Kyle J. Norris walked in the front door of Flock & Vine, a specialty shop in South Portland, and adjusted his eyes. To his right were about two dozen bikes in various stages of repair. Bike jerseys hung from the ceiling. Tools on work benches awaited the next project.

In front of Norris sat a table of craft beer. Behind that was a refrigerator with cold beer and chilled wine. Norris scanned the room slowly, taking it all in. Bike repair. Beer. Wine.

“OK, this place is interesting,” he announced to no one in particular.

Flock & Vine owners Jen and Kevin Flock get that a lot. They are purveyors of fine alcoholic beverages who also offer bike repairs.

Their shop is among many combination businesses in Maine – the often quirky and sometimes symbiotic pairing of disparate businesses that operate under one roof. Although there are no state or federal statistics on how many combination businesses operate in Maine, they seem to be an ingrained component of Maine’s economy.

“Operating two businesses under one roof is fairly common,” said Jeffrey Lind, a vice president of Clark Insurance who has been in the business for 22 years and says about 10 percent of clients operate dual businesses. “After all, it’s Maine – we have a lot of cottage industries.”

Likewise Marc Poulin, a CPA in Portland, estimates about 5 percent of his clients are dual-business owners and he counts himself among them. He operates both a financial services firm and a property holdings company.

They agree things may not always be straightforward – accounting and tax forms can get complicated, as can determining appropriate insurance coverage and workers comp rates – but they can all be worked out. And the quirky dimension the dual-businesses bring to Maine’s economy often brings a smile to a customer’s face and an extra kick to the state’s economic base.

“I can always tell if they’re into it or not,” said Jen Flock of her customers’ reactions as they enter her place. “If they don’t like it, they’ll say something like, ‘This is unique.’ If they’re into it, they’ll say, ‘This is interesting.’

“I just figure everybody’s gotta fly their freak flag, and this is ours.”

Flock & Vine opened over two years ago in Cape Elizabeth but moved to South Portland this spring in an effort to get more foot traffic.

The shop is littered with personality. A map of the state of Texas, where Jen was born, hangs on a wall with examples of different types of barbed wire mounted on top of the map. There are books about the Tour de France intermixed with tomes about wine.

It may seem like an odd pairing, but the Flocks say Flock & Vine simply reflects what they like. Kevin has been racing bikes since his early teens and Jen came along for the ride when they started dating.

Jen worked in the restaurant industry for almost 20 years and the couple joked about opening a wine and bike shop. Then the jokes stopped being jokes. The Flocks didn’t have to explain their plan to a bank – they started Flock & Vine with their savings – which meant they were free to follow their whims.

“To our families or anybody that knows us, it just makes sense,” Flock said. “This is who we are.”

THE ART OF THE SALE

Sam Hill knows something about letting his business reflect his personality. His On the Moon Tattoos & Comics in Hallowell offers an eclectic mix of body art and X-Men action figures. He also offers custom artwork in addition to doing a little freelance graphics work on the side.

“It’s just all art to me,” he said. “It’s more of an art studio to me than anything else.”

Hill relishes being different. His nickname is “Moonman Sam” because he’s “kinda out there,” he says.

Fortunately, Hill says, he didn’t have to explain his diverse art studio to a banker. Like the owners of Flock & Vine, Hill self-financed his studio, so he never had any awkward meetings with a commercial loan officer.

There were, however, some awkward discussions with the state. The state Department of Health and Human Services creates rules for tattoo shops, including a provision that bars anyone under the age of 18 from getting a tattoo.

Hill solved any potential problems by making the front half of his store the comics-and-art section. There are original drawings behind the register and hundreds of plastic figurines of famous comic book characters sit on shelves (“We call ourselves ‘plastic geeks’ because of all the statues,” Hill said.).

The back of the store is off-limits to kids. The hardwood floor of the comics-and-art section ends at the tattoo parlor.

The shelves in front are jammed with comic book paraphernalia. Hill says the variety of objects, art and comic books brings 90 percent of people who enter his store – which is moving to a bigger location next door Aug. 1 – back for another visit.

“That’s kind of my secret weapon,” Hill said. “It’s designed to make you aware of how different it really is. … My whole thing is I definitely want people to enjoy themselves.”

A LITTLE OF EVERYTHING

Alice Wilson wants to sell you something.

The owner of Portland’s Emery Window Shade Co. is going to find something you want. In the summer, she sells vegetables from her Gorham garden in front of the shop near Hadlock Field.

Twelve years ago, she and her husband, David Wilson, opened Aunt Dee’s, a sandwich and ice cream shop that operated inside the same space as the window shade company. Wilson hasn’t opened Aunt Dee’s yet this year as she is working through an argument with the city over a licensing payment.

No matter. She’s still delivering tomatoes to three restaurants in Gorham and her husband can tackle an upholstery project for you, if you should wander into their shop.

Though she’s 76 years old, Wilson said she isn’t dropping any of her money-makers.

“I couldn’t do it,” Wilson said. “I just need to work. I like to stay busy.”

That might explain why Wilson is considering an idea her daughter pitched. The little window shade shop is packed to the rafters with knick-knacks. Why not turn it into a little gift store?

Wilson smiles as she explains her daughter’s idea. Even if people aren’t buying all the stuff in her business, it certainly makes an impression.

“It’s been a hit,” Wilson said. “People come in here and say, ‘I can’t believe all this.’ ”

CLASSIC SIDE BUSINESS

There are at least two go-to seasonal businesses Maine entrepreneurs can turn to for some extra summer cash: ice cream shops and lobsters.

Around the Fourth of July, optician Dean Coniaris and his wife open their little lobster pound in Cape Ellis. It’s open from 4 to 6 p.m. daily until Labor Day, then on weekends through November.

But for his day job, Coniaris works as a technician with the Eyecare Medical Group in Portland. He works full time in the winter, and works a little less in the summer to allow for time on the lobster boat – the Fish’N Optician – that he runs with his wife, Ellen.

He’s been on TV a few times because of the seemingly odd combination. Coniaris addresses it with a shrug. This is just what he likes doing.

“(Fishing) gives you freedom,” Coniaris said. “And you can’t beat the views.”

Being outdoors is no small part of the draw for Coniaris and his wife. They are avid skiers and Coniaris worked for a spell as an instructor at Mount Abrams.

Working is simply an extension of who he is, Coniaris said. And the entrepreneurial bug extends to Ellen.

“She does picture framing and she does photography, too,” Coniaris said. “So we’re all mixed up.”

Just like a number of other Maine businesses.