The past few years have seen unprecedented changes to how entrepreneurs start and run small businesses. If you’re feeling a little lost or unsure of what to expect next, you’re not alone.
From unstable tariff changes to the advanced technological capabilities now available at the click of a button, the entrepreneurial landscape is changing. Many of the required skills, pace of innovation, and “best practices” of just a few years ago no longer ring true in 2025.
As an online business owner, the best tool you have is information—both about how other businesses are keeping the lights on and about how customers want to shop in this time of change. This guide rounds up nine of the biggest small business trends so you can spot what’s trending and use it to your advantage.
9 emerging small business trends in 2025
- Technology investment counteracts economic pressure
- Content is more AI-powered than ever—and consumers are receptive to it
- Social media is for direct sales, not just audience building
- Discounts ease consumers’ price sensitivity
- Sustainability remains important—but consumers call out greenwashing
- Young entrepreneurs are taking over
- Brand owners become their own content creators
- Retail becomes increasingly important as consumers crave IRL experiences
- Small businesses explore domestic sourcing
1. Technology investments counteract economic pressure
There’s been a lot of talk around how small businesses weather the storm of the economy. Since the pandemic, the global economy has undergone tremendous changes—many of which have caused entrepreneurs to get creative in their approach to acquiring customers and remaining competitive.
According to a recent global Shopify survey,* that sentiment still rings true. Around two-thirds of merchants are concerned about the global economy, but in contrast, only 40% express concerns about technological advancements.
Widestream adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) tools like ChatGPT have made the technology more accessible to small businesses with small budgets. Per one report, 72% of all businesses currently use artificial intelligence (AI), up from just 20% in 2017.
Popular AI use cases for small business include:
- Automating routine tasks, such as reordering inventory or printing shipping labels
- Using machine learning to digest large datasets—such as market trends, consumer behavior, and regulatory changes—to decide product pricing
- Detecting fraud and flagging suspicious transactions before you fulfill them
Even entrepreneurs who’ve previously sat on the AI fence are leaning into it—including Mimi Nguyen, founder of Cafely, who says, “I’ve always been iffy at using AI since I’m a strong proponent for that human touch, but as we continue to use it for customer service, product recommendations and even a bit of content creation, there’s little doubt it’s changed the game for us.
“Cutting response time in half and boosting conversions by making campaigns feel more personal— really there are so many benefits that we enjoy. I remember once testing an AI-generated email campaign that was curated by our team—open rates jumped by 18% because the tone felt so spot on and human.”
2. Content is more AI-powered than ever—and consumers are receptive to it
Speaking of AI: it’s generative AI that small businesses are leaning into. Experts estimate that almost 90% of all online content could be generated by AI this year.
The same Shopify survey* found that half of businesses were planning to leverage AI tools for content generation. Some 34% say they will rely on it to enhance product imagery, and one-third say they’ll use it to drive marketing initiatives in the form of personalized product recommendations, social advertising, campaigns, SEO, and customer targeting.
“There are so many [SEO] apps, tools, and resources,” says Jeremiah Curvers, co-founder and CEO of Polysleep, on a Shopify Masters episode. “You don’t need to be an expert, especially now with the advent of so many AI tools.”
But it’s not just small business owners who are relying on AI—some consumers are also open to this type of tech assistance throughout their buying experience.
Back in 2018, 79% of shoppers said they’d prefer a human-to-human customer experience. Now, some consumers appear to want AI to improve their shopping experience. They say it makes the shopping experience better (32%) and helps them save money (31%).**
3. Social media is for direct sales, not just audience building
Social media has earned its place in any small business marketing toolkit—and rightly so. Around 64% of the global population has a social media account. We’re scrolling through apps like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok for around two hours and 21 minutes every day.
The traditional approach to social media marketing, however, was to use the platforms to build an audience. Being too salesy will put followers off, right? Not necessarily.
Shopify survey results show leveraging social media for direct sales comes out on top among priority marketing trends at 62%, while influencer and creator marketing ranks second-highest at 39%.* More than a third of Gen Z and Millennial consumers said they’d made a purchase via social media in the past three months.
Small business owners are recognizing this shift and including more product-focused content into their organic strategy—including Sam Speller, founder of Kenko Matcha. Sam’s launched an interactive “Matcha Mastery” tutorial series that teaches followers how to brew the perfect matcha.
“Customers who engage in our interactive Matcha Mastery tutorials (brewing techniques and cultural insights) have a lifetime value of 73% higher than general shoppers according to our data,” Sam says.
“But to take advantage of that, we’ve also reallocated about 40% of our digital marketing budget from traditional product ads to educational content that highlights the tradition of Japanese tea ceremony, and we’ve seen a 28% increase in conversions for our premium ceremonial-grade matcha line as a result.”
4. Discounts ease consumers’ price sensitivity
Inflation is a word that sends shivers down any entrepreneur’s back. And it’s a challenge: Almost a quarter of small businesses said inflation was the single most important problem for them, beating taxes, quality of labor, and government regulations.
On the whole, consumers are generally more optimistic about the economy than they were in years prior. But according to McKinsey, half of global shoppers say that rising prices were their biggest worry, with older consumers more concerned about inflation than younger shoppers.
Small businesses are leaning heavily into discounts to attract shoppers and retain those they’ve already acquired. In fact, some 53% of shoppers say discounts drive loyalty, especially around the holiday shopping season. Another 41% think free shipping would boost loyalty to a brand, while more than a quarter (29%) look for specific loyalty schemes.**
On a recent Shopify Masters episode, Claudia Snoh, co-founder of Kloo, explained how feedback helped the beverage retailer ease customers’ price concerns: “During this massive survey that we launched during soft launch a lot of people said their biggest roadblock was the price per bottle.
“So we did two things: we lowered our bottle price from $35 to $32, and then for subscribers, we actually wanted to create a huge incentive for subscriptions to really increase and encourage higher LTV, so we have a seven-bottle discount, which is very unusual for a D2C brand.
“Of course we got rid of the shipping fee and instead what we did was we upped our minimum quantity to two bottles per order, so we were able to really satisfy our customers’ needs by reducing the price and eliminating shipping fees, but it also actually made us more profitable on the unit economic side. And now that we’ve launched for six months now, we’re also seeing that we have a much, much higher conversion rate as well.”
5. Sustainability remains important—but consumers call out greenwashing
Both businesses and customers are increasingly aware and concerned about the impact commerce has on our planet. Here’s what consumers revealed about their 2024 holiday shopping habits:
- 28% chose sustainable or eco-friendly products.*
- More than one in five (22%) planned to shop more consciously/sustainably.**
- 13% looked for products that are manufactured or shipped in an environmentally friendly way.**
“Consumers are also way more selective now; they’re not just buying products, they’re buying into shared values,” says Cafely’s Mimi Nguyen. “Our climate protection package and Rainforest Trust support have become strong selling points, which is pleasantly surprising and something I didn’t see coming five years ago.”
But while the sustainability element isn’t anything new (interest has been steadily growing over the past few years), consumers are no longer afraid to call out brands for their lack of concern—or worse: “greenwashing” to appear more sustainable than they really are. Global law firm DLA Piper says claims related to greenwashing continue to rise both in the US and internationally.
6. Young entrepreneurs are taking over
When asked about the biggest barriers to entrepreneurship, US adults cited*** financial risk, lack of time, and lack of confidence as top reasons for not starting businesses. Entrepreneurial teens of today don’t have those obstacles—and they’re using it as power to start their own small businesses.
Generation Alpha, defined as those born after 2010, are more tech-savvy than generations before. They grew up with mobile devices, and many of them are using that savviness to make money online:
- Six in 10 young people want to be their own boss.
- Three-quarters of teens are interested in starting their own business.
- 13% of adult entrepreneurs started their business when they were under the age of 18.
Take it from Johnny Lye, the founder of creatine gummy brand Ovrload. He was one of only two classmates who decided not to head to university; he wanted to become an entrepreneur instead. “We definitely take a lot of risks and we’re super naive,” says Johnny. “That’s a strength because ultimately if we’re going to try something and it fails, that’s cool. We’ll bounce back.”
Get inspired: 11 Business Ideas for Teens
Free: Business Plan Template
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7. Brand owners become their own content creators
It’s no longer faceless social media accounts or creators who’ve been paid to endorse a brand that captures attention on social media. Many entrepreneurs are becoming in-house creators themselves.
Aimee Smale is a shining example. The founder of luxury fashion line Odd Muse shares behind-the-scenes peeks at product development and teases upcoming collections with more than 200,000 TikTok followers. From concerns about opening a store to building relationships with her suppliers, it seems like nothing is off limits—and Aimee has built an incredible personal relationship with Odd Muse customers as a result.
Aimee said that becoming a creator herself has played a major role in the brand’s success. In an interview with Adobe Express, Aimee says, “Using social media as a way to candidly share my story in a way that’s totally unique to me was—and has been—a massive part of my strategy for the last five years.”
8. Retail becomes increasingly important as consumers crave IRL experiences
There’s no doubt that ecommerce has opened a world of opportunities. Small business owners can sell to anyone, anywhere.
Yet while almost a quarter of purchases are set to take place digitally by 2027, more than half of Gen Z shoppers still get their retail therapy fix in physical retail stores. They want to bridge the gap between social media and IRL.
Interestingly, despite their inflation concerns, PwC reports that most consumers are willing to pay a premium for these in-person experiences. Some 65% of US consumers also find a positive personal experience with a brand to be more influential than great advertising.
Kenko Matcha’s Sam Speller is just one small business leaning into this trend for offline experiences. “We set up 12 boutique fitness studios across Sydney and Melbourne as Matcha Bars for online customers to pick up orders while they attend yoga sessions,” he says. “This click-and-connect model now accounts for 35% of our revenue.”
9. Small businesses explore domestic sourcing
Tariffs are extra costs that governments levy on imported goods. Small businesses in the US must stay up to date with changing regulations—many of which impact how they’d traditionally source products from international suppliers.
On April 2, 2025, the US announced a baseline tariff of 10% on all imports. Some countries and products had additional levies. Those importing goods from China that were less than $800 in value, for example, no longer qualify for duty-free entry for their shipments. This adds extra costs to the supply chain and procurement process.
The most obvious way to combat this is to increase product prices. Yet given consumers’ ongoing sensitivity to price volatility, many small business owners feel like they’re left with no choice but to look for alternative methods to source trending products.
Domestic sourcing, for example, bypasses import tariffs entirely. Products are made and sourced in the country they’re sold in. This means shorter lead times, cheaper shipping costs, greater quality control than overseas suppliers, and of course—no tariffs. It ultimately offers more stability in exchange for cheaper manufacturing costs that overseas suppliers can offer.
How to adapt to small business trends
- Start early, but small
- Embrace technology
- Keep open lines of communication with your customers
Start early, but small
Some small business trends are the seeds of an idea that will transform an industry; others are fleeting and out of fashion just as quickly as they came in. (Remember when audio-based social media platforms like Clubhouse and Twitter Spaces were all the rage?)
Unfortunately, there is no way to determine what the next big thing is. What you can control, however, is your approach to testing.
Start small with any new strategy and avoid putting all of your resources into something that’s not proven. If you want to make a headstart on the use of AI, for example, start with the tools already available to you—like Shopify Magic—and build from there. That way, you’ll be able to monitor your customers’ response and figure out where you can double down for the biggest impact.
Embrace technology
Running a small business can quickly feel overwhelming. Many times, you’re wearing multiple hats. You’re the founder, but also need to keep tabs on customers, innovate new products, and implement marketing strategies—and that’s before implementing any emerging trends.
Technology is your best friend here, especially if you’re strapped for cash. Free automation tools (like Shopify Flow) can free up your time and help you get more done. The fewer repetitive tasks on your plate, the more bandwidth you’ll have to experiment with small business trends.
Keep open lines of communication with your customers
The only way to know which trends are worth doubling down on—and which are worth abandoning—is to keep an open line of communication with the people who buy from you.
If customers tell you that they’re open to using AI, for example, start with an AI chatbot like Shopify Inbox. If they tell you they’re concerned about inflation and are cutting their disposable income to focus on necessities, perhaps discounting is more of a priority. You could also explore domestic sourcing to cut down on supply chain costs and pass the discount onto customers, without slashing your own profits.
“We were getting the feedback of what was working and what wasn’t working, so we weren’t wasting any time or any money or resources with making any unnecessary designs,” says Jacob Winter, founder of Mush Studios, on a Shopify Masters episode. “So once we were doing that, we then focused all of our energy onto that.”
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Small business trends FAQ
How can I identify emerging small business trends?
There are several techniques entrepreneurs can use to identify emerging small business trends:
- Monitor industry reports.
- Read industry publications.
- Network with other small business owners.
- Gather customer feedback.
- Read up on policies and regulatory changes.
- Use social listening tools.
- Follow industry leaders on social media.
Why is it important to stay updated with small business trends?
Commerce is constantly changing—the customer journey of just a few years ago now looks dramatically different. Keeping updated with small business trends lets you identify opportunities to stand out and keep up with customer preferences as they evolve.
What role does technology play in small business trends?
Technology helps small businesses keep up with trends by helping them to automate repetitive tasks, identify emerging trends, and streamline operations.
*Methodology: Online survey among 13,337 standard merchants from the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain, conducted between May 29 and June 12, 2024, by Shopify.
**The survey was conducted among 18,000 consumers in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, the UK, and the US. The interviews were conducted online by Sapio Research in August 2024 using an email invitation and an online survey.
***Results for the Gallup entrepreneur poll are based on responses from a survey of 46,993 US adults (18+ years old) conducted online May 1–14, 2024. All participants are members of Gallup’s probability-based, nationally representative panel.
