A great small business idea can be sparked by tough economic times. Many successful businesses and innovate startups throughout history began as a way of overcoming the economic obstacles of their day. The P2P car-sharing startup Getaround is a good modern-day example of this phenomenon. This company is taking advantage of a growing niche in the car rental business by allowing people to rent their friends' and neighbors' cars.
Getaround is a no-frills version of bigger P2P car rental services like ZipCar. Rather than charging $80+ per day, car renters can instead rent by the hour for as little as $8, with no sign-up fee. Getaround benefits car owners by offering them a unique opportunity to offset some of their cars' expenses by turning them into an asset that earns income. Owners can rent out their cars on the service by specifying their own hourly rate and schedules.