Commuting - Making a living on my bike

so now that i've got an xtracycle, i've been thinking how nice it'd be to actually make a living on it, instead of "just" getting on it to go make a living, the main catch is that my area just really wouldn't/doesn't support messengering as far as businesses go, so i was thinking more along the lines of groceries & stuff-the overhead would be low as regards maintenence (minimal) & gas (none) so it'd be at a distinct advantage to a car based service that way, still, anybody know anybody who's tried something like this, or who lives in raleigh NC & would be willing to pay for such a service?-i could imagine peak times being in the early evening & when the weather was bad-but that's just speculation-

thoughts?, ideas?, advice?, financial backers?

Don't know if it's feasible so don't quit your job just yet. Give it a go on your off days and off times and see how it works, if it goes well then try it full time, if not then definitely do not.
What about getting the money together and setting up shop, if you love bikes there is not better job I can think of than owning your own bike store. Might spend all your earnings on bike gear though, heh.

after getting the bill from my LBS for building my new bike for me, plus knowing they (and every other bike shop in the area) are almost always busy, with a wait list for repairs/tune ups, etc-dropping the cash for a full set of pro tools & stands & going the bike shop route is looking highly appealing, & i could pick up & drop off customers bikes on the xtracycle, as well as maybe take them a loaner while i'm working on theirs.

that sounds great, especially if there is a need for more shops in your area as it sounds. what brands would you carry? should probably carry a different selection than the other shops, mix it up a bit.

Yay! Xtracycles!!! How about a mobile bike tune-up/tires changing (selling) cart?

so now that i've got an xtracycle, i've been thinking how nice it'd be to actually make a living on it, instead of "just" getting on it to go make a living, the main catch is that my area just really wouldn't/doesn't support messengering as far as businesses go, so i was thinking more along the lines of groceries & stuff-the overhead would be low as regards maintenence (minimal) & gas (none) so it'd be at a distinct advantage to a car based service that way, still, anybody know anybody who's tried something like this, or who lives in raleigh NC & would be willing to pay for such a service?-i could imagine peak times being in the early evening & when the weather was bad-but that's just speculation-

thoughts?, ideas?, advice?, financial backers?

Estimate how much you think you can charge per delivery and how many deliveries you can realistically manage at cycling speed per hour. I think you'll discover why everyone except for messengers use automobiles for deliveries.