Lots of people arrive here looking for rural business ideas. That’s why I keep coming up with more and more ideas you can use to start your own small town business. Here are three new ones to spur your thinking.
 |
| My grandmother’s 1941 Kerr canning manual |
Teach canning classes
If you learned to can from your grandmother, and you can quote the Ball Blue Book from memory, then you could be teaching people. I heard from @SlowMoneyFarm that canning classes go as high as $150 apiece.
This one is just weird
A food truck for pets. I have no clue why this popped into my mind, but there it is. Someone is probably already doing it, but you could adapt it for small town festivals and fairs.
Bring outside retailers in
Few small towns have a perfect retail system. We all have holes. Take a look at what folks can’t get locally, and then set up a delivery service. I read about people bringing in IKEA furniture or Costco discount items from Inspired Livelihood. Think of it as any other group buying service. People put in orders, and you deliver the items. And for the sake of your hometown, try not to duplicate your existing merchants.
Want more small town business ideas? Look through our free booklet, 20 Small Business Ideas for Small Towns.
New to SmallBizSurvival.com? Take the Guided Tour. Like what you see? Get our updates.
- Are marijuana shops good or bad for small towns? - April 22, 2021
- Downtown is your town’s core: How to make your case - February 22, 2021
- Zoom Towns: attracting and supporting remote workers in rural small towns - December 10, 2020
- In an economic crisis, spend your brainpower before your dollars - November 25, 2020
- Video: How to fill empty car dealership buildings for the holidays - November 6, 2020
- How has 2020 changed the challenges rural small towns face? Tell us here - October 20, 2020
- The Idea Friendly Method to surviving a business crisis - October 6, 2020
- Join me for the Rural Renewal Symposium online Oct 13 - September 26, 2020
- Cheap placemaking idea: instant murals - September 11, 2020
- Refilling the rural business pipeline - July 7, 2020
:) I got a good smile out of the food truck for pets idea! Now that’s creative! My mother-in-law recently started teaching craft classes (weaving, pottery, decorative gord art – yes, GORD ART!). She gets about 5-10 people together for each class and has these “parties” at someone’s home.
She charges about $25-30 a person per class and she does them a couple times a month. It’s gotten her name out – her ultimate goal is to do art and color consulting in retail with small businesses. She is well on her way!
Just thought I’d share.
Thanks!
Tim, I love the gourd art! Crafts are making a big comeback, and rural areas and small towns can become major craft centers.