Wow, it's been a long time since I've been here on TalkGraphics. Time to reintroduce myself, get back into the community, and seek your collective advice/wisdom.

First the reintroduction and a bit of history:
I'm a Xara software user from "back in the day", and I used to be relatively active here on the forum a few years back. Going back further, I studied/majored in Graphic Design in college (a LONG time ago) but this was in the days of stat cameras, dedicated typesetting machines, hotwax paste ups, etc. I spent a few years in the industry, working in and managing various small graphics/print shops and such. I also did quite a bit of freelance work in logo design, promotional materials (posters/ads/brochures/shirts/etc.), signage, etc. But then I left the profession as my main source of income. Years later, in my capacity as GM for a couple of small business, I used my knowledge and background occasionally to produce all the graphics for these businesses (again - logos, promotionals, advertising, etc.). I also managed to teach myself basic web design and I produced a few websites as well. I continued to do freelance work from time to time as well. Along the way, I picked up Xara software and used it as my main tool. I also use CorelDraw at times, and dabble just a bit with Adobe products, but I'm only really comfortable/proficient with Xara.

But really, I've been essentially out of touch with the industry as a whole for quite some time. I'm not even sure what version of Xara I have, but it's VERY old.

So, here's the thing:
I'm at a point in my life where I need to make a change with how I earn my living. Without going into the specifics, after a lot of soul searching and pondering, it occurs to me that going back to my roots might make a lot of sense. I've got this idea where I'd like to re-enter the profession and set up shop. The concept is that I'd like to "hang up my shingle" as a one-man-shop graphic designer, and focus on developing graphics packages for small businesses, organizations, events/festivals, and the like. My vision is that I'd specialize in developing the whole package, or "overall look", for them - logo design, overall style, font choices, company colors, etc. Once that is established, I would then continue to produce whatever is needed in pre-print artwork for whatever entity is producing a particular end product - be it poster, or webpage, or t-shirt, or magazine advertisement, or brochure, etc. I of course would take on whatever individual small work I could as well. The main thing is that my focus would be on the design rather than the end product - I would leave it to others to actually print/produce the shirt/poster/fridge magnet/whatever.

And so, the main question I pose to you all is: Is this realistic? Do I have a chance?

All the small details are up for discussion - things like: what is the market REALLY like?, what are the expectations of customers these days?, where are the niches that are just begging to be filled?, what do I need to do to promote myself?, are my skills up to the task?, what do I really need to know and have to be successful, and so on.

I'm certainly open to going back to school to get myself up to speed. And I certainly expect to have to invest in up-to-date software and perhaps new hardware as well.

As I see it, my three main areas of weakness are, 1)not knowing the realities of today's market, 2)not being up to speed on the latest tools/software, and 3)needing more knowledge on the marketing and business side of things.
On the strengths side, I've got 1)I've got a good eye and design sense, this is not something I need to learn from scratch, 2)I've got a history and a portfolio in the field (albeit dated), I've "done this before", 3)I have been a sole proprieter of a business before, and I think I have a realistic set of expections on that front, and 4)I'm familiar with the tools of the trade enough, that I believe that learning how to use the newer models will come relatively quick.

So there you have it. Apologies for the very long winded post, but there it is.
I HUGELY appreciate any and all advice or guidance you might be willing to give. When I was active here on the forum, I found this an amazing place to learn things, and I have enormous respect for the members here. I hope to be able to "give some of it back" in time. I'm open to everything from "Forget it, this is a hopeless endeavour in today's market" to "Go for it; the market is ripe and with your skills you are assured of prospering" and everything in between. What I'm looking for is an honest assessment of how likely this idea/path is to succeed or fail.

Thanks to you all ahead of time,
dz