Can anyone running a business in Koh Samui comment upon the issues & opportunities faced when doing business in Koh Samui e.g. restaurant/bar

are you thinking of a new bar/restaurant or existing

Either new or exsisting; depends on capital required for the location.

be prepared to eat your profits and live on the cheap.

well lots of bar/restuarants coming on the market in samui. and its all about location...if in the right location ok if not lots and lots of work...

my own view is that with the influx of 4 and 5 star hotels onto the island

it is in danger of becoming like a lot of the caribean isles in that the tourist goes to the all inclusive resort and very rarely goes out and about unless on a organised excursion....so a lot less customers than when it was the good old backpackers and sex tourists at least they spent money (unless they were israely)

so if you can find a business thats a bit down on luck and work hard to make it better you may have a long term if not leave well alone..

and i think a good thing to remember is if you can become a millionare in thailand, as long as you had 3 mill on arrival.

the best way is to get out there and talk to the bar owners in the different areas and gauge the reaction....also if you can get figures take off about 20 to 30% to see real figures

allan

also one other point

to run a bar its all about personalities,if youve got it great if not get staff that have.

some of the best places i go to have great staff wich make the visit all the more worthwhile.....others frankly just turn the music up and hope for the best......

one of my favorite bars ..changed so much between visits (new owners) that it was difficult just to sit with friends and have a beer the music was so load and that was 4 pm in the afternoon........go figure

the last thing koh samui needs is another restaurant or bar , you cant move for the bloody places , and apart from half a dozen or so places that seem permanently busy they are all empty or as near empty as makes no difference.

there are plenty of opportunities there, there seems to be an influx of expats going there to live and all their needs will need servicing, the land agents were first to get in , then the builders, then the plumbers, now its the furniture shops and interior designers who are opening up.

whats next?? well all those swimming pools and air conditioning units will need looking after, all those gardens will need tending and offering those services to expats who dont know how to get them might be food for thought. put some money into a joint venture with some trustworthy thai partners ......and yes such people do exist.....and you could have the makings of a profitable business.

cars will need servicing, houses will need looking after when the owners are away,

computers will need looking after, if you have ever tried to get any software or computer repairs done then you will know that there is room for a good computer operation to open up.

the possibilities are endless.