Your model is route-based: you define the days. Two or three pickup days a week is plenty for a solo route, paired with next-day returns. Build from geography outward: list the neighborhoods, apartment complexes, and zip fragments within your ten-minute circle, and give each cluster a day.
| Zone (name) | Pickup day | Return day | Neighborhoods / complexes in it | Current customers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loop / day | Stop order | Customer | Porch protocol: bag location | Gate / door code | Text preference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||||
| 2 | |||||
| 3 | |||||
| 4 | |||||
| 5 | |||||
| 6 |
Every customer gives three things at signup: where the bag will be (porch, garage, side door, front-desk closet), a door or gate code if needed, and a phone preference for the night-of text. Pickup text goes out on schedule: "Loop starts around 6, you're stop three." Photograph each bag at pickup, one frame per bag, timestamped. Missed bag protocol: one text, one call, one note, move on.
| Loop shape | Stops | Time | Miles between stops | Driving cost per stop |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dense loop | 6 | 90 minutes | 2–3 | about $5 |
| Loose loop | 3 | 2 hours | about 8 | about $15 |
Costs computed at the IRS business rate of 76¢/mile for July 1–Dec 31, 2026 (72.5¢ through June). Same orders, wildly different mileage cost: density is what delivers the profit your price sheet promises.
A new stop joins only if it sits on or near an existing loop, or comes with an order size that pays for its own drive.
Prospect address:
☐ On or near an existing loop. Assign to that day's loop.
☐ Close but no: assign the nearest day or a biweekly slot.
☐ Far or one-off: decline, or price with the drive included in the quote.
Discipline: the first customer five miles outside every loop will beg, the second will follow, and by month three you are driving a scatter plot. Batch by building: one apartment lobby holding five customers is worth more than a county-wide ad.