Need advice from a business owner who has made it work

[Portaz 67]

Hi guys and girls,

My wife and I are leaving our home in australia after selling our successful business here to pay off our debts. I always love being in Cebu and have noticed a more western change each time I have gone there. Anyway I have an idea for a business in either it park, one of the sm's or ayala , I've read all the doom and gloom but wondering if someone could contact me on a positive side. I've done my research and have a concept that is new to cebu, the business is food orientated and I have worked out I need an average of 140 customers a day with a 250 peso spend over a ten hour period to get the projected profits that I would like. Clearly there are busier and quieter days but from my research myself and my wife think it's quite achievable in the right location. I am willing to risk 200k aud on house (with mortgage) car and business for a few years and if it doesn't work at least I tried. I'm aware all these things will be in my wife's name which I am very comfortable with, any constructive comments are much appreciated.

Scott

[Paul 55,114]

Here is my best advice, concerning opening a business in the Philippines. 

If you want to make a small fortune, arrive with a large one. 

 

Brother, it is HARD to make a living in a business in the Philippines. 

[SomeRandomGuy 6,596]

here here.  With so many guys out there to take what is yours and so many rich filipino's that will love your idea and steal the concept and charge half of what u have.... I wish u good luck. I really do.

 

u are almost better off putting that 200 grand into an interest bearing account and living off that interest... that will give u the best profit.

 

In saying all that the reason people are all doom and gloom talk about business here in the philippines is u are competing against 100 million locals that in my view like us when we spend money hate us when we start a business.

 

Out of all the people I have met that do business here I would say 1 in 20 make it work

 

200 grand is a hell of a lot of cheddar.  If I was u I would buy a few houses and live of the rent... atleast if shit goes bad u can always sell them.

 

Good luck to u

[jtmwatchbiz 31,414]

hiya scott,

 

welcome to the forum! aside from starting the business here, if you are planning on coming to cebu anyways then perhaps once you arrive you can scout around the city and talk in person to foreigners who are in the same type of biz as you are interested in and get a better feel for the market and any problems you may face in the day to day running. that may be the best research you and your wife can do before taking the plunge. i'm involved in business in cebu city but unfortunately it's not at all similar to what you want to do. good luck in your plans and keep posting to build up your post count and then you can also private message members in business to do some brainstorming.  

 

fred

 

guadalupe heights

 

[Portaz 67]

Thanks guys, doesn't sound very positive :-( I actually wouldn't really be involved only in the background it's a shame because employing ppl and at least improving their standard of living was one of my aims, it's funny how things work I mean mc Donald's and KFC are foreign owned and very successful in their own right, maybe I should stay here I don't know but I really don't like the way australia is heading and my gut tells me there is opportunity in cebu I guess my gut may be wrong again. Recently I have had brain surgury and have been through hell with my current business and just surviving is a good thing. My plan was my wife to run business with staff as she is from Cebu with the usual huge amount of degrees in many different subjects including business and accounting but maybe that's not enough.

[mactanfamily 717]

I don't know anyone who has made food work in Cebu. Even the expat owned and successful Gustavian went bankrupt.  I would never attempt it in Cebu, ever. I don't see how you could NOT just invest the 200G's in Oz and live off it in Cebu. 

[panther 845]

with that amount of money I would build a nice pension house somewhere much safer if you ask me.I have a house in the u.k that I could sell and invest here but even my g .f said no and that I would lose it all now thats coming from a fillipina so go figure

[senseless 966]

One word for you.. Bitcoin..

 

It's in a market correction now and can be bought up cheap.

Edited December 17, 2013 by senseless

[spooks 1,729]

A well balanced portfolio in OZ would be the best option unless you really want the hassle of dealing with each ad every government agency that will try to ensure that you pay overheads that your pinoy competitors will not be paying, yes it will happen they will try to follow your unique concept even if they cannot. they just make sure the level playing filed is level their side and a mountain range your side.

 

Yes I was in Food and beverage business here and an employer we did very well I will not be doing it again.  root canal surgery without pain killers first on each and every tooth!!

Edited December 17, 2013 by spooks

[Chris24 1,051]

If you're interested in starting a food-oriented business, maybe a good exercise in prior diligence would be to get a job for 6-12 months as a manager of as similar a business as you can find, work for cheap if need be, and use the time to refine and localize your business plan as you gain real experience on the ground in the actual environment in which you are contemplating risking a substantial sum of your own hard-earned savings, all while building a network of local contacts.

 

You're bound to learn some things that will help reduce your odds of joining the 19 out of 20 (or whatever the stat is, for sure it's the vast majority) who fail.   Worst case, you delay your start by 6-12 months.  More likely you'll learn about some important mis-steps to avoid or even learn things that will cause you to abort your plan (and associated losses) entirely.

[SomeRandomGuy 6,596]

yeah i pulled that 1 in 20 out of my ass it is probably a lot higher in the loss category....  no idea where u would get those statistics.

[roadhaze 170]

I lost. Won't do it again. Good luck with your adventure.

[spritsail 604]

Buy a small beach resort,  with space for expansion. Think of it as your living space, afterall what would 200k  aud buy you in Oz when you could buy 1 hectacre (10,000) sq mt in the Philippines. Just make sure you and your wife are into it. I have seen so many ozzie/filippino couples split coz the husband likes the Philippines and the wife wants to stay on the Gold Coast.

[shadow 18,483]

I guess I could say we made it work. I came here in 2003 with US $6000 in my pocket, and no outside income or savings. I'm still here.

 

One of our first ventures was in the food business. THE best day of that business was the day we walked away from it without a pot left to piss in (literally), which now I can safely say was a blessing in disguise.

 

We did a number of things for a number of years, and eventually found a couple of niches that earn us a modest income (About the same amount as the interest of your $200,000 would bring if properly invested). We consider that a successful business here. We are not getting rich, but it is working.

 

In the past I have started and operated a number of businesses in the US with various levels of success. This is a whole different ball game, where the goal posts are often moved out of the stadium at a moments notice, usually when you think you are at the 2 yard line.

 

Some of the advice given you by other members is very good. There are better ways to throw away 200 grand where you may have something to show for it and/or MIGHT actually get a return from it in the end. The food biz here is a very hard nut to crack, and when you figure that out, there will not likely be anything left at all but empty nutshells.

 

That's all I have to say, in a nutshell.

[Davaoeno 37,515]

The OP says that he has done his research .  So had I - or so I thought. Little did I know that being overeducated, [ including an MBA],  with lots and lots of experience running my own businesses did little to prepare me for the reality of doing business in the Philippines !! 

 

But I do wish him luck - he will certainly need it !!!

Edited December 17, 2013 by Davaoeno