There’s been a huge increase in home delivery since the beginning of the pandemic— orders that usually arrive by car or truck.
But in Lansing, you might get your goods via bicycle.
A one-man business in town is zipping along the city’s streets on his red electric bike, and if it fits on his two-wheels, he’ll deliver it to you.
On average, Jeremy Hurt estimates he bikes up to 50 miles or more every week for deliveries, even in the middle of winter.
"It is a seven day operation. So from basically eight in the morning until 10 at night, I am on call," he said.
Hurt arrives at Sultan’s Express, a Mediterranean restaurant in downtown Lansing.
It’s cloudy and it happens to be the warmest day of the week: a brisk 30 degrees.
He’s dressed from head to toe in winter gear.
“And I have, let's see, some compression pants on. I have long johns on over that, and then two pairs of socks," he said.
It’s about 11:30 a.m., just before the lunch rush, and the employees are boxing up the meals Hurt is set to deliver down the street.
Typically, customers call in orders to the restaurant, or directly to Hurt, through his social media pages.
If the request is within the Lansing-area radius Hurt covers, he’ll deliver it.
When asked if this is the lifestyle he envisioned for himself, Hurt said not initially.
"As I learned things about the delivery industry and some of the problems that occur in there, it became more of a passion of mine than just an actual way to make money," he said.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Hurt lost his job as a bartender. So, he set out on a mission to work for himself using his own bicycle, a Schwinn, since he doesn’t own a car.
"And it was red and that's the reason it's called Red Bike Delivery," Hurt said.
In December 2020, he started running orders for a local bakery and things quickly snowballed from there.
“It was probably a few months in when I realized that, like, I was actually doing something, building like a community," he said.
Because of that, Hurt realized he needed more power than a regular bike could provide. So, he upgraded to a mountain bike and attached a motor to it.
"It's like a tank," he said. "I have so much stuff on there, it’s pretty heavy, at least 60 pounds between the motor and the battery and all the accessories on there.”
The bike, still bright red, is much more powerful than his old Schwinn, but he said there are some downsides.
“The battery life on these isn’t as robust as I thought it would be, they tend to die or run out, they need to be recharged a lot quicker. So it slows things down," he said.
And the job comes with safety risks, Hurt says Lansing is not one of the most bike-friendly cities, especially during colder months.
"It can be rough, there's a few streets with bike lanes here in Lansing, but they don't really get plowed," he said.
Even with these concerns to worry about, Hurt said the business doesn’t feel like work.
"It doesn't feel like a job," he said. "Like, I've never said, 'I gotta go to work.' Like, I just, I get up and I ride my bike around."
Now two years into his operation, he has partnerships with five Lansing-area restaurants, including Abundance Café, a farm-to-table food business.
Erin Meadows is the owner.
As a one-woman operation, she understands how hard it can be to run a small business.
"When you're in it, when you see for yourself, you realize that it is a very difficult battle," Meadows said.
"It doesn't feel like a job. Like, I've never said, 'I gotta go to work.' Like, I just, I get up and I ride my bike around."Jeremy Hurt, owner of Red Bike Delivery Service
Looking forward, Hurt wants to see his business expand this year with three to five employees to East Lansing and then statewide in the next five years.
"I mean there's so many plans for expansion," he said. "And I'd love to be in you know, these little, like, cities like Lansing. I think would be my main focus to start, like, you know, Ann Arbor or Grand Rapids."
Meadows is also excited to see the places he'll take his red bike.
"I can't wait till he grows more and has more bikes on the street. And it's just like a common thing to see a Red Bike Delivery person out," she said.
In the meantime, if it fits on a bike, from shawarma to shirts, there’s a good chance Hurt will deliver it.