Help With Business Ideas

[Taro]

I'm recently arrived in Hua Hin and thinking of opening a business. I wanted to post this here, rather than in the general investment forum, because I'm looking for opinions as to what you think Hua Hin is lacking. I came up with a few ideas based on my background. These are business ideas I can easily handle because I know what I'm talking about. Not saying they would succeed –Just that I would know how to get them going. I'd love to hear some opinions about them and whether you think any of them would be feasible in Hua Hin. Thanks in advance.

1. Language school (including more than just Thai and English classes). I know people who could teach Spanish and French, for starters.

2. Other type of school. I know somebody who was looking for a writing workshop when he first arrived, so I'm sure others are looking for things to do as well. Not sure what classes would be popular, though.

3. Shop selling Western products. Not sure what, but I'm sure there's something missing here. What?

4. Some sort of nutritional/weight loss shop/company. I have a degree in nutrition and a background working in the weight loss industry. This would be aimed at expats, obviously, but not sure if there would be an interest in something like this. I even though about a GNC or something of that style. Or a nutrition practice to help those looking to lose weight. A health-food store or restaurant?

5. Some type of entertainment place. Honestly, the only thing here is a small bowling alley. I wouldn't even call it alley. I lived in HCM (Vietnam) before and there was so much more to do there. A westerner had even opened an "alternative" cinema, where he showed movies (big screen and all) in English or with English subtitles. No new releases, of course. More of an indie thing.

6. Selling Thai products overseas. Buy here, sell online, ship. The main issue with this is that I can't come up with anything desirable. I've been looking in eBay and nothing Thai is selling for much. I was hoping silk would be popular, but no.

7. Magazine? There was a nice free mag in HCM that made money by selling advertisement space. The mag was a great source of information about the local area, including articles on history of the place, current events, interesting places/people, etc.

Edited July 28, 2010 by Taro

[hhfarang]

I don't know if this would be the right time to open any of those businesses even though some of them may be good ideas and are needed. The problem is that with the economy (of the entire world) in the tank, there are very few foreign tourists in Hua Hin so if you're not targeting Thais, you may have trouble with any new business at the moment. The last I heard there are only 3500 full time expats living in Hua Hin. If you go out and about much, it's hard to imagine even this number so I think a lot of them keep to themselves or are on a strict budget. You would have to find something that would appeal to the majority of those and that most could afford if that is your target market.

A lot of people I know here are strictly keeping their spending to the necessities as the exchange rates, economies, and political situation have most of them worried about their futures.

[antony77]

Too many expats want to stay here and make a living. They try everything. Usually they dont have enough capital.

They all want to start a business with limited funds. If you have say 2 or 3 milion baht you might be able to set up a business. You also have to remember that you have to have a Thai company and you have to employ eight Thais for you to get a work permit

[thaiphoon]

You also have to remember that you have to have a Thai company and you have to employ eight Thais for you to get a work permit

The official requirement is to employ 4 Thais for each work permit issued (figure reduced to 2 if married to Thai national). But often a lower figure than 4 is accepted by labour offices for new business set-ups, as long as can provide a detailed business plan showing intention to increase staff numbers to reach minimum figure in the not too distant future.

[Taro]

Funds not so much of a problem. Of course it'd be nice to open a business with as little as possible, but I'm willing to invest more if necessary. Setting up a company not a problem either. I think some of the business ideas will not require that much response either. For example, the magazine would earn money by selling ad space. Granted, I don't know the market that well, but if I hire Thai employees, I'm thinking they can target Thai businesses as well to sell ad space. As for the number of expats living here, let's say even 1000 are able to spend money on extras. If you run something like a small school, you wouldn't need too many students to break even. Rents are quite reasonable for a place that could be used as a small school. The internet business would require a VERY small investment.

I'm well aware of the economic crisis. Maybe that's why I'm being cautious and asking for opinions. I already earn a steady income through other means, so the business would be an addition, rather than my only source of money.

Edited July 28, 2010 by Taro

[Taro]

You also have to remember that you have to have a Thai company and you have to employ eight Thais for you to get a work permit

The official requirement is to employ 4 Thais for each work permit issued (figure reduced to 2 if married to Thai national). But often a lower figure than 4 is accepted by labour offices for new business set-ups, as long as can provide a detailed business plan showing intention to increase staff numbers to reach minimum figure in the not too distant future.

Thanks. I thought 8 wasn't right, because I know somebody opening a restaurant and he won't be hiring that many employees.

[sam666]

I think its a horrible idea to try and start a business that isn't a bar or nightlife in HH and at the mo, it's a bad idea to even do that. HH is mostly thais and ones with out money for any crap a westerner can make a lot of money on. You are better off aiming at phuket or pattaya but now as the current state of thailand isn't good.

Oh and out of all them I think 1 is the best idea as I was thinking of learning my self but refuse to pay a Farang owner top dollar when I can learn from Thais.

Edited July 28, 2010 by sam666

[ATO1994]

Business Plan (1) & (4) look feasible. I like (4). What you need is a good Thai partner to further execute your plan.

Most welcome to PM ...

[SAMCHAROEN]

I stay in Bangkok and have visited HH 1 or 2 times only. However, I would like to contribute to this topic since I am a businessman myself.

I was in MBK the other day and needed to have my name cards printed in a hurry. This shop charged me bt500 for 100 cards = bt5/card which is pretty steep considering that I chose ordinary paper and printing in 2 colors (red&black).

In my opinion the cost to the shop must have been not more than bt100 and they made a profit of bt400 from me.

They have just a couple of staff (efficient) and one printer . The shop size is not more than 20sqm.

They can not only do name cards but other printed stuff as well such as menu cards, rubber stamps etc...

I think its a niche business and if you have a shop in a mall or market area you can have a steady flow of customers.

You may not be able to charge as much as MBK but even at 350-400 for a 100 cards will make you a neat profit. You do have to be good at some computer softwares which can be easily learnt and practiced.

Secondly if you rent a shop at a mall or market area , even if you dont succeed in printing business you may convert the shop to sell something else like internet, medical, supermarket etc.

Another trend which I have observed in Bkk is the increased number of gift shops selling Japanese imported stuff - from chopsticks to school bags. These shops sell all items for about bt39-50.

I hope my 2 ideas will be helpful.

All the best !

[Vertigotogo]

Remember the old adage; if you want to make a small fortune, start of with a big fortune.

I have seen so many businesses go to the wall because they were under-financed (even though some of them were trading profitably, their cashflow brought them down).

[Taro]

Oh and out of all them I think 1 is the best idea as I was thinking of learning my self but refuse to pay a Farang owner top dollar when I can learn from Thais.

Fair enough, although I would hire native speakers to teach those languages. It's not the same as having a Thai teacher.

Edited July 28, 2010 by Taro

[Taro]

I was in MBK the other day and needed to have my name cards printed in a hurry. This shop charged me bt500 for 100 cards = bt5/card which is pretty steep considering that I chose ordinary paper and printing in 2 colors (red&black).

Secondly if you rent a shop at a mall or market area , even if you dont succeed in printing business you may convert the shop to sell something else like internet, medical, supermarket etc.

Another trend which I have observed in Bkk is the increased number of gift shops selling Japanese imported stuff - from chopsticks to school bags. These shops sell all items for about bt39-50.

Thanks for the suggestions. The second idea sounds sort of like a $1 store in the US. Neat idea to have a place that sells tons of different things for a single price (like 50 baht). The key would be to figure out where to get those things really cheap so you can make a profit. I know the printing shop you're talking about. I asked about their prices once and thought it was rather expensive. I wonder how well they do.

Edited July 28, 2010 by Taro

[snawa]

I love Hua Hin, but I think there is a missing segment in the bar-entertainment scene - that's the small, art wine-bar with alternative music.

<deleted> in Sukhumvit 51 in Bangkok is amazing - I think it would really work in Hua Hin.

http://www.facebook.com/<deleted>.bangkok

[coldmike]

I think you've missed your chance with number 3. My sister in law had a shop near Silom several years ago that did great selling all kinds of foreign items like shampoo, soaps, toys, etc. Now you can get most items easily in Thailand. Two years ago my friends from US came to visit. They have a finicky son and brought a suitcase full of things they thought he would want, but would be unavailabe including peanut butter, waffles, V8 juice, and assorted snacks. We told them we had indoor plumbing and a few modern amenities but they wanted to be sure. They left us with a boatload of waffles, V8 ....

[SAMCHAROEN]

I was in MBK the other day and needed to have my name cards printed in a hurry. This shop charged me bt500 for 100 cards = bt5/card which is pretty steep considering that I chose ordinary paper and printing in 2 colors (red&black).

Secondly if you rent a shop at a mall or market area , even if you dont succeed in printing business you may convert the shop to sell something else like internet, medical, supermarket etc.

Another trend which I have observed in Bkk is the increased number of gift shops selling Japanese imported stuff - from chopsticks to school bags. These shops sell all items for about bt39-50.

Thanks for the suggestions. The second idea sounds sort of like a $1 store in the US. Neat idea to have a place that sells tons of different things for a single price (like 50 baht). The key would be to figure out where to get those things really cheap so you can make a profit. I know the printing shop you're talking about. I asked about their prices once and thought it was rather expensive. I wonder how well they do.

About the $1 store: Yes the key is to find the product cheaply and the best way would be to buy it from the importers themselves. There are few shops around Sukhumvit 49 to Sukhumvit 33 and you can go and have a look-see maybe ask for their office tel nos.

I'm not sure if HH has a store like this selling Japanese/Korean imported stuff.

Edited July 28, 2010 by SAMCHAROEN

[ESB7]

A gym in Cha am would be good.......you can get the free weights, fixed weights and cardio equipment from a company in BKK....cost would be approx 1.8 mil for a decent gym, plus rent etc..its needed and although would take maybe 6-7 years to regain your investment, if its something you are interested in, the opportunity is there

[Taro]

A gym crossed my mind, simply because that's an area I know a lot about. I figured that Hua Hin has enough of them, though. Maybe I should take a walk around Cha Am.

[hhfarang]

I was in MBK the other day and needed to have my name cards printed in a hurry. This shop charged me bt500 for 100 cards

Just a note about the business card printing idea. I have a friend who owns a business here and he just got cards printed and told me they are 2 baht per card in volume so there is already very cheap competition in Hua Hin in that business.

And the magazine idea... There used to be several in Hua Hin that were free or mostly free and depended on ad revenue. The oldest (around for many years and arguably most popular) has recently gone out of print and is internet only now and I know of at least two others that have gone out of business within the last year. My wife was in advertising (sales) for a year (internet and tourist magazine) and it is very difficult to sell ad space here unless it is very cheap and mostly only western businesses or the larger Thai hotels or restaurants will even consider it. In the end, her company went out of the print business also and is internet only now.

[ESB7]

A gym crossed my mind, simply because that's an area I know a lot about. I figured that Hua Hin has enough of them, though. Maybe I should take a walk around Cha Am.

Hua Hin does have enough already and some are well priced, it peefs me off sometimes as the only one in Cha am is 1,300 a month...the equipment is years old, open only 6 days a week from

9-8...I just make do with a few free weights in my garden.

Thats why I mentioned it. Its something I looked into 2 years ago and there is a definate market...the only reason I didnt proceed was work commitents in BKK took over.

If you want any help on areas in Cha am or equipment PM me

[JohanBKK]

Hi,

I'm looking for a partner to open a business here, on 50% basis investment of 1 Million each. If someone is interested we can check all the business we can do with that amount and then start it when we are sure of the rentability.

[The Vulcan]

I saw a little business in Samui some years ago that surprised me.

It was one of those photo booths were you can subsequently acquire instant prints stickers etc of many different sizes.

The young Thais (especially girls) and kids were absolutely queuing up. Stickers for their phones, laptops, handbags etc. Fun type stuff.

Just a young girl, a computer, the photo booth and that was it. Thb50 type of price range

Based in Tesco's and takings c.Thb10,000 per day and rising.

Maybe the digital age has killed this.

Just a thought.

[pewter]

Very difficult to to start a business where there is no competition or

where you start off with an exclusive which wont be copied within months.

My wife and I hope to find a little outlet where we can sell my stuff that

will be exclusive and very interesting to all, including Thais.

The advantage for me is that it doesn't have to make a profit, preferably

just pay for itself and keep me occupied.

[witold]

 Why do most expats with no business experience always want to start a business that caters primarily to other expats?  

This is the wrong way to approach things, IMO.  There are very few openings in that segment.  

I would think about the stuff that seems to make money in HCMC and appeals to a ton of people and try to bring it to HH... 

[Taro]

I would think about the stuff that seems to make money in HCMC and appeals to a ton of people and try to bring it to HH...

That would be either the magazine or the language school. The language school in particular would appeal to everybody, since it could offer several languages, making it attractive to both Thais and foreigners.

There's also a highly-successful shop (shops, actually, as they have three locations in the city) in HCM called T-Shaped, which sells all types of Western food. Things you can't find in local supermarkets, such as specialty products from France, England, the US. I don't necessarily want to cater to Westerners, though, and that's why some of the ideas suggested were more general.

[witold]

You mention that HCMC has so many more entertainment options that HH lacks... I'm sure that part of it because of size, but can you give some examples?  A lot of Thais come down to HH just for this sort of thing...

[Taro]

Wine bars, artsy café/bars like the one suggested by snawa, indie movie theater/screen room, theme restaurants (imagine something similar to this: www.ninjanewyork.com/ninjacastle.html), eco tours of the city itself, phone bar *, dinner theater, bowling, arcade (a couple of huge ones), virtual reality/3D ride or games (usually a single machine), mini-golf (not in HCM; different city in Vietnam; again, for the young crowd)… probably a lot more I'm forgetting right now.

*the phone bar is a sort of café with lots of small tables. Each table has a number and a phone. You can use this phone to call other tables and basically hit on anybody you see sitting there. It caters to teens/very young crowd and it's incredibly popular, especially on evenings and nights.

Edited August 17, 2010 by Taro

[sam666]

I thought of this thread the other night when I was speaking to the girlfriend and we couldn't find anything to do that didn't involve alcohol in bars or night markets. I don't know excatally what HH lacks in terms of fun but it does lack something that could be lucrative. I personally would like to go to a cinema and watch the new western films with thai subs and not the shit we have at the mo. The gym could be a good idea too, the best one is in market village and is over priced (2x what I pay in London) and it lacks basically equipment like a <deleted> squat rack.

[ESB7]

Why do most expats with no business experience always want to start a business that caters primarily to other expats?

This is the wrong way to approach things, IMO. There are very few openings in that segment.

I would think about the stuff that seems to make money in HCMC and appeals to a ton of people and try to bring it to HH...

2nd tthat, few hundred thousand expats and 65 million Thais...who would you market???

[ESB7]

Wine bars, artsy café/bars like the one suggested by snawa, indie movie theater/screen room, theme restaurants (imagine something similar to this: www.ninjanewyork.com/ninjacastle.html), eco tours of the city itself, phone bar *, dinner theater, bowling, arcade (a couple of huge ones), virtual reality/3D ride or games (usually a single machine), mini-golf (not in HCM; different city in Vietnam; again, for the young crowd)… probably a lot more I'm forgetting right now.

*the phone bar is a sort of café with lots of small tables. Each table has a number and a phone. You can use this phone to call other tables and basically hit on anybody you see sitting there. It caters to teens/very young crowd and it's incredibly popular, especially on evenings and nights.

Phuket maybe, Hua Hin no....do you really think golfing retirees are looking for this...the other problem is, the prices for drinks will be 50% more than anywhere else as they will want to recoup the millions they spent on arty furniture and design.

[Taro]

Wine bars, artsy café/bars like the one suggested by snawa, indie movie theater/screen room, theme restaurants (imagine something similar to this: www.ninjanewyork.com/ninjacastle.html), eco tours of the city itself, phone bar *, dinner theater, bowling, arcade (a couple of huge ones), virtual reality/3D ride or games (usually a single machine), mini-golf (not in HCM; different city in Vietnam; again, for the young crowd)… probably a lot more I'm forgetting right now.

*the phone bar is a sort of café with lots of small tables. Each table has a number and a phone. You can use this phone to call other tables and basically hit on anybody you see sitting there. It caters to teens/very young crowd and it's incredibly popular, especially on evenings and nights.

Phuket maybe, Hua Hin no....do you really think golfing retirees are looking for this...the other problem is, the prices for drinks will be 50% more than anywhere else as they will want to recoup the millions they spent on arty furniture and design.

Who says I need to cater to golfing retirees? Again, some people suggested catering to a mix (Thais, foreigners, young, old). That would be the idea. Most of these ideas wouldn't work for golfing retirees either.