Saudi Arabia.
 
 The new generation believes in using time wisely and making online transactions saves a lot of time which is why there is ample scope for this business.
 4-Online educational training classes: Education is rising in Saudi Arabia and so are the online education programs. Since the government is trying to shift the focus from oil production to another sector, technical education and vocational training are becoming must for the candidates to secure jobs in the country.
 From 2017-2023, the government bodies and the analysts are expecting the online education market of this nation to grow at a rate of 9.8% which assures the new age entrepreneurs of success if they are thinking to invest in the online education market.
 
 The students are adopting the concept of online education and this market is expected to generate revenue of $237.1 million by next five years.
 5-Auto parts trading platform: Since there is a huge demand for vehicles in Saudi Arabia and most of them are imported, so is the demand for the spare parts for those vehicles for service and maintenance. Vehicles are imported to this country from US, Japan and also the spare parts. If you are thinking of building a tech startup you can join hands with these companies overseas and start trading in automobile parts via an online medium.
 People who use luxury, imported vehicles won’t feel comfortable running down the streets to find a spare part for their vehicles and thus if you are offering an online platform where all types of automobile parts are available, the vehicles users will be comfortable in buying as well.
 There is a huge demand for spare parts of the vehicles as the figures indicate almost $3.8 billion of auto parts are demanded each year in Saudi.
 6-Beauty service booking app: Beauty services if offered online can make a huge market because of the huge restriction on women in this country. In 2017, there is a revenue generation from the fashion segment in Saudi Arabia which is close to $1679 million.
 The market for online beauty services has potential which is indicated by this number. Saudi Arabia is amongst those few developing nations where the market for cosmetics and wellness services is growing with time and thus if you are making an app or online platform to offer these services, the chances are good for the success.
 7-Personalized Arabic news app: In 2017, there is a revenue generation of $1667 million from the electronics and media segment which focuses on the fact that there is a growing demand for media and news in Saudi Arabia. The analysts are predicting that this market has huge potential to grow in the upcoming years and for next five years it will be growing at a rapid pace. If you are thinking of investing in tech startups, then news, media apps should be there on your list of ideas.
 8-On-demand pharmacy: Medicines are required at any point in time and in Saudi Arabia, the revenue from online health services has amounted to $65 million this year. The market analysis predicts that there is an ongoing demand which is increasing with time for online health services at the time of need.
 You can provide online health consultation services, doctor on call services, medicines at doorstep services as well as ambulance services on demand.
 9-Cloud-based restaurant management system: Restaurants are needed to be managed well to serve the customers and retain them if you are thinking of making an app to monitor and manage restaurants online/cloud-based, take a look at this figure.
 
 In 2017, the food market in Saudi has grown by $404 million through this includes personal care segment as well. The revenue is expected to grow in the next five years and thus investing in this startup looks profitable.
 10-Home maintenance services booking app: High standard of living of people of Saudi demands for high maintenance of the home and thus an online platform where one can order services pertaining to home maintenance will be much in demand.
 With the government trying to build more homes for the growing population by next few years, the demand for home maintenance services are bound to increase and thus it seems to be a profitable venture as well.