A generic packing list is easy to create and easy to replace with a note. A new app needs a sharper reason to be invited on the trip.
Start with a specific planning constraint: shared family equipment, a particular activity, limited baggage or repeated work travel. These are research directions, not validated opportunities.
Find the failure beyond forgetting socks
Ask travellers about the last packing mistake that caused real trouble. Was an item forgotten, duplicated, incompatible or assigned to the wrong person? Did the plan change late? What information would have prevented the problem?
The strongest workflow may concern coordination and reusable context rather than generating another list from a destination name.
Prototype one trip type
For a hypothetical group-camping planner, test shared equipment responsibility and a final confirmation. Keep weather and safety guidance linked to appropriate authoritative sources rather than improvising advice the product cannot support.
Allow the list to be copied, edited, exported and used without a reliable connection. The airport queue is an inconvenient place to require a password reset before displaying the essentials.
Match pricing to frequency
Occasional travel creates long gaps between useful sessions. Measure return on the next relevant trip. A recurring subscription needs an ongoing value proposition that makes sense to the customer; it should not be chosen merely because the founder wants MRR.
A paid template, one-time utility or specialist service may be worth comparing during research. Do not assume any of them will sell without a real offer test.
Stop if users happily generate a list once but prefer their existing note for the actual journey. The product has to help when plans change and bags are being packed.
The niche is not people who travel. It is people whose particular trip creates a planning problem that ordinary lists handle poorly.