I am looking for a source of information that identifies the top (ten)
industries that are fragmented and are ripe for consolidation near
Pittsburgh, PA or on the east coast of the U.S. Preferably, the
industries should be poised for growth/expansion. I am interested in
acquiring companies in those industries in the near future. 500k to 2
million range may be suitable. All information sources must be
identified.

It may be helpful to name some industries you are not interested in ie
10,000 resturants, one million baby sitters, 3000 dog groomers, 62
nurologists, 900 muffler repair shops, 6 manufactures of matches, 127
saw mills, 86,000 lawyers.  Neil

I should not have mentioned baby sitters as they are so fragmented;
companies are rare and most are way less than $500,000 annual gross
receipts.   Neil

Would you consider Albany, New York, Key-West, Florida or Orlando,
Florida East coast?

Mshu205 --

An excellent source of data are the U.S. Census Bureau's Economic
Census, done every 5 years.  While the data from the 2002 Census is
still being analyzed, it gives you a chance to look at very detailed
business categories by local area:
http://www.census.gov/econ/www/

To give you an idea of the levels of detail, I'd recommend picking a
sector -- like Retail -- then clicking into the reports that show size
and count of each TYPE of retail establishment.  Afterwards you can
pick what businesses interest you and look at your local area:
http://www.census.gov/epcd/www/econ97.html#1997

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA

Yes. I would consider areas such as Florida (including the east coast,
but not the Keys as travel is not as readily accessible). The Florida
area is poised for growth; capitalizing on the retirement age
community. This is SPECIFICALLY what I am looking for.

To clarify for Neil, I am NOT interested in businesses less than $500K
value. (i.e. no home based businesses, lawyers, or resturants)