Taking Thai Things Home To Sell In Uk

[TenDreams]

I am thinking that my paltry savings from teaching here for 4 months are not going to last long on a 4 week trip back home, so I'm looking to make a few beer tokens by taking back some bits and pieces and selling them.

Anyone done this before and have any good ideas? Was thinking along the line of watches but not sure if it will be worth while...

[DeathbyDurian]

If you are not afraid of international piracy laws, I'm sure selling Software/DVDs/Videogame disc copies would get you the most money....

Ask your mates if they "need anything" from Thailand and see what they say.

[leisurely]

I am a bit curious as to how you are going to do it. Exchange and Mart or boot sale?

[pumpuiman]

Thai gold.

My wife's friends take home an assortment of gold jewelry to be sold to Thais in the U.S.

They will gladly pay a markup for the convenience.

Sales are quick, just a day or two and your done.

You wont get rich, but everybody is happy.

[bendix]

It's interesting, isnt it? On this thread we openly discuss breaking laws to benefit ourselves (in order to get a few extra beers), yet on other threads we think it's reprehensible that poor disoriented and tired farang should have the (perfectly legal) choice of limo taxis thrust on them, as if it's the biggest scam in history.

Is it because if us big white fellas do it, it's ok, but if those pesky little brown fellas with their funny talking do it, it's not?

Very interesting.

Edited February 19, 2007 by bendix

[TenDreams]

I am a bit curious as to how you are going to do it. Exchange and Mart or boot sale?

Just through friends/acquaintances/word of mouth I guess. Not necessarily anything iffy, just nick-naks, etc. Not looking to make a fortune or anything!

[DirkGently]

some people may suggest posting home a large number of smokes to a Bob Smith at your address, but not me.

I once heard that the better fake designer bags and things sell well amongst teenage girls.....so I heard.

A friend of a friend told me that people will pay well for snake/croc/ray skin belts/wallets key fobs etc. very well indeed.

im sure it can be done, after all if the U.K is full of drugs, guns and bush meat brought in by shifty foreigners then i know......er...guess it can be done.

the idea of fake pantip stuff is pointless. it can all be downloaded by the type of people who would buy a fake. the penality for fake microsoft is much more severe than a few smokes for your mates or a belt for your dad.

[lingyai]

It's interesting, isnt it? On this thread we openly discuss breaking laws to benefit ourselves (in order to get a few extra beers), yet on other threads we think it's reprehensible that poor disoriented and tired farang should have the (perfectly legal) choice of limo taxis thrust on them, as if it's the biggest scam in history.

Is it because if us big white fellas do it, it's ok, but if those pesky little brown fellas with their funny talking do it, it's not?

Very interesting.

You are comparing Apples to Lynchees.

[tijnebijn]

It's interesting, isnt it? On this thread we openly discuss breaking laws to benefit ourselves (in order to get a few extra beers), yet on other threads we think it's reprehensible that poor disoriented and tired farang should have the (perfectly legal) choice of limo taxis thrust on them, as if it's the biggest scam in history.

Is it because if us big white fellas do it, it's ok, but if those pesky little brown fellas with their funny talking do it, it's not?

Very interesting.

You are comparing Apples to Lynchees.

I think he is overreacting as well.He says it very clear,not that he wants to make a fortune or anything......

I found in the past pretty well selling,but not overbuy,thai buddha amulets with neckless.They all very appreciate this souvenir which brings them goodluck and protection as well.

And much cheaper then to buy gold.....

[geronimo]

I am thinking that my paltry savings from teaching here for 4 months are not going to last long on a 4 week trip back home, so I'm looking to make a few beer tokens by taking back some bits and pieces and selling them.

Anyone done this before and have any good ideas? Was thinking along the line of watches but not sure if it will be worth while...

Premier league soccer shirts are always a good bet, make sure you get good quality ones and you will have no trouble unloading them.

[Doza]

It's interesting, isnt it? On this thread we openly discuss breaking laws to benefit ourselves (in order to get a few extra beers), yet on other threads we think it's reprehensible that poor disoriented and tired farang should have the (perfectly legal) choice of limo taxis thrust on them, as if it's the biggest scam in history.

Is it because if us big white fellas do it, it's ok, but if those pesky little brown fellas with their funny talking do it, it's not?

Very interesting.

Don't think anyone really cares about whether the limo taxi thing is legal or not - people complain because its feakin annoying and gives a bad first impression of Thailand.

[steveromagnino]

Is it because if us big white fellas do it, it's ok, but if those pesky little brown fellas with their funny talking do it, it's not?

For goodness sake, I am using as much whitening cream as I can, please stop making comments about my skin colour!

It is clear that there are plenty of people willing to break international IP law and Thai law for a quick buck. A legit business like the gold idea is only going to work with contacts; Pompuiman's wife has them, maybe our entreprenuerial OP does not.

And quick bucks seem to favour the most illegal enterprises so go for cigarettes, copy DVDs, copy software, copy soccer shirts. I am urging you not to do it, but if you were, you would find highest potential in specialist programs like Solidworks or studio software or perhaps SPSS type software. Yet again, I urge you not to do it.

Of course, if you wanted to create a proper business that didn't encourage IP piracy, you could create a genuine business doing Thai fashion, tiling, jib board, etc etc - all probably a bit too much like proper work IMHO :-) Additionally, there tends to be economies of scale benefits in legit businesses whereas the illegals start to encounter major problems as they grow.

Alternatively, you could photocopy all the exchange rates from the last few months, and sell them to Topfield.

Edited February 19, 2007 by steveromagnino

[DeathbyDurian]

the idea of fake pantip stuff is pointless. it can all be downloaded by the type of people who would buy a fake.

Not true! I know many experienced downloaders who would be quite willing to pay more than 100B for a movie with all the extra features and scenes included, rather than download 4gigs and burn their own (with no slipjacket or disc art)

the penality for fake microsoft is much more severe than a few smokes for your mates or a belt for your dad.

This part is actually quite true and I urge against selling to anyone you don't know really well. (I.E. you would be a fool to sell them on the street)

[bendix]

On the contrary, i urge you to keep breaking IP laws. It keeps my company in much more than beer money, and it keeps me living in the manner to which I have become comfortably accustomed.

Have you noticed the lack of bootleg DVDs on Sukhumvit Road this weekend? All our doing :-) but don't worry because we'll let them back in a few days, and so the merry cycle recommences.

Money for jam!

[miniwai]

If you want to make a few quid while on your trip back home you could always look into taking a Playstation 3 (even a couple) with you sure the initial outlay is fairly large but you will defiantly make a killing back in UK they are not available until March (if then) you could easily make a few hundred quid. And not as dodgy as other things that have been suggested (MBK PS3's around 300 quid when they do go on sale in UK starting price 400!)

[steveromagnino]

Money for jam!

Funny you should say that.

My parents ran a marmalade factory. They built their vast fortune with one simple concept:

'there is money in Jam'

Several of my clients also like to clamp down on the copy trade every once in a while; gives them something to do I suppose; interestingly in one case I was reading, Louis Vuitton (not a client sadly) actually launched their first canvas luggage lines over 100 years ago, and within 2 years, were getting problems with counterfeit back then. He came up with the monogram as an attempt to prevent counterfeiters.

Ah well. My parents never had such an issue. They just made jam.

Red Bull is legal and is also an easy way to make $$$. Heavy though.

[buriramboy]

my legal suggestion would be babies/kids clothes and shoes (especially ones with the flashing lights etc.), they cost next to nothing in supermarkets here, and a fortune back in the UK.

BB

[qwertz]

I am thinking that my paltry savings from teaching here for 4 months are not going to last long on a 4 week trip back home, so I'm looking to make a few beer tokens by taking back some bits and pieces and selling them.

Anyone done this before and have any good ideas? Was thinking along the line of watches but not sure if it will be worth while...

My daughter is a customs officer at Manchester Airport so she always wires me about the flavour of the month. Definitely no-no are watches, Nike stuff and football shirts. Thai watches are unreliable anyway, especially the automatics, and you could get complaints from buyers. If your friends are into music, CDs are always saleable but open them up, dispose of the printed packing and pack them loose in a CD pouch. You can always say then that they're for personal use. You should play them anyway before you buy because they're not always of good quality and you don't want to sell your friends junk. Good silk ties sell well here in Germany too and they're legal.

The official line here is: it is not illegal to buy pirate copies but highly illegal to sell them. Avoid selling on Ebay; football clubs, sportswear firms and watchmakers have legal scouts scanning the net and you don't want to know what it costs if they detect you.

The British customs, if they're feeling keen, can even demand duty on real branded goods if you bought them considerably under British price. They make their own rules, so take no unnecessary risks, it could cost you dear.

P.S. There is the honest way too. I have a cousin in Manchester who was never the brightest star in the galaxy. He ran a small shop for years selling basketware and barely made a living. On holiday in LOS he was struck by the beauty and quality of Thai ceramics and lacquer ware and started importing to England (organised by his wife who is bright enough for the two of them). He's now a millionaire.

Edited February 19, 2007 by qwertz

[The Dan Sai Kid]

Thai gold.

My wife's friends take home an assortment of gold jewelry to be sold to Thais in the U.S.

They will gladly pay a markup for the convenience.

Sales are quick, just a day or two and your done.

You wont get rich, but everybody is happy.

PPM, isn't it highly illegal to buy gold in one country and sell it in another?

[tijnebijn]

mant interesting suggestions,maybe one of these ideas will make me a millionairt too!!!!

Or all of u expats in all different countrys....hmmmm

[bkkandrew]

On the contrary, i urge you to keep breaking IP laws. It keeps my company in much more than beer money, and it keeps me living in the manner to which I have become comfortably accustomed.

Have you noticed the lack of bootleg DVDs on Sukhumvit Road this weekend? All our doing :-) but don't worry because we'll let them back in a few days, and so the merry cycle recommences.

Money for jam!

So you are in charge of prevention of copyright infringement in LoS???

Your management meetings probably contain a few of the old chestnuts, such as "should do better", "room for improvement" and, my personal favorite, "our performance indicators are down"!!!

[soundman]

You want to take back something Thai?

How about an elephant. Plenty here to go around. I'm sure it will sell. Easy money!!!! Sure you're friends will buy it. Who doesn't want to own an elephant? If you can't move it there is always E-Bay (or a fork lift). Anyone seen an elephant on E-Bay? Just curious.

Good luck.

Soundman.

[PhilHarries]

On the contrary, i urge you to keep breaking IP laws. It keeps my company in much more than beer money, and it keeps me living in the manner to which I have become comfortably accustomed.

Have you noticed the lack of bootleg DVDs on Sukhumvit Road this weekend? All our doing :-) but don't worry because we'll let them back in a few days, and so the merry cycle recommences.

Money for jam!

So you are in charge of prevention of copyright infringement in LoS???

Your management meetings probably contain a few of the old chestnuts, such as "should do better", "room for improvement" and, my personal favorite, "our performance indicators are down"!!!

I bet they empower the employees to get their ducks in a row before they hit the ground runing in a win-win situation on a level playing field whilst thinking outside the box.

But what a fantastic job! Get paid a comfortable salary to do a job badly, so badly indeed that you just have to do it all over again and again.

A bit like resurfacing Beach Road Pattaya but without the sweat.

BTW I'd suggest EPL club shirts. Relatively cheap, lightweight and easy to shift down the pub. Depends on your home area what clubs kit goes best but otherwise stick to top six in league.

[steveromagnino]

On the contrary, i urge you to keep breaking IP laws. It keeps my company in much more than beer money, and it keeps me living in the manner to which I have become comfortably accustomed.

Have you noticed the lack of bootleg DVDs on Sukhumvit Road this weekend? All our doing :-) but don't worry because we'll let them back in a few days, and so the merry cycle recommences.

Money for jam!

So you are in charge of prevention of copyright infringement in LoS???

Your management meetings probably contain a few of the old chestnuts, such as "should do better", "room for improvement" and, my personal favorite, "our performance indicators are down"!!!

At a guess, Bendix is a xxxxxx and works in some part of intellectual property law, and therefore from time to time is involved with enforcing aspects of IP law. Of course.... since he is clearly not a policeman, it is not his responsibility to prevent copyright infringement in Thailand, but he can act on behalf of his clients. From time to time.

Nothing wrong with performance indicators. Performance indicators put food on the dinner table and kept you in school BkkAndrew :-)

As for having to do something badly, well, I guess many occupations have that in common. A maid does such a bad job cleaning that she has to repeat the same task daily. In some cases hourly. A doctor fails to keep a patient well, so the patient keeps having to return, and eventually almost every doctor must face up to the failure of their efforts when said patient dies. Or the professional poo maker, who makes excrement on a daily basis, but fails to ever produce the winning world's largest turd. Such is the circle of life, as the Lion King once told us.

Unlike me though. I do everything so well, that sometimes I just do it again to show how well I did it the first time. Last night I finished 'relations' with my girlfriend so fast, that I think I set a new record. Even she was so impressed, she said she wasn't ready and could we do it again? There is 20 seconds of my life I will never get back.

[kmart]

How about human trafficking? Seems to be very popular and lucrative at the moment. If you don't do it, some Chinese "snake-head" fella will have no compunctions about stepping in first. You snooze you lose, and all that....

[bkkmei]

If you go to ebay and type in 'Thai' or something, it's quite interesting what comes up & what seems popular.

e.g. Muay Thai boxing shorts.

Oh, and the silk cushion covers........

[bkkandrew]

On the contrary, i urge you to keep breaking IP laws. It keeps my company in much more than beer money, and it keeps me living in the manner to which I have become comfortably accustomed.

Have you noticed the lack of bootleg DVDs on Sukhumvit Road this weekend? All our doing :-) but don't worry because we'll let them back in a few days, and so the merry cycle recommences.

Money for jam!

So you are in charge of prevention of copyright infringement in LoS???

Your management meetings probably contain a few of the old chestnuts, such as "should do better", "room for improvement" and, my personal favorite, "our performance indicators are down"!!!

At a guess, Bendix is a xxxxxx and works in some part of intellectual property law, and therefore from time to time is involved with enforcing aspects of IP law. Of course.... since he is clearly not a policeman, it is not his responsibility to prevent copyright infringement in Thailand, but he can act on behalf of his clients. From time to time.

Nothing wrong with performance indicators. Performance indicators put food on the dinner table and kept you in school BkkAndrew :-)

As for having to do something badly, well, I guess many occupations have that in common. A maid does such a bad job cleaning that she has to repeat the same task daily. In some cases hourly. A doctor fails to keep a patient well, so the patient keeps having to return, and eventually almost every doctor must face up to the failure of their efforts when said patient dies. Or the professional poo maker, who makes excrement on a daily basis, but fails to ever produce the winning world's largest turd. Such is the circle of life, as the Lion King once told us.

Unlike me though. I do everything so well, that sometimes I just do it again to show how well I did it the first time. Last night I finished 'relations' with my girlfriend so fast, that I think I set a new record. Even she was so impressed, she said she wasn't ready and could we do it again? There is 20 seconds of my life I will never get back.

[Jet Gorgon]

On the contrary, i urge you to keep breaking IP laws. It keeps my company in much more than beer money, and it keeps me living in the manner to which I have become comfortably accustomed.

Have you noticed the lack of bootleg DVDs on Sukhumvit Road this weekend? All our doing :-) but don't worry because we'll let them back in a few days, and so the merry cycle recommences.

Money for jam!

Touche, Bendix.

[jasreeve17]

On the contrary, i urge you to keep breaking IP laws. It keeps my company in much more than beer money, and it keeps me living in the manner to which I have become comfortably accustomed.

Have you noticed the lack of bootleg DVDs on Sukhumvit Road this weekend? All our doing :-) but don't worry because we'll let them back in a few days, and so the merry cycle recommences.

Money for jam!

So you are in charge of prevention of copyright infringement in LoS???

Your management meetings probably contain a few of the old chestnuts, such as "should do better", "room for improvement" and, my personal favorite, "our performance indicators are down"!!!

At a guess, Bendix is a xxxxxx and works in some part of intellectual property law, and therefore from time to time is involved with enforcing aspects of IP law. Of course.... since he is clearly not a policeman, it is not his responsibility to prevent copyright infringement in Thailand, but he can act on behalf of his clients. From time to time.

Nothing wrong with performance indicators. Performance indicators put food on the dinner table and kept you in school BkkAndrew :-)

As for having to do something badly, well, I guess many occupations have that in common. A maid does such a bad job cleaning that she has to repeat the same task daily. In some cases hourly. A doctor fails to keep a patient well, so the patient keeps having to return, and eventually almost every doctor must face up to the failure of their efforts when said patient dies. Or the professional poo maker, who makes excrement on a daily basis, but fails to ever produce the winning world's largest turd. Such is the circle of life, as the Lion King once told us.

Unlike me though. I do everything so well, that sometimes I just do it again to show how well I did it the first time. Last night I finished 'relations' with my girlfriend so fast, that I think I set a new record. Even she was so impressed, she said she wasn't ready and could we do it again? There is 20 seconds of my life I will never get back.

Lawyers sticking together.... bad people, bad people.

I didn't like the way you compared your ilk with a maid or a doctor, but the last comparison was spot on - good job!

[bendix]

So you are in charge of prevention of copyright infringement in LoS???

Your management meetings probably contain a few of the old chestnuts, such as "should do better", "room for improvement" and, my personal favorite, "our performance indicators are down"!!!

No, the firm i work for as a large IP law practice and many of our clients are the brands you see on the streets - designer luxury goods, movie companies, watch makers, even pharmaceutical companies.

It's a huge business,and by far our most profitable service.

Think about it. All parties concerned . . the lawyers, the police, customs etc, the traders and the copyright owners all know the whole thing is a huge game. We're all making money out of it.

We make money trying to enforce the client's copyright and carrying out the odd raid. We make money from the clients who are happy to pay heaps for it.

Customs and the police are paid by us to do the raids. They are then, in turn, bribed by the traders to let them carry on trading a few days after the raid happens. In fact, the police sell the seized goods back to the traders too.

The traders make enough money to keep on doing it .. . , knowing full well that in an environment where the enforcement agencies are bribable, it's all very farcical and they can carry on in a few days.

And even our clients are generally happy with it. Their argument to us is simple: We know the types of people who buy fake versions of our stuff in Bangkok are never going to buy the real thing, so there is no revenue loss to them - we see it as a kind of advertising. They laugh about the guys who walk around Bkk wearing shorts, a beer chang teeshirt and yet, somehow, are supposedly wearing a $20,000 patek philippe.

Everyone's a winner.

PS . I'm not a lawyer.

Edited February 20, 2007 by bendix