Top 10 Low-Cost Business Ideas You Can Start Today (2)
From Coffee Carts to Handmade Souvenirs: Five Low-Cost Businesses You Can Wheel Out This Year
In this second part of “Top 10 Low-Cost Business Ideas You Can Start Today,” we focus on drinks and small products businesses you can start with a small cart and a good location. Items like coffee, smoothies, wine, sunglasses, or handmade jewelry may seem simple, but with smart street vending, the right spot, and a cart made for daily use, they can become profitable and reliable. Today, as work habits and routines change, being mobile is not just a bonus, it is central to the business.
Let’s start with coffee, since it’s already part of most people’s mornings. The global coffee industry is expected to grow from about USD 269 billion in 2024 to nearly USD 370 billion by 2030, showing strong demand. In the U.S., specialty coffee is now an everyday habit, with about 45% of adults drinking it daily, slightly more than regular coffee for the first time. With this in mind, a mobile coffee cart is more than a novelty. It is a smart way to offer a high profit product at offices, campuses, markets, and festivals without the high costs of running a café. Studies show that well run coffee carts can make gross profit margins of 60–80% on drinks, thanks to low ingredient costs and efficient setups. A well equipped, bike towable espresso cart with a good machine, water supply, and storage can be started for much less than a traditional shop. For many, making a few hundred dollars a day in busy areas is enough to cover costs and pay back the initial investment in just weeks.
If coffee fuels the modern office, smoothies and fresh juices are now a staple for health focused people. The global smoothies market is expected to grow by about 9% each year through the end of the decade, as more people choose quick, healthy options over traditional snacks. For mobile juice or smoothie carts, this means steady business at busy places like commuter stations, parks, waterfronts, office areas, and gyms. A small cart with good refrigeration, safe surfaces, and power for blenders lets you serve fresh drinks with simple prep and little waste. Using local, seasonal produce and eco-friendly items like reusable cups and compostable straws helps attract health-conscious customers. In warmer months, a well placed smoothie or lemonade cart can bring in steady income, especially at regular markets and outdoor events.
Alcohol has its own rules, but mobility is just as important here. The mobile bartender services market, which includes beer carts, wine trucks, and pop-up cocktail carts, is now worth about USD 6.8 billion and is expected to nearly double by 2033, growing over 7% each year. Weddings, company events, music festivals, and private parties are moving away from traditional hotel bars and choosing more personal, custom experiences. Mobile bar cocktail carts are popular with event planners because they can be set up anywhere and look great, often serving as both a bar and a photo spot. For business owners, the focus is on booking events in advance, not just serving random passers by. Beer or wine carts can be reserved weeks ahead for festivals, brand events, and private parties, which helps keep income steady. It is important to have the right alcohol licenses, follow food safety rules, and complete responsible service training. Once those basics are covered, a strong, well-branded mobile bar cart can charge higher fees, especially if you add extras like custom glassware, branded taps, or QR-code loyalty programs.
Food and drinks are not the only things that work well on wheels. As city centers face high rents and changing foot traffic, mobile retail is becoming a smart way to bring shopping to the street without the risk of a long-term lease. In many places, selling non-food items like sunglasses, scarves, or seasonal accessories is easier to regulate than selling hot food or alcohol, though you still need to check local vending laws and zoning rules. A good accessories cart can change with the seasons, selling sunglasses and hats in summer, gloves and scarves in winter, umbrellas when it rains, and tech gadgets near busy stations all year. For business owners, this model is appealing: there is no food to spoil, you can test products in small amounts, and fashion accessories often have higher markups than food. For brands, working with a mobile retail expert like BizzOnWheels means they can use branded carts as pop-up stores on sidewalks, campuses, and at festivals.
On the creative side, mobile souvenir and handmade goods carts meet the demand for items with a personal story. Interest in crafts and maker culture has grown online, but in person, the real appeal is meeting the maker, like the person behind a ceramic mug, leather bracelet, or hand-printed tote. Rules for selling crafts and handmade items vary by location, but in places like the UK, the focus is on product safety, clear labeling, and proper insurance, not large scale regulations. This is where a small, flexible cart stands out. It can be set up in busy tourist areas during the day, moved to night markets in the evening, or placed inside a café or shop in colder months. For makers who prefer crafting over negotiating leases, a mobile cart makes starting out less stressful and less expensive. Plus, every part of the cart can be decorated or branded, turning it into a moving showcase for the maker’s style.
All five of these ideas coffee, smoothies, mobile bars, seasonal accessories, and handmade goods carts share the same basic formula: lower fixed costs and more flexibility mean more chances to experiment. A mobile coffee business can try a new neighborhood during the morning rush. A juice cart can follow the weather. A beer or wine cart can move between wedding venues and open-air concerts across a region. A seasonal accessories cart can go from a seaside promenade in August to a Christmas market in December. A souvenir cart can follow tourists during the day and nightlife crowds after dark. The key is the cart itself: it must be built to be pushed, towed, folded, cleaned, stored, and branded every day without letting the owner down. This is the important but often unseen role companies like BizzOnWheels play, providing the equipment that lets founders focus on what matters curating products, refining their pitch, and building relationships with returning customers.
For aspiring entrepreneurs with limited funds but plenty of drive, these mobile ideas offer something special: real earning potential, a modest investment, and built-in protection from the biggest expense in any budget rent. Instead of asking if you are ready to open a shop, the better question in 2026 is whether you are ready to roll one out. The sidewalk is no longer just a path between stores. With the right cart and determination, it becomes the store itself.
References
Coffee market overview – Grand View Research
https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/coffee-market
National Coffee Data Trends – Specialty Coffee Association / NCA
https://sca.coffee/sca-news/2024-national-coffee-data-trends-specialty-coffee-breakout-report-now-available
Coffee cart profit margins – BaristaLife
https://baristalife.co/blogs/blog/coffee-cart-profit-margin
Smoothies market size and growth – TechSci Research
https://www.techsciresearch.com/report/smoothies-market/16406.html
Smoothies market analysis – Grand View Research
https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/smoothies-market-report
Smoothie market forecast – Lucintel
https://www.lucintel.com/smoothie-market.aspx
Food truck / cart market outlook – GMI / food truck market
https://www.gminsights.com/industry-analysis/food-truck-market
Food truck global market report – Research and Markets
https://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/5930968/food-truck-global-market-report
Food truck market forecast – Mordor Intelligence
https://www.mordorintelligence.com/industry-reports/food-truck-market
Mobile Bartender Services Market – Growth Market Reports
https://growthmarketreports.com/report/mobile-bartender-services-market
Mobile bar business guidance – Mobile Bev Pros
https://wp.mobilebevpros.com/mobile-bar-business-what-you-need-to-know-in-2025/
Mobile bar trends – Rasta Rita
https://www.rastarita.com/blog/the-rise-of-mobile-bartending-trucks-trends-and-predictions/
Street vending laws overview (Los Angeles guidance) – Public Counsel
https://publiccounsel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Street-Vendor-Laws-Guidance.pdf
Selling Crafts Regulations (UK) – Protectivity
https://www.protectivity.com/knowledge-centre/laws-selling-crafts/
