Starting a business used to be a simple affair. An individual would make or buy some goods, paint a sign and start selling them from home or a barrow. Over time the operation of even the smallest business became increasingly complicated. Businesses of all sizes now operate in a global economy. Competition continues to intensify. Government regulation is ubiquitous. Professional advisers are not an option, they are mandatory.
The prospective business owner of the 21st Century requires an enormous range of skills and access to significant capital. The challenge is bigger than ever before and that trend will continue.
In response to these developments, new business models have evolved. They have evolved in direct response to the demands of the current era. They represent adaptation to a world that has changed completely. The old paradigms are failing more often than they succeed, but they still have adherents who dismiss and scorn the new arrivals. These are the descendant of the flat earth society. They contend that the new models are not real businesses, but hobbies or even scams.
All new business models are met with resistance until a tipping point is...