> had to wait months to get the roof fixed.
In economic theory, that's an obvious business opportunity.
In the real world.., might you know what barriers a small roofing repair business would face in rural Japan?
The barriers are that none of your customers have any money, and nobody wants to do the work for the prices the customers can afford.
That's what life in an economically declining/dying area is like.
It's hard work. It's dangerous. Many areas get heavy snowfall in the winter which interferes with work. Summers are brutally hot. Many customers in rural areas are living on fixed income, so you are limited in how much you can charge. Commutes to job sites can be long.
My roof was damaged in heavy snowfall this winter and I needed to wait 3 months to get it repaired. And I'm not even really in a rural area. The guy who did the repairs looked to be in his 60s - I don't think many young people are looking to get into this business.
I think most contractors would do better in more densely populated areas where lots of new construction is happening.