Now you are aware about circular economy business models and know about different areas and activities within the circular economy, it is time to talk about generating an idea for a circular practice and/or business, being it about developing a completely new product or service or improve existing ones (making them more aligned with the circular economy).

But for an idea to become a viable product or service for a new business, you need to be able to assess whether your idea is feasible and viable. You also need to find the right way for you to bring the product or service to the market. This means you need to analyse the ‘readiness of the market’ for your product or service and assess whether the market can absorb your offer. For this, you need to analyse your potential customers and the way they see and perceive the envisaged product/service. You will also need to analyse the competition, not only the current competition, but new competitors and competition in the future. The results of your analysis will allow you to evaluate the potential success of your idea or business.

If the outcome of the analysis is positive, meaning that the potential customers have an open and positive attitude towards your new product/service and there is space on the market, the time has come to define the business model and analyse the risks related of setting up your own business to bring the product to the market.