60 Rural America Business Ideas You Can Start Today [2023]

We started brewing 12 years ago in college as a hobby. We always loved to travel, and on our travels, we discovered that there are many different and interesting beer styles. Since we couldn’t buy any of them in Croatia, we decided to make them ourselves.

We made a million bad decisions and a million good ones, so it is difficult to rule just one. However, the most important lessons for us were never to give up and always keep adapting.

Neither of us had done anything similar in the past, and come from very different business backgrounds, so this was very new to us. We started brewing on a small self-made homebrew system and quickly fell in love with the hobby. We started experimenting with different ingredients and techniques, and soon enough, we were producing once a week.

I strongly believe in open systems developed with service providers that offer the freedom of choice for consumers. I am very much an ‘accidental founder’ in the sense that when I first developed Konnected, I was just trying to solve an issue with my traditional home security system and transition it to a smart system.

As I was preparing to go on a family vacation, I learned of a few neighbors reporting break-ins, which prompted my concerns about not being able to fully monitor my home’s security remotely.

During my trip, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was a way for me to connect the sensors that I had in my home to a SmartThings device so that I could keep track of my home while I was gone. This put the wheels in motion for a new software project for me.

For as long as I can remember I have always been attracted to the idea of being a business owner. I’ve tried many businesses starting with my own DJ company. I got some business cards, printed them at Staples, passed them out, and waited for the calls.

It took a bit of time, but eventually, the calls started to come in and bookings started to happen. I did that for a couple of years until one of the DJ gigs some gangsters got into it and I was almost in the middle of a gang fight. Thank GOD things calmed down, but after that, I started looking for another business!

During this same time, the whole tech bubble was growing and I wanted a part of it. I took some coding classes in college and started using HTML to code my website from scratch. I kind of borrowed a lot of ideas from Yahoo but it was going to be mainly focused on my local city. I visited some businesses and got some of them to advertise. Things seemed to be going well when the bubble burst and I was once more left to venture out and look for something else.

I’ve always been a fanatic reader, specifically in the thriller genre. I discovered Dan Brown as a kid, then James Rollins, and I’ve always love action movies that combine adrenaline and history (think National Treasure, Indiana Jones, etc.).

I decided to write a book (my first was called The Golden Crystal, and it has been re-launched as The Atlantis Stone) when my grandfather passed away. He had always been a strong positive influence in my life, and he, my dad, and I often swapped paperbacks we liked. That first book was intended as a gift for my dad for Christmas, and it was going to be the only one I ever wrote -- just to see if I could do it.

I had no idea what I was doing (arguably, I still don’t…). I just thought it would be fun to combine technology with the discovery of Atlantis… in some way. When I got started, I was naive enough to think that books simply happen, but the book very quickly got the best of me. I took a six-month break and consumed as much as I could on the subject of the craft of writing fiction. I’d never really written anything before, so it was an eye-opening experience to learn about structure, plot tropes, character development, and everything else that goes into a good, cohesive story.

I originally started MaidThis as a side hustle while I was working at a private equity investment firm. Like many people working the corporate grind, I was fascinated by becoming my own boss.

With any first product or service launch, you’re almost guaranteed to get some aspect of it wrong. You might be priced too low, not be addressing the right target market, or have the package all wrong.

I finally stumbled upon The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferris, which turns out is basically the Bible for the digital nomad community, and decided I wanted to experience “location freedom”.

I am a licensed attorney in India and right after my master’s in law, I started working with a leading company as a lawyer. I worked there for about two years before I quit my job to become more location independent.

Choose a niche in whatever you start. It is critical for streamlining your efforts and make money.

My job paid me well but I worked 12 hours a day, I was exhausted by the end of each day, spent my weekends sleeping and I almost quit the things I liked to do - for example, sketching, yoga, traveling, etc.

Before Cape Whoopies was conceived, I was enjoying being the mom of two kids in high school, the wife to an airline pilot, and an aerobics teacher at my local gym.

When my kids had gone off to college and my husband was in the air, I had much time on my hands. There was only so much time you could spend at the gym, so with the newfound extra time I splurged in one of the things I always loved doing: making delicious baked things for friends.

My husband and I spend time a local restaurant as a hangout when he was home, so we would go to DiMillos and take our server friends whoopie pies. Why whoopie pies? I had tasted the Maine creation and thought, "good idea, not great execution".

At 10-years-old I saw a bicycle in a neighbor’s trash can and asked if I could have it. I ended up with two broken bikes and combined them to make one, which I rode and eventually sold.

In junior high school, I took woodshop and fell in love with woodworking. Evenings, my father, the school superintendent who had started out as a shop teacher, would take me to the school’s woodshop and we’d build furniture and Christmas presents and fix things.

Today, my career is based around restoring old bicycles, pedal cars, Coke machines as well as other items. I previously worked at Beech Grove schools doing education technology, but began to get burned out and wanted to do something that I really enjoyed. Around that same time a TV show called “American Restoration” was on the History Channel, and it inspired me. I thought, ‘Wow, that guy [on TV] is making a living at restorations, maybe I can do the same”. So I just kind of blindly cashed in my 401k and jumped into it not knowing what to do or how to run a business or anything like that. I started in my mom’s garage, and I put up a website right away.

We’ve been friends for awhile - we met right out of college in New York and stayed close even though we took fairly different professional paths.

Saara worked in the corporate world for a number of years before moving to Mexico where she launched a jewelry business aimed at rehabilitating sex trafficking survivors. Stephanie was a business consultant before going to law school and becoming a corporate lawyer; along the way, she launched an argan oil company that empowers women in Morocco.

I was always the art kid growing up, so I naturally began my post secondary education by pursuing a degree in Fine Arts. I spent my summers refinishing furniture and doing photography and that’s how I got my feet wet with business, so by my second year, I was also pursuing a minor in Commerce.

I had never really done much woodworking at all but became a lot more interested in design and home decor during those years. After finishing my third year, I was itching to do something more practical than becoming a gallery artist, so I set my sights on furniture design and enrolled in a college cabinetmaking course instead. It really wasn’t where I had ever expected to end up, but it was sort of a natural progression and I’m so glad I did it!

I started making mountain shelves in the morning before class to sell on Facebook and Kijiji. It was intended to be a fun side project but they were so popular that I started my business shortly after graduating with the mountains as my first product.

I was led to this career path as a business owner from my sheer motivation to do better in my life than what I had grown up with. My parents had me when they were teenagers and we lived meagerly while I was young.

I knew that if I wanted to go to college, I would need to find a way to pay for it myself along with my cost of living. I naturally had a knack for doing hair and art, so when I was 16, I had the chance to enroll in cosmetology school while in high school, and by 18, I was fully licensed. This was much more affordable for me than the traditional college route, so that’s what led me to pursue it.

When I received my license in 1995, I started working behind the chair at Supercuts. I slowly worked my way up the ladder to high-end salons. Five years later, I got a small suite at the Gallery of Salons and was an independent contractor. That was my initial stepping stone to running my own business.

We both had previous experience in another start-up called Soul id which was a social media platform for action sports. We ran the marketing and media at that company which was a blast. After we left that company, we split directions. Eli got involved in the eCommerce industry by starting a brand called Winterial which he grew to hundreds of SKUs. Kyle headed in the media direction and started a commercial photography company where he worked with Fortune 500 companies and small businesses.

At this time Kyle wanted to be able to get back in the start-up world, grow a large brand and a team of like-minded creatives and innovators. So like any entrepreneur, he jumped on Google and started to search for media companies that were also technology-based companies as well. That is where the inspiration of starting a digital agency that solely focused on the media portion for brands and product companies came to life.

Culture is the centerpiece of a successful company. Creating a place for employees to come to work and enjoy what they do, the environment and who they work with will pay long term dividends.

As far back as I can remember I’ve always wanted to have my own business. I didn’t go to college (besides a few junior college classes). Instead, I started working in sales, first selling car insurance for a few years, and then making the jump into mortgage loans. After a few years of gaining experience, I opened up my own mortgage company and rode the wave of the mid-2000’s real estate boom. It was an incredibly lucrative time and it seemed like it would go on forever. However, by the end of the decade, the good times were over and the recession hit. Although I hung in there and we did extremely well for several years in a down economy, I still ended up having to shut down my company. During this time I experienced some of the most challenging times of my life and career.

After rolling with the punches, I started looking for the next business opportunity to get involved with. A friend of mine had been telling me for several years about solar power and how renewable energy was the future. After doing some research, I realized what a great opportunity it was.

• There’s an unlimited amount of solar energy.
• Solar is clean energy compared to fossil fuels that damage the environment.
• Solar energy is a cheaper source of energy than fossil fuels, in the majority of markets.
• Power purchase agreement (PPA) allows a homeowner to get a solar system without having to actually purchase the system. There is not a purchase loan or lien required on a client’s home.

• Kat Norton (@miss.excel on Instagram and TikTok) enthusiastically imparts Microsoft Excel knowledge to people, companies, and educational institutions through her line of Excelerator Courses and specialized group training sessions.
• Kat has over 1 million TikTok followers, which she has used to launch a successful software training company in just two years. After posting her first video in June 2020, she never had to look back.
• In just 10 days, she gained 200,000 new Instagram followers and currently has 639K followers on the platform.
• She typically earns between $250,000 and $300,000 per month, and once ,she made $100,000 in just 24 hours.

Listen to the full podcast on podcasts.apple.com ➜

Hello, my name is Irakli Litanishvili and I am a co-founder of a group of companies called Aim of Emperor that operates in three niches: aviation, fuel & ground handling, and IT. One of the recent additions is Mirai Flights, where I stand as CEO & co-founder.

Gopuff, a leading food & consumer goods delivery service, was started in 2013 by two Drexel University students, Yakir Gola and Rafael Ilishayev.

Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the business began as an on-demand hookah delivery business but has now grown to provide food and supplies.

This consumer products delivery business operates on an on-demand basis. The firm mostly fulfills deliveries for food, drinks, alcohol, home essentials, and other necessities you typically find in a convenience shop.

GoPuff's business model is distinct from those of other delivery firms. The firm operates its warehouses, where it stockpiles items and fills orders on demand.

Rafael, born in Russia, began his career at his father’s sandwich restaurant and afterward at a banquet hall that his father had purchased. Yakir, the son of an Israeli immigrant, used to work in his father’s cash-for-gold store.

The genesis of GoPuff began in 2011, when its creators, Rafael Ilishayev and Yakir Gola, met in a Business 101 class at Drexel University in Philadelphia.

In less than a decade, the company has evolved into a multibillion-dollar corporation serving over 1000 locations. In 2021, GoPuff generated $1 billion in revenue, three times what it did in 2020.

GoPuff has raised $3.4 billion over nine rounds, with its latest $1 billion funding round in July 2021. The company is valued at a massive $15 billion.

Read the full story on blog.wishpond.com ➜

My name is Gareth Mahon. I’m the co-founder and CEO of The CareSide, a home care and nursing service provider for elderly individuals in Australia. We are based in Perth, Australia.

We launched our company in 2017. Over the past 3 years, we have scaled to $5 million in revenue.

In the late 1980s, Darrell and Geoff Manchester established Intrepid as a brand new way of exploring the world.

Intrepid Travel offers more than 1,150 trips on all seven continents that are sustainable and experience-rich.

They didn't set out to build the biggest purpose-led adventure travel brand in the world, but they have done so now, by generating $43 million in annual revenue.

They are the biggest adventure tour operator in the world, operating a network of 26 DMCs and a nonprofit foundation.

Since 2002, their nonprofit organization, The Intrepid Foundation, has raised over AUD 12 million for 135 charities worldwide.

Read the full story on forbes.com ➜

Nora co-founded Campertunity, the Airbnb of camping. In the process of building it, she committed lots of mistakes and explains how to avoid them.

Hey everyone! I am Chris and in March 2011 I started Live Fit. Live Fit is a personal training company that was created to change the standards in the personal training industry. Early on I focused on building a company that is not only based on results, as most fitness companies are, but that is also focused very heavily on relationships. Relationships create trust, trust creates buy-in, and buy-in leads to the accountability and dedication it takes to get results.

Brian Scudamore is the founder and CEO of 1-800-GOT-JUNK - an international junk removal franchise based in Canada.

Brian grew the business to $37M/month, initially driving around looking for piles of junk or simply knocking on doors and asking the owners if they needed anything taken away for a fee.

This company offers a franchise-based, full-service junk removal business devoted to assisting clients in recovering lost space in their residences and places of business.

They collect all types of trash, including clothing, household items like furniture and electronics, and junk from renovation projects. Additionally, they help those in need by donating any possible items to charity.

Read the full story on sidehustlenation.com ➜

I'm Bryan Clayton CEO of GreenPal which is best described as Uber for Lawn Care.

Good thing early investors told us no because with their capital they would have owned and controlled 30% of our business.e are self-funded and my cofounders and I own it all.

I’m Eduard Stinga, founder of VideoPlasty, a platform for stock animation and GIF images.

Since we launched, more than 600,000 people have visited our platform over the years, with 2020 being our best year so far, the year we finally cleared the first legendary milestone for any startup, registering our first six-figure year with a little over $100k in revenue. And we’re just getting started!

I am Chhavi, the founder and owner of the blog and YouTube channel Mrs Daaku Studio along with my husband Amit.

Our blog, YouTube channel, and products are designed to help you achieve what we have (...and, more).

We are CFF Media, a video production company located out of Atlanta, GA. We create video content (About Us, Testimonials, Promotional, Drone videos) for the Greater Atlanta area with a primary focus on videos representing other companies and what they stand for, but we love the opportunity to try other avenues of video production!

We started just four and half years ago, working out of our house and trying to understand how we could make our way into the industry. I look around now and cannot believe the progress that we have made and every day I’m still shocked to find myself walking into an office with our very own studio. These moments make me look back and really appreciate just how far our company has come in such a short amount of time.

I’m Parker Garlitz, one of the Co-Founders of True Leaf Market. We are an independent seed company offering heirloom, non-GMO and organic seeds. We also offer growing supplies and starter kits. We sell to home gardeners up to professional growers. We offer traditional vegetable garden, flower and herb seeds as well as specialty seeds like microgreens, sprouts, and wheatgrass. The other Co-Founders are Lance Heaton, Kaitlin Jones & Robb Baumann.

I’m Dan Stewart and I’m the founder of Dundas Valley Pools. We help homeowners with swimming pools in Southern Ontario, Canada maximize the summers in their backyard. We do this by providing personalized, on-site services such as pool openings/ closings, pool maintenance, equipment installations, pool renovations, and new pool installations. Since our humble beginnings in May of 2016 we have serviced 350+ pools, opened and closed 200+ pools, and have installed tons of high-quality pool equipment, pool liners, and winter safety covers for happy customers throughout Southern Ontario.

Dundas Valley Pools has grown from a company producing very little revenue in 2016 to a company that is earning an average of $8000/ month net revenue during the on-season. This year we hope to actually double that number. This is due to our expansion into more technical services as well as taking on larger jobs-- namely, new pool installations.

Hello! My name is Nishant Tripathi, and I founded Dhobilite, a premium online dry cleaning, and laundry service. I started this company in 2011 with a vision to pioneer laundry service in India.

We started operations in the year 2011. Over the years, we experimented with and developed our business model and software. In 2015, we disrupted the laundry market and became India's first app-based, on-demand laundry service provider. We have expanded into more than 15 cities in the last two years and have around 20+ stores today. In addition, we have 30 plus franchises. We also have factories in Gurgaon, Noida, Lucknow, Hyderabad, and Faridabad.