What Kind Of Business Would You Buy In Los?

[bendix]

Obsession, forget the idea.

Quite simply, Thai laws prevent whatever farang business from being profitable.

Just think to put up the business you must present 51% of it to your "Thai partners".

Utter tosh. There are numerous people on this forum already running very profitable businesses. The foreign ownership laws are very easy to circumvent, even with the recent changes extending the control to voting rights.

[Edonista]

Obsession, forget the idea.

Quite simply, Thai laws prevent whatever farang business from being profitable.

Just think to put up the business you must present 51% of it to your "Thai partners".

Utter tosh. There are numerous people on this forum already running very profitable businesses. The foreign ownership laws are very easy to circumvent, even with the recent changes extending the control to voting rights.

For example ?

[bendix]

Obsession, forget the idea.

Quite simply, Thai laws prevent whatever farang business from being profitable.

Just think to put up the business you must present 51% of it to your "Thai partners".

Utter tosh. There are numerous people on this forum already running very profitable businesses. The foreign ownership laws are very easy to circumvent, even with the recent changes extending the control to voting rights.

For example ?

For example, what? Good businesses? I know several people running great businesses here. In addition to my job, I have a very niche consulting business which is doing very well, thank you very much. I'm sure people like soundman will dispute that you can't run a successful business here if you're good at what you're doing.

The only business options for farangs do NOT have to be limited to beer bars, net cafes and motorbike hire companies.

[A_Traveller]

Obsession, forget the idea.

Quite simply, Thai laws prevent whatever farang business from being profitable.

Just think to put up the business you must present 51% of it to your "Thai partners".

Utter tosh. There are numerous people on this forum already running very profitable businesses. The foreign ownership laws are very easy to circumvent, even with the recent changes extending the control to voting rights.

For example ?

For example, what? Good businesses? I know several people running great businesses here. In addition to my job, I have a very niche consulting business which is doing very well, thank you very much. I'm sure people like soundman will dispute that you can't run a successful business here if you're good at what you're doing.

The only business options for farangs do NOT have to be limited to beer bars, net cafes and motorbike hire companies.

Agree on your last, but a few things do strike me. First there are no changes to voting provision at this time, I presume you meant 'mooted'. Second, your own consulting business, does provide you with a WP to cover the activity undertaken outside the auspices of your, now 3 day a week job, for which you are covered by WP?

Regards

/edit typo //

Edited August 12, 2007 by A_Traveller

[bendix]

True. They are mooted at the moment. Good point. But even if they become law, anyone with half a brain can structure it so you retain full control.

Second point. No, original WP is not enough, but setting up company structure to cover the consulting role means it's easy to get a second permit added onto the first.

[A_Traveller]

Thanks for the reply. My point as you discerned was that structures and provisions are complex here. Ultimately, as I noted herein, buying a business is not the best option Equally predicating the business on the basis of circumventing the letter & spirit of a country's law strikes me as fundamentally bad planning, especially from an asset protection point of view.

Regards

/edit PS I congratulate you since you have chosen an approach which mitigates this since your key asset is your intellectual property.//

Edited August 12, 2007 by A_Traveller

[bendix]

Of course, they're complicated. I agree. Needlessly complicated, for both Thai and more so for us. But if something is worth pursuing and if you have a good product / idea / prospects, then jumping through a few hoops in the early days at least proves you've got staying power, right?

And on the subject of intellectual property, sure. It's impossible for any other shareholders to gang up and steal the company's assets. I am the only asset the company has so there's nothing to misappropriate.

[N47HAN]

Has given rise to some thought,

A company with turnover 50m expected to be around 70m+ per annum would be worth ?

[Jersey_UK]

Obsession - OK you wanted some straight and sensible advice ..... here's my two pennies worth.

If you're stuck for ideas, then you're reading this using one of the best business ideas tools around - the Internet

As luck would have it, you're also looking at setting up in one of the most contrary regions on the planet. To explain that, use www.boi.go.th to locate, download, and print both the Royal Decree and the Foreign Business Act lists of employments and businesses prohibited to foreigners, restricted for foreigners, or permitted subject to special controls for foreigners. Then download the BOI's own lists of businesses available for BOI sponsorship and concessions, and the rules for qualifying - - - don't read any of them yet, you're not finished.

Then, find the government website for the equivalent of the Thai BOI in Burma (yup - I said Burma)

Download and print their lists as above for Thailand.

Now compare the various lists for each country side by side.

What you will find is that if Thailand says "Farang mai dai", Burma will say "Farang dai mak mak", and vice versa.

So what you end up with is a list of non-proscribed businesses that you can do in Thailand, but not in Burma - there's one starting point.

Then take that list of possibles to the BOI sponsorship and promotion categories list and see if any are on there, whilst also watching for others on the BOI list not previously noticed.

If you keep a completely open mind, you'll finish with 30 - 40 AFFORDABLE and do-able possibilities (I say affordable because some of the sponsored activities include superstores with 100 million baht of stock, or 100+ bedroom hotels built from the ground up, or yachting marinas with a minimum area of 300 rai of land etc). When you start seeing those types of projects, it's easy to give up on the BOI sponsored lists, but do not do that - they're a very useful reference list.

You got it right at the top of the thread when you mentioned manufacturing and export - some ideas (off the top of my head as I type) that are cheap (or cheapish) to start and could be well received - - -

- wooden birdhouses for back gardens (got any buying contacts in the big DIY chainstores? Or feel like contacting all the mom & pop hardware and pet stores?).

- Saddle bags for motorbikes (lots of seamstresses out here).

- Concrete garden statues and figurines - just need to buy the moulds from back home and flog the castings locally.

- Burglar alarm and CCTV installation - loads of hi-so and "wannabe" moo-baans needing home protection.

- under roof insulation (foam injection) - cheaper than air-con after a couple of years to recoup the installation.

- solar water heating or solar electricity generation - installation & maintenance.

- house electrics conversion from 2-core live & neutral to twin & earth with switched sockets/outlets.

- fibreglass small boats for flood prone areas (buy or lease or rent).

- grass skis (half metre long roller skates with about a dozen rows of wheels per "ski").

- go-kart racing (needs land and vehicles, but land can be rented and carts taken with you when you leave).

- radio control powerboat racing for local ponds and klongs - either tourist season or start a market for the locals.

- book and pamphlet publishing (only newspapers and magazines need a Thai owner/editor-in-chief - books don't).

If I sat here a while longer I could probably come up with hundreds that are not for me, but might suit someone else.

Hope it's useful

Gaz

With a post like that you are clearly on the wrong forum...........or a Troll

[bendix]

Has given rise to some thought,

A company with turnover 50m expected to be around 70m+ per annum would be worth ?

. . . not very much if expenses were 80m.

[N47HAN]

Has given rise to some thought,

A company with turnover 50m expected to be around 70m+ per annum would be worth ?

. . . not very much if expenses were 80m.

generating (nett) approx 20% on turnover

[bendix]

Well, with those sorts of figures you'd be well-advised to get a professional to value the business, and not rely on throwaway quips from a smartarse like me :-)

[chiang mai]

What about motorbike hire? Any BMs tried that as a business?

Internet cafes. Bars. Motorbike hire. With respect, you're not exactly thinking outside the square, are you? Those aren't business ideas: they are cliches. What next? Buy cheap crap at Jatujak and sell on ebay?

My advice. Do what you know best. That sounds like property development.

Do what you know best unfortunately translates for too many expats into buying a beer bar and folks still don't learn.

[obsession]

I have a very niche consulting business which is doing very well, thank you very much.

You mean an insulting business. Do you get paid for your posts?

[bendix]

If i did, I'd have been able to retire long ago.

[highdiver]

If i did, I'd have been able to retire long ago.

why are you letting out all the secrets

so you realy want to???

[OlRedEyes]

Ummmm . . point of order. I AM a snob and a <deleted>, ...

Successful, confident snobs and dickheads don't normally have the time or could be bothered to post on forums.

[bendix]

Oh ok. In that case, i'm not a snob or a <deleted>. You found me out.

Now, as fascinating as I find discussions about me, can we get back on topic and come up with some more cliche business ideas for the OP?

How about he finds a gf when he arrives, and opens a .. . . . wait for it . . . . beauty salon?

[Jingthing]

I think Pattaya needs a ping pong table beer bar. Too many pool table bars and no place to play ping pong with prostitutes, which is my idea of a good time. I guess its probably because its hard to play ping pong and drink a beer at the same time.

Edited August 13, 2007 by Jingthing

[chinthee]

I think Pattaya needs a ping pong table beer bar. Too many pool table bars and no place to play ping pong with prostitutes, which is my idea of a good time. I guess its probably because its hard to play ping pong and drink a beer at the same time.

This is a good business idea Jingthing. It's only become viable in recent years because there used to be a severe shortage of ping pong balls as they were all being bought up for shows which have since been largely eliminated...

[llothar]

Has given rise to some thought,

A company with turnover 50m expected to be around 70m+ per annum would be worth ?

. . . not very much if expenses were 80m.

generating (nett) approx 20% on turnover

... not very much if only you can run the business profitable.

A few friends had this problem with there software company. Just making 1/10 of your

profits which is still a good $30K, but impossible to sell because it was to specialized.

One huge problem with micro companies.

[Edonista]

Obsession, forget the idea.

Quite simply, Thai laws prevent whatever farang business from being profitable.

Just think to put up the business you must present 51% of it to your "Thai partners".

Utter tosh. There are numerous people on this forum already running very profitable businesses. The foreign ownership laws are very easy to circumvent, even with the recent changes extending the control to voting rights.

For example ?

For example, what? Good businesses? I know several people running great businesses here. In addition to my job, I have a very niche consulting business which is doing very well, thank you very much. I'm sure people like soundman will dispute that you can't run a successful business here if you're good at what you're doing.

The only business options for farangs do NOT have to be limited to beer bars, net cafes and motorbike hire companies.

Your business is so successful that you spend all your time posting here. Do you speak to customers while typing on the board ?

You say you know several people, why can't you just tell us what one of these guys does ?

It turned out the Soundman just owns a petrol station and he has being complaining about a 40% slump in his revenues.

Any other examples of successful businesses ?

[soundman]

It turned out the Soundman just owns a petrol station and he has being complaining about a 40% slump in his revenues.

Just to set the record straight.

Petrol station has been selling roughly the same amount of litres per week for years. Rents are up (due to some expansion & a new cofee shop), 7/11 has actually been doing quite well this year.

Sales have been dramatically down (40+%) in my pro audio business in the last 9 - 12 months. Sales are down across the board in the pro audio & lighting market. (Very niche market with only maybe 15 - 20 players in the whole of Thailand).

So I summise that it is not my ability as a foreigner to do business in the pro AV market, but the market in general that is down. From a business point of view, we will survive because we are not highly leveraged like many of my competitors & sales slumps really only mean profit cuts, not firesales of equipment to cover loan repayments. Tighten the belt, weather the storm & all's well on the next market up-turn.

My wife's construction business is a whole different kettle of fish that I won't go into here.

Cheers,

Soundman.

[Edonista]

It turned out the Soundman just owns a petrol station and he has being complaining about a 40% slump in his revenues.

Just to set the record straight.

Petrol station has been selling roughly the same amount of litres per week for years. Rents are up (due to some expansion & a new cofee shop), 7/11 has actually been doing quite well this year.

Sales have been dramatically down (40+%) in my pro audio business in the last 9 - 12 months. Sales are down across the board in the pro audio & lighting market. (Very niche market with only maybe 15 - 20 players in the whole of Thailand).

So I summise that it is not my ability as a foreigner to do business in the pro AV market, but the market in general that is down. From a business point of view, we will survive because we are not highly leveraged like many of my competitors & sales slumps really only mean profit cuts, not firesales of equipment to cover loan repayments. Tighten the belt, weather the storm & all's well on the next market up-turn.

My wife's construction business is a whole different kettle of fish that I won't go into here.

Cheers,

Soundman.

At last a realistic and believable statement.

But please note that Soundman is probably married to a rich Thai, considering she is in construction business. That means that he can find a reliable Thai partner for his business that actually pays for her 51% share. "Normal" farang instead must pay 100% getting 49% only (plus some rubbish documents that to my opinion have no legal value), is prevented from buying land, must hire 4 Thais to get his work permit, has endless visa and regulatory hassles.

Speaking of his petrol station, Soundmans says "rents are up", meaning he owns the land and cashes rent for shops operated by other people.I guess his 49% owned company bought the land before 15 August 2006, now a farang company could not set up a business that way because is forbidden from buying land (Land Office now requires the Thai partners being able to demonstrate they own the funds necessary for the purchase).This just to give an example of how many difficulties arise in facing xenophobic and predatory Thai laws.

[SamuiJens]

Everybody wants a piece of the Pie, I have the whole pie! But NOT telling the world!

[bendix]

Your business is so successful that you spend all your time posting here. Do you speak to customers while typing on the board ?

You say you know several people, why can't you just tell us what one of these guys does ?

It turned out the Soundman just owns a petrol station and he has being complaining about a 40% slump in his revenues.

Any other examples of successful businesses ?

The sign of success is being able to generate very nice revenue with minimum work.

I'm a consultant in a very specialised niche area. I don't sell my time. I sell my intellectual property. My market is small, but lucrative and it needs me to have fifteen years experience of doing it for a day job for me to have value in this area.

Aren't you doing very well at the moment, Edonista? I can help if you like . . .

[obsession]

How about he finds a gf when he arrives, and opens a .. . . . wait for it . . . . beauty salon?

Get back in your box you. Your just showing off now. That sort of out of the box thinking is too innovative for me. I think youve been partaking in the magic funghi again

I like the table tennis idea but it would need to be topless table tennis to add a touch of class Or what about a Hi- So topless darts venue for the more sophisticated gentlemen. Sounds like a winner.

[obsession]

It turned out the Soundman just owns a petrol station and he has being complaining about a 40% slump in his revenues.

Just to set the record straight.

Petrol station has been selling roughly the same amount of litres per week for years. Rents are up (due to some expansion & a new cofee shop), 7/11 has actually been doing quite well this year.

Sales have been dramatically down (40+%) in my pro audio business in the last 9 - 12 months. Sales are down across the board in the pro audio & lighting market. (Very niche market with only maybe 15 - 20 players in the whole of Thailand).

So I summise that it is not my ability as a foreigner to do business in the pro AV market, but the market in general that is down. From a business point of view, we will survive because we are not highly leveraged like many of my competitors & sales slumps really only mean profit cuts, not firesales of equipment to cover loan repayments. Tighten the belt, weather the storm & all's well on the next market up-turn.

My wife's construction business is a whole different kettle of fish that I won't go into here.

Cheers,

Soundman.

At last a realistic and believable statement.

But please note that Soundman is probably married to a rich Thai, considering she is in construction business. That means that he can find a reliable Thai partner for his business that actually pays for her 51% share. "Normal" farang instead must pay 100% getting 49% only (plus some rubbish documents that to my opinion have no legal value), is prevented from buying land, must hire 4 Thais to get his work permit, has endless visa and regulatory hassles.

Speaking of his petrol station, Soundmans says "rents are up", meaning he owns the land and cashes rent for shops operated by other people.I guess his 49% owned company bought the land before 15 August 2006, now a farang company could not set up a business that way because is forbidden from buying land (Land Office now requires the Thai partners being able to demonstrate they own the funds necessary for the purchase).This just to give an example of how many difficulties arise in facing xenophobic and predatory Thai laws.

Its definately a lot harder to go it alone in los. Having a thai wife would would make it a lot easier. Pity there so hard to find

[JimmyCA]

I am trying to pick one that doesnt just rely on western tourists. Maybe manufacture and/or export. Or internet cafes are used by thais and farangs. Apart from that, I dont have much of a clue what to do. If I dont buy one, I might have to go to cambo. I have owned and managed before and dont care if its something I dont " have a passion " for.

NONE

You do not even have to steal that one.

[Edonista]

Your business is so successful that you spend all your time posting here. Do you speak to customers while typing on the board ?

You say you know several people, why can't you just tell us what one of these guys does ?

It turned out the Soundman just owns a petrol station and he has being complaining about a 40% slump in his revenues.

Any other examples of successful businesses ?

The sign of success is being able to generate very nice revenue with minimum work.

I'm a consultant in a very specialised niche area. I don't sell my time. I sell my intellectual property. My market is small, but lucrative and it needs me to have fifteen years experience of doing it for a day job for me to have value in this area.

Aren't you doing very well at the moment, Edonista? I can help if you like . . .

There are three ways to lose money.

Women are the most pleasant.

Gambling the most entertaining.

Consultants the fastest.

By the way once again you failed to provide a direct answer to my questions:

1) what is your job

2) what are the "successful businesses" of your customers.