Peak Oil/Post Peak Business Opportunities?

I have been learning saddlery and leatherwork for the last 2 years. For 2 reasons, 1. I ride horses and I like doing it, and 2. It's a post peak oil  job. My advice is to find something that makes you happy that you can do even if the world doesn't end.

The other areas I have thought of:

Toolshop. Take scrap metal and smelt it into new tools. It's sort of a modern take on a blacksmith. You see in the next few years spare parts for modern industrial machinery will be in more demand as people choose to repair rather than replace. Set your self up with a lathe, drills, presses, a smelter and some way of powering all these things that are off grid. As things decline you will move into a traditional blacksmith role. Be able to fabricate a part as needed.

Bootmaker. People need shoes.

Junk Collector. It doesn't sound nice but you can often pick up some very interesting things beside the road. I picked up a 100 year old oak table that I restored.

I would be wary of food production, my thoughts are that it isn't going to be a long term job as people will soon enough start to grow their own, and historically most farmers don't profit as much as the middle man.

Middle Man. People will still need to move things from one place to another. If you are a people person, establish relationships with farmers, and junk collectors.

I would agree that the future is very uncertain but I am not sure of the timeline. Don't assume you need to do this too quickly.

As oil gets more expensive, people will still need to get around. Having something as simple as a van, and arranging to regularly commute people to different places in a city/town (for profit) is a worthwhile endeavor now, and will become more so as people become less able to regularly afford their own gasoline/cars.

As crime goes up, having your own small-scale security company to post men (hireable for small wages) on city blocks/town corners (for a charge from locals) would be worthwhile. This would be more in the future market, though.

http://www.makeyourownpellets.com/

seems like a pretty low cost of entry to being making your own pellets....

Sounds like a great local business.. something where the cost of shipping (in future post peak oil) is exhorbitant... and hence new opportunities for locally distributed production emerge.  

I think a hugely underrated need will be people who know basic health care techniques.  

I am a midwife, and this will be a large area of need one day as well.  Most OB/GYNs in this country have never (and I mean never) seen a normal birth.  Meaning a birth that has no common interferences to "facilitate" birth.

Even knowledge of medicinal plants and herbs will be very useful.