Here’s a business idea for you: be the delivery service for the outside-of-town folks.
My house is eight miles outside of Alva. I would gladly pay extra for an occasional pizza delivery, especially on weekends. (Like last weekend, for example!)
My cousins live outside of Norman, Oklahoma, and I was sitting at their house when this idea originally occurred to me. They can’t get pizza or any other deliveries out there.
In our part of the world, we’re seeing lots of folks moving to country homes, so demand is going to go up.
You can decide whether to take orders directly, or let customers order the take-out, and then order delivery from you. Expand it to grocery deliveries, or anything else that seems to make sense.
This is an example of one business that is going to work better in higher-trust rural areas, I think.
What do you think? Viable? Know of any examples?
New to SmallBizSurvival.com? Take the Guided Tour. Like what you see? Get our updates.
- 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
- Huge vacant buildings: grants to renovate? - June 9, 2020
On a very discreet instance… I know of 3 kids that work at a local pizza place that if you specifically ask for one of them, they will for extra cash (for the three of them) go past the set boundaries! Is that entrepreneurial or a racket?
I have often thought that ,if thought out correctly, a grocery deliver service to rural folks who are willing to pay, would be successful.
Cody, I’ll bet there are kids like that at every local pizza joint.
Probably would work. Local outfits could probably benefit by expanding their delivery services. For example, if you live within a certain distance (past delivery zone) there is a surcharge and a minimum order. Benefits:
Two related benefits:
1. Easy way to expand your business w/o having to open a new location
2. Test demand for new locations by offering delivery there…. if demand is high, then open a store.
Marco, that is a great addition: market research.
What a great way to accommodate your customers and expand your business, if only every business would go the extra distance to please their customers! It really creates loyal customers.