In the personal opinion of forum members what are the most popular legitimate businesses that wiseguys either open up or invest their money into today?

NOT what you think they should invest money in. Or what they may have invested in years back. But nowadays. Today! What are the most popular types of businesses (aside from restaurants, bars, and construction firms) that street guys are invested in??

Name five or more if you can.

Lots of dispensaries and legal grow ops up in the northeast, along with new casino construction. Hard to imagine them not trying to get a piece despite all the regulation and oversight.

I don't know that that many mob guys have the smarts, money, or business acumen that it takes to get licensed and operate dispensaries. (other than shylocking legit guys who become owners and then pushing in on them).

Legal casinos? We've seen them open in AC and other cities and the mob never got in except though ancillary services such as the bartenders union, garbage collection, linen, food supply, etc. In Las Vegas they were actually eradicated. So I doubt that's a viable option. Especially with the massive money it would take to even attempt such as coup as that.


How bout other types of businesses?

Construction, contracting (i.e., drywall, masonry, electrical), import/export.

Yeah I’d also say construction is a big one for them

Cash only pizza by the slice spots.

Titty Bar

Waste management

Bars, night clubs, restaurants (pizzerias or otherwise). Sometimes owned out in the open but often as a silent partner. Hands down the most common businesses for wiseguys for a ton of reasons… and really anybody heavily involved in drugs or gambling.

service industry and construction.

Definitely Construction,Landscaping,Real Estate,Food Business, Collision and repair Shops

Pizzerias (like laNova in Buffalo).

Not to burst your bubble fellas, but in my top post I mentioned not to include any bars or nightclubs, large restaurants, or any types of construction businesses. Simply because we all know they're still active today in those few industries.

Think out of the box fellas. What other types of businesses do you think street guys are currently invested in and are; #1 capable of realistically infiltrating in the first place. and #2, actually running those businesses successfully?
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Here's a few businesses that I know NYC guys to be active in presently; second-mortgage and private lending firms; lower-end food eateries and fast-food takeout joints like fried chicken, sandwich shops, hamburger stands, and pizzerias; laundromats; dry cleaners; trucking firms; some limited garment center factories and allied businesses (for top guys only); wholesale tire sale companies; jewelry shops; real estate investments and speculation; property ownership for monthly rental income; a fence installation firm; international import-export; some garbage collection companies (very limited); bakeries; Italian food importation and wholesale distribution; and auto body repair and mechanic shops.

What other types do you think?

Ok here’s 5

Vending machines, construction equipment leasing, telecom, payday loans, insurance adjusters

Starting a Mafia Website and Podcast.

Do you mean ones they open to kick back money to the mob, or use as a front, like when they had the private carting companies (Although I think many existed then went partners with he mob) or do you mean when Mafia members take their money and open their own places for themselves that are run honestly?

Guys who actually invest their own funds buying into existing businesses, or opening up new businesses from the ground up. Not wiseguys who shake people down for an envelope. Real investments in other words.

Art and Antiques is pretty popular in Europe.

Most recently, very high end wrist watches, $100k+++
So much so that the big auction houses are checking where the money's coming from before the accept a new big bidder.

I agree Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet etc.. it's ridiculous.

Not just those most popular top names but some super rare vintage pieces.
This past November, Phillips Auction in Geneva sold a 1957 Omega Speedmaster 2915-1 for $3,400.000.US

Gioacchino Campolo, Italy's video poker king, loved art. Among the 300 million euros worth of goods confiscated from him were about 100 very valuable works of art: paintings by Salvador Dali, Giorgio Morandi, Renato Guttuso, Mattia Petri, and Giorgio de Chirico.

Collections in the tens of millions of euros were also confiscated from: Nicola Schiavone, son of Franceso Schiavone, boss of the Casalesi clan within the Naples-based Camorra crime syndicate; and from Gianfranco Becchina, art dealer to Matteo Messina Denaro, boss of Sicily's Cosa Nostra.

Pretty much the same as everybody else....real estate, semi-skilled labor businesses, food, etc.. Its not like there are particular legitimate businesses that mob guys get into that nobody else does.

Like stated above real estate and finance in that area and flipping houses, I know in S Philly due to the housing price boom a bunch of them are involved in this area and making a killing legitimately like many people in the US. Flipping houses there or in Florida as many spots is a super lucrative business and also getting the equity off the houses that you are buying. I know this occured in the early 2000s and then that led to the financial crisis as people were fradulently getting loans and then selling and leasing the houses and defaulting on their loans so that seems it could be right up their lane

I think any cash business is good for them, they can clean their money through it.

I mentioned this a few times in the past
I skimmed over the posts above so If it was mentioned and I missed it SORRY..

Merchant Cash Advance Business
Before COVID they were making a "WALL-STREET" KILLING...

Look at the La Forte's they pulled off 1/2-Billion Dollar Scam....

I know more than a few LCN crews that are making some BIG-TIME CASH today...
It is more or less legalized loan sharking...

A few years back I know a few that were again running tele-marketing chop shops selling medical equipment to senior citizens and charging Medicare/Medicare
They would get the info they needed from the senior citizen and send them medical equipment they did not need and just bill Medicare and/or Medicaid.

The senior who received the equipment that they did not order and did not need, didn't really care so much because they weren't paying the bill.