PROFIT magazine's 14th annual guide to hot growth markets is on newsstands today

TORONTO - As our economy moves into a modest recovery, what are today's best startup, expansion and sales prospects? For Canadian entrepreneurs who want to build their companies or start new ones, the road to success runs through today's hottest niches and top growth markets - revealed in PROFIT's 14th annual Opportunity Guide, on newsstands now. Experts say the coming recovery will be unlike any other in recent memory, in large part due to ongoing consumer debt, continued high unemployment, a soaring loonie and a protectionist U.S. stimulus package. How can small and mid-sized companies reap the rewards of the recovery in this unique environment?

Here are some of the most promising prospects revealed in PROFIT's 14th annual Opportunity Guide:

- Tech sector: As businesses look for ways to boost efficiency and productivity from a shrunken workforce, demand for time-saving solutions will grow.

- Construction: Ottawa's stimulus program is creating opportunities, both directly on construction projects and indirectly supplying products and services to firms that land government contracts.

- Green building retrofitting: Poor insulation, archaic heating and cooling systems, and inefficient lighting have rendered many buildings energy hogs. Given ballooning energy costs and government incentives, energy-efficient retrofits are set to explode.

- Franchise fortunes: Services that cater to children or seniors will offer the best franchising opportunities in the next few years.

PLUS: CANADA'S ENTREPRENEURS OF THE DECADE

These 11 remarkable CEOs have built hugely successful firms by shaking up their industries. PROFIT magazine presents the inspiring-and instructive-stories of how they did it.

Also in this issue of PROFIT, on newsstands now: