Starting a business in the Philippines??

[Fitzy]

Hi all.

In some few years ahed, I will be interested in starting some kind of business in the Philippines, perhaps in Ozamiz?
I am technically minded, and have been thinking about everything from Internet cafes, to operating busses, to just plainly opening a large store.
Am looking for all you ex pats out there that can offer me any tips, or whichever comments you so wish??
Please make them constructive


Thanks alot.

[pennybarry]

Hi all.

Internet cafes, to operating busses, to just plainly opening a large store.

Thanks alot.

I'm not expat but have business background
Why not try other business rather than that. They all prone to holp up and thieves.

Maybe it depends in the place you will choose but IHMO, I would rather think other business.

[Fitzy]

I'm not expat but have business background
Why not try other business rather than that. They all prone to holp up and thieves.

Maybe it depends in the place you will choose but IHMO, I would rather think other business.

Well thank you my friend.

Perhaps I can think of something, and name it very close to a known brand, as people tend to be brand concious, Lol

Hold ups huh?????

Sounds a bit like north London

[pennybarry]

Well thank you my friend.

Hold ups huh?????

Sounds a bit like north London

Thanks Fitzy.
If you like IT, try call centre. I have 2 friends who started that business and grows quick.

Maybe you still have some idea.
I have only one idea at the moment.

[agnesdale]

I'm not expat but have business background
Why not try other business rather than that. They all prone to holp up and thieves.

Maybe it depends in the place you will choose but IHMO, I would rather think other business.

Its correct..theres a lot of pros and cons,but the best advice is be there always,be hands on.Dont trust anyone until you are on it for years..
Hotels,apartments and resorts are more relaxing options for those who wanna earn and enjoy..

[Fitzy]

Thanks Fitzy.
If you like IT, try call centre. I have 2 friends who started that business and grows quick.

Maybe you still have some idea.
I have only one idea at the moment.

Welcome mate.

Hmmmm

Would be interesting to see what the start up capital would be on such a venture?

[fred]

Any low capital business ideas here will have been worked to death and are sure to be competition bound! Internet cafe`s come to mind!
Im in one now and paying 15 Pesos an hour.
Don`t come here and throw yourself and your cash into any business without being here for at least 6 months ...in the thick of it!
Large capital start ups have a better chance as you have just eliminated 80% of potential local competitors..
I agree with the apartment suggestion but choose the location carefully..
For instance,its still possible to build a smart 4 unit apartment building with land for around 50 K Pounds which should realize around 60,000 PHP per month if you rent to foreign expats ..More for short term tourist customers. Lots of spin off opportunities and your income will rise with inflation too..(putting the rent up)
Thats about as constructive as I dare these days.

Cheers,

Fred.

[Fitzy]

Thank you everybody.
I could get that in a penion lump sum tax free in about 8 years from now.
Will look out for oncoming major developements in the areas, like infrastructure, roads, and examining the GDP.
Lumbia in Cagayan De Oro is such an example
Am pretty savvy, when it comes to this, but you guys helped me realize it!!

Thanks again.


Philip...

[cheesewiz]

Hi all.

In some few years ahed, I will be interested in starting some kind of business in the Philippines, perhaps in Ozamiz?
I am technically minded, and have been thinking about everything from Internet cafes, to operating busses, to just plainly opening a large store.
Am looking for all you ex pats out there that can offer me any tips, or whichever comments you so wish??
Please make them constructive


Thanks alot.

you need to live there first probably a year get to know the place you are going to live and most specially get to know the family of your wife...extended family and business is not a good idea

[somebody]

Others have more experience of Business like Fred.

But from reading over the years I have seen very few sucess stories. The same can be said of Phills many have had businesses which have hit bad times.

You really need to know the area and the people you may need to keep on the right side of.

The Wifes family has found renting Land has been the best earner over the years. Business have come and gone or changed hands but they keep getting the rent.

Problem is you as a Alien cant own a Business or land yourself..

[James Hubbard]

Hi all.

In some few years ahed, I will be interested in starting some kind of business in the Philippines, perhaps in Ozamiz?
I am technically minded, and have been thinking about everything from Internet cafes, to operating busses, to just plainly opening a large store.
Am looking for all you ex pats out there that can offer me any tips, or whichever comments you so wish??
Please make them constructive


Thanks alot.

Mate, this is usually what they tell people who want to set up a business in the Philippines ...

if you want to make a small fortune in the Philippines, bring a BIG one! soon enough it'll be a small one

[Fitzy]

Mate, this is usually what they tell people who want to set up a business in the Philippines ...

if you want to make a small fortune in the Philippines, bring a BIG one! soon enough it'll be a small one

Hmmm

Very philosophical outlook.
Somebody once asked Richard Branson on advice about how to become a Billionaire.
He replied, buy an Airline, and your Billions will soon become Millions


Will look very carefully at land and property, and I do mean carefully

[JimOttley]

Hi all.

In some few years ahed, I will be interested in starting some kind of business in the Philippines, perhaps in Ozamiz?
I am technically minded, and have been thinking about everything from Internet cafes, to operating busses, to just plainly opening a large store.
Am looking for all you ex pats out there that can offer me any tips, or whichever comments you so wish??
Please make them constructive


Thanks alot.

I agree with Fred, high capital business stands a chance, low capital business has been done to death and often needs constant capital input, not really a business.

I did the numbers on Internet Cafe business and realized that it was not viable unless you have large scale operation and lots of GOOD locations.

I know a girl who ran an Internet Cafe business and made enough to buy her own house cash, she now has a house but is also broke, lost the business through being ripped off by people she knew and this is a local girl.

Most of the small scale businesses are like that, labour intensive, require extremely good cash flow management open to collapse from any small event, open to theft and hold up as Penny says or the need to bribe officials all the time. And the margins are rarely high.

Running a bar, pub has some reasonable numbers if you have good location and you can do a reasonable mark-up on the drinks and the usual 100% mark-up on food. Cheapest I was ever able to work out for starting a pub/restaurant was about 6000 pounds and even then the trade would have had to be flowing in less than a month to make it self sustaining.

All of them need you to keep ultra tight control on the day to day operation and cash flow, a normal thing in business but even more so there.

Personally also being technical minded I would go for an online business with a global market that is essentially independent of geolocation and is therefore effectively invisible to the bad guys in the Phils, that way you can still keep a low profile which is pretty much essential for a westerner.

I know of one very successful IT based business over there that was started by a foreigner 10 years ago with very little capital. He had the advantage of being young, having a cast iron contract with a UK company for several years, making the most of his UK and European contacts and being lucky, always an essential in business

Good luck when you do it Fitzy but as everyone says be careful!

[Fitzy]

I agree with Fred, high capital business stands a chance, low capital business has been done to death and often needs constant capital input, not really a business.

I did the numbers on Internet Cafe business and realized that it was not viable unless you have large scale operation and lots of GOOD locations.

I know a girl who ran an Internet Cafe business and made enough to buy her own house cash, she now has a house but is also broke, lost the business through being ripped off by people she knew and this is a local girl.

Most of the small scale businesses are like that, labour intensive, require extremely good cash flow management open to collapse from any small event, open to theft and hold up as Penny says or the need to bribe officials all the time. And the margins are rarely high.

Running a bar, pub has some reasonable numbers if you have good location and you can do a reasonable mark-up on the drinks and the usual 100% mark-up on food. Cheapest I was ever able to work out for starting a pub/restaurant was about 6000 pounds and even then the trade would have had to be flowing in less than a month to make it self sustaining.

All of them need you to keep ultra tight control on the day to day operation and cash flow, a normal thing in business but even more so there.

Personally also being technical minded I would go for an online business with a global market that is essentially independent of geolocation and is therefore effectively invisible to the bad guys in the Phils, that way you can still keep a low profile which is pretty much essential for a westerner.

I know of one very successful IT based business over there that was started by a foreigner 10 years ago with very little capital. He had the advantage of being young, having a cast iron contract with a UK company for several years, making the most of his UK and European contacts and being lucky, always an essential in business

Good luck when you do it Fitzy but as everyone says be careful!

Thank you Jim for an exellent reply.
I guess I will stick with property there, and rental.
From what I hear, it can be a good bet, but I will research carefully.
To be honest, it will be for the benefit of my future Wife, and kids if we manage to have some, lol

With any such luck, my pension will be good enough, but I want to do something to keep my mind occupied.

I originally trained in maritime radiocommunications systems engineering.

Perhaps I can partly return to that?

What I would love to do, is have my own house built, where I can design the renewable energy system within it.

That stuff is most fascinating, and there is much on the internet to learn to self implement such technology.

I don't just hack cable TV

[JimOttley]

What I would love to do, is have my own house built, where I can design the renewable energy system within it.

That stuff is most fascinating, and there is much on the internet to learn to self implement such technology.

I don't just hack cable TV

Property and land if you wrap up the deal using (GOOD) local lawyers to make sure it is all assigned back to you will work, it's sufficiently anonymous to meet the low profile requirement so that you remain safe.

Only problem is this, where now the market is easy to get into if you have cash, chances are that Asia will prosper in the next 10 years while we decline, including our pension pots (unless they happen to be heavily invested in Asia )

Even in the 5 years I have been going there I have seen huge changes and my colleagues who went there earlier have seen even greater change. It's like Britain coming out of the war in the early 1950's and moving into the 80's and 90's in just 10 or 15 years.

It will be a more expensive country very soon (it already is) sadly it will also be a country with a much greater social divide than we had in the 60's 70's, the desperate poverty will still be there for huge numbers of families :(

What I would love to do, is have my own house built, where I can design the renewable energy system within it.

That stuff is most fascinating, and there is much on the internet to learn to self implement such technology.

Oh how I would love to design house with a modern energy system, I could do it too, I have that kind of mind

Very good idea sir!


Jim

[Fitzy]

Property and land if you wrap up the deal using (GOOD) local lawyers to make sure it is all assigned back to you will work, it's sufficiently anonymous to meet the low profile requirement so that you remain safe.

Only problem is this, where now the market is easy to get into if you have cash, chances are that Asia will prosper in the next 10 years while we decline, including our pension pots (unless they happen to be heavily invested in Asia )

Even in the 5 years I have been going there I have seen huge changes and my colleagues who went there earlier have seen even greater change. It's like Britain coming out of the war in the early 1950's and moving into the 80's and 90's in just 10 or 15 years.

It will be a more expensive country very soon (it already is) sadly it will also be a country with a much greater social divide than we had in the 60's 70's, the desperate poverty will still be there for huge numbers of families :(



Oh how I would love to design house with a modern energy system, I could do it too, I have that kind of mind

Very good idea sir!


Jim

Sadly Jim, there will always be social divide
Look at the UK, but then again, people who actually choose not to work, and sponge of the state deserve to be divided I guess.
I just wish they would stop blaiming others for their self induced inadequecies
This is how people become ferol, and I guess the Government can be partly blamed for that.
I my self grew up in social housing, and I should know!
Poor people on the other hand in the Philippines would love the opportunity to work, and some simply can't, because of the situation there, as is the same in many developing countries.
Perhaps one day things will change, but not in our lifetime sadly.
Going off on a different tangent here, lol
It would give me great joy to live there soon, and be with my loved ones, and if I did have a business, give some people the opportunity to help with my projects, how big or small.
On my visits there, I did indeed notice quite a social divide, but I guess that's life.
It has been a great honour to visit that Country to expand my horizons, and a great pleasure to meet many warm friendly people.
Ex GF's not included lol

Renewable energy??

I intend to do a great amount of research into this, and will keep you duely informed my friend.

Solar heated water, and wind powered generators, that float charge large banks of lead acid batteries is a good start. That way, when the batteries get charged, a switch could be flipped over to power things like lighting, TV Hi Fi, but not AC or refrigeration for obvious reasons.
I will start a new thread on this pretty soon.

All the best mate.

[LEAHnew]

Hi all.

In some few years ahed, I will be interested in starting some kind of business in the Philippines, perhaps in Ozamiz?
I am technically minded, and have been thinking about everything from Internet cafes, to operating busses, to just plainly opening a large store.
Am looking for all you ex pats out there that can offer me any tips, or whichever comments you so wish??
Please make them constructive

Thanks alot.

I'm not expat but have business background
........

same here

In my experience we do have Internet cafe in the Phil.(a family biz.) but it's just an add on service coz our shop been partitioned into 2 part.Our main service is photo studio and copy centre. I just convinced my dad to combined it with computer service when I got fed up working in Manila as IT staff, instead I handled our business, and since then our photoshop based in Digital photography.
In this kind of business it's very important to consider the location....were just lucky coz our shop located infront of the Municipal Hall and few miles away to some private schools in our town so it can easily access.
The most demanding service is our Photo Studio since I came from town no need for them to travel an hour going to the City Proper just for photo, and next to it is the photocopy (xerox&powder copy).
The most difficult part of this business is the maintenance but Thank God my Dad managed to handle it and got entrusted technicians and helpers.

hope it helps

Others have more experience of Business like Fred.

But from reading over the years I have seen very few sucess stories. The same can be said of Phills many have had businesses which have hit bad times.

You really need to know the area and the people you may need to keep on the right side of.

The Wifes family has found renting Land has been the best earner over the years. Business have come and gone or changed hands but they keep getting the rent.

Problem is you as a Alien cant own a Business or land yourself..

I agree