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Coca Cola and Pepsi are the go-to sodas for the majority of people; it’s one or the other. That idea really upsets John Nese, the proprietor of Galcos Soda. He features hundreds of varieties of soda in his store. Everything from Romanian Rose to Q. Cumber soda. Though he might be a little nuts, he typifies an entrepreneur that owns a niche. No where in the country could you find a selection similar to that in Galcos Soda.

Though there is not a mainstream demand for such an array of soda, John has develop a unique product in the market. He illustrates how to own your niche by:

Knowing your market — Who knows the only soda in the dictionary? John does and it’s Moxie.
Offering a unique product — Galcos Soda is the only store to sell Romanian Rose soda.
Staying passionate — John is constantly looking for the next, fantastic “micro-soda.” It is a life-long pursuit.

The Galcos Soda market will not explode into a national chain. There simply is not the demand to support it. However, for those few soda enthusiasts like John, Galcos Soda is an indispensable necessity — a mecca of sorts. How can you create a mecca or an indispensable product?

By the end of 2009, book sales are expected to decline around 6.8% for adult hardcovers and 3.0%, according to the PW/IPR Book Sales Index, a new report from Publishers Weekly and the Institute for Publishing Research. With the successful launch of the Kindle and Sony’s e-reader, book publishing could face some tough times ahead. Though many people love curling up to read a paperback (myself included), many of the same people probably said they couldn’t imagine waking up without the morning newspaper. Give it another decade and e-readers will start really encroaching on the book publishing market.

Today I stumbled across a new project from Olympia Le-Tan. She had stitched famous book titles on canvas. Many of the classics are covered… Moby Dick, Catcher in the Rye, Nineteen Eighty Four, For Whom the Bell Tolls. With her book jackets, Olympia illustrates how to add value to a struggling (or soon-to-be) market. Though only a fraction of book readers would even consider the handmade jackets (if they were sold as such), they add a unique element to a library. It 1) appeals to a niche market (particularly underground hipsters) and 2) it’s in limited supply. Le-Tan’s spin on book covers illustrates how a creative touch and niche appeal is a recipe for value.