Research Guides: MBAB 5P23: Entrepreneurship: Industry & Target Market

Industry & Target Market Analysis

This part of the feasibility analysis process involves assessing industry attractiveness, target market attractiveness, and market timeliness.

The sources listed in this section can help you to:

investigate the industry and the competitive landscape
Identify the target market & potential customers
conduct more in depth research using a variety of secondary information and data sources

1. Investigate the Industry / Competitive Landscape

You can learn more about industries and the competitive landscape by consulting published industry reports. Start by consulting these sources:

Library Databases:

IBISWorld Industry Research Database This link opens in a new window Produces and publishes over 425 Canadian and 1,300 US Industry Reports at the 5-digit level of the NAICS code.Contains trends, statistics & analysis on market size, market share of major companies and industry growth rates.Permitted Uses
- The Library subscribes to the following modules in IBISWorld: Canada Industry Reports (NAICS), United States Industry Reports (NAICS), Canada Industry iExpert Summaries, United States Industry iExpert Summaries, United States Specialized Industry Reports, United States Specialized Industry iExpert Summaries, China Industry Reports (200 industries), Canada Industry Provincial Reports (50+ Ontario industries), and Canada Collection of Macroeconomic Business Environment Profiles.

First Research Industry Profiles (via Mergent Intellect) "First Research provides industry profiles covering over 1000 industry segments. Updated on a monthly basis First Research industry profiles contain critical analysis, statistics and forecasts to help your engage key prospects, coach key clients, and deepen customer relationships."

Mergent Market Atlas This link opens in a new window Contains global business and financial data including company and industry profiles and annual reports.Coverage: Current plus up to 15 years of historical data.Until June 2025 this content is also available on the legacy Mergent Online platform.Permitted Uses

Other Sources:

Canadian Industry Statistics (Industry Canada/Statistics Canada)
Industry Sector Intelligence (Government of Canada)
Statistics, market intelligence and business resources for each industry sector.

For Additional Sources, Consult These Research Guides:

Company & Industry Research Guide (Brock University Library)
Provides detailed guidance on looking up NAICS codes, and links to other types of information sources for industry analysis.
External Analysis Research Guide (Brock University Library)
Provides detailed guidance and links to sources to assist your analysis of the external macroenvironment (PESTLE Analysis) and the operating / industry environment.

2. Identify Target Market & Potential Customers

The following market research databases will help you define your target market, gain insight into your potential customers, and assess target market attractiveness.

Start Here:

Small Business Hub (Statistics Canada)
You can start by finding information about the general Canadian population, then tailor your data search to your specific geographic region to better understand your target market.

Library Databases:

Mintel Academic This link opens in a new window Canada and US market research, market analysis, product intelligence, and competitive intelligence reports.Coverage: Canadian Reports 2014-current ; US Reports 2008-current ; most reports updated annually; covers a wide variety of sectors, themes, and demographics.Permitted Uses
Passport This link opens in a new window Global market information that specializes in company profiles, industry reports, market share data, and consumer trend analysis of consumer products and services across 80 countriesPermitted Uses
- Includes Economies & Consumers, as well as Industrial-Canada reports for industries across the entire Canadian economy
Statista This link opens in a new window Contains more than 1 million statistics on over 80,000 topics.Contains Statista dossiers and industry reports for 170 industries and 150 countries.Includes market forecasts, as well as market, industry and country outlooks and insights.

Are you conducting International Target Market research? Consult the resources listed on the International Entrepreneurship Research Guide:

3. Conduct in-depth research using authoritative sources

For additional research tips and data sources to assist you with defining target markets and market segmentation, please consult these research guides: