best way to make money ( little bit ) in isaan

[willyumiii]

Agree!

In the village close to my smaller village, every time someone has a fresh idea and opens a shop, be it internet cafe, smoothie shop or whatever, within two months there are 8 - 12 copy cats opened up. As a result, none, including the first get enough business to stay in business and with in 6 months, all are gone.

Thailand does not promote original or creative thinking..

It's monkeys see, monkeys do, and monkeys fail!

Also,

If you are in a really "remote " area there are probably few Farangs to cater to.

Things like English movies with Thai subtitles and western sports on TV would not only be wasted on local Thais ( probably your big customer base) Thais may be offended that you would expect them to take an interest in them.

The snooker is a good idea, but as stated before, if there is a yaba problem in your area, it will be a disaster.

Yaba is a problem in all of Thailand......too bad they can't smoke pot! Then you could just sell munchies! lol

Choke Dee!

Easiest thing to set up is a small shop selling all the usual eatables, consumables, toiletries etc. Snacks, beer, whiskey, smokes, tobacco and rolling papers, washing powder/liquid, panty liners, cockroach spray etc. Very good idea is selling phone credit. You get an immediate 3% discount when you buy and can charge at least 2bht for each topup. Alot of people in a poor village will only load 20bht on their phone at a time, you charge 22bht, instant 10%!
I'd advise against a snooker table unless you want the local yabaa heads hanging around although if there's not a drug problem locally they can attract a crowd who like to spend on beer and cigs. Expensive initial outlay though.

Sent from my GT-I9003 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

If your neighbors think that you are making a "little" money, there will be two or three similar businesses opened near you selling exactly the same thing. Since my wife opened her restaurant 3 years ago there have been 3 others opened near her, one next door and one across the street. They have all closed, most likely because the families that owned them were not willing to subsidize the business to keep the prices competitive.

Edited August 17, 2013 by willyumiii

[CGW]

Forget the Snooker! we bought a table for my wifes parents, they live way out in the sticks, people were too poor to buy beer and cigs so there was also free cold water, they made good money out of the table - until the police wanted there cut, they wanted more each month, after a while they threw cover over the table where it remains unused as they were working for nothing!

[bunnydrops]

I had wondered about a small in door movie theater. I figured with all the cheap movies on sale that no one would go. But about two months ago a traveling "drivein--walkin/ sitin in this case" came through here showing that popular movie about the ghost of a dead wife. They put up a 4X6 meter screen and put a plastic fence around it. I think everyone in the area came to see it at 20 baht a pop.I think the "big screen" still has a draw. In a fair sided town that supports a few surrounding villages, it might make a go of it.

Here. My wife and her sister do piece work sewing (school uniforms) and alterations for the local women. We are going to build a small shop by the road for the sewing business and also have room to sell some food during the growing season. Its hard to make any money here with one pony, you have to keep coming up with something new

[cardholder]

Secondly, what is your market? Who will buy whatever it is you will eventually finish up selling. How big is the market, how much will it generate

First of all - do you want a life-style business or do you want to make money. Either way you will need a plan. wayned is the perfect example of how to 'succeed' in Thailand - limit the financial cost and have the wife occupied/rewarded by the enterprise.

If you NEED to make money then I would consider a different destination than Thailand - particularly rural Thailand. You have 'little savings' so without capital there are restrictions on your options (it also means you have less to lose). I know of a nice 'freehold' internet shop with accommodation going for 4.8 million Baht - I doubt that you could lose money on that (unless you wanted your capital out quickly).

I started a business from scratch and spent 700,000 Baht creating what I wanted. I was prepared to lose most of that if the business wasn't viable aftera year. Turnover went from zero to over 40,000 Baht per week. We didn't really make any money; the missus got a salary of 10k p.m. and we lived out of the business with regard to food. This was in an amphur with a population of 18,000 (although my market was 95% Farang).

At the time a friend said to me "why do anything, just enjoy life in Thailand". I wanted to do something and you cannot live like a tourist when you are here full time (financially and for the sake of your liver!).

So, do something by all means but understand WHY you are doing it. If you can, take a leaf out of wayned's book.

It is also a good opportunity to find out what your wife is made of. many Thai enterprises because the Thais are lazy/bored/inept/gambling/drinking. I was fortunate, I discovered that my missus had a level of responsibility and management capability that was better than most Thais I had experienced. If you have a good one they are capable of working very hard.

What does your wife want to do ? If you are not here full time she will have to have the capability and desire to run it. Make sure whatever ideas you come up with appear to be HER ideas - otherwise only one person will get the blame if ANYTHING goes wrong.

[IsaanAussie]

We have run a small shop in front of the house for five years. It makes money albeit small amounts, the margin is over 15%. If you are selling anything, beware selling on credit, just do not do it!

[ignis]

The thing to look at as the bit about .........we are in remote villiage ......

Myself cannot say so remote, but 2 km away there is a new Tesco Express and has been for some years a 7/11.......... 3x per week is a local market...

So in my Village no shop of any kind, but the 6 wheel truck Bus stops outside on the road every 2 hours......... here all are Thai except me, almost all have 2, 3 or 4 generations living in the houses = the younger ones all go off to work every day, all the old folk mostly buy every day from the vans and motorbikes with sidecars that come some 2x a day...

Have a look what is being sold, or rather what is not and Thais eat, myself look on the Market, see lots of people buying, yet there is no one that sells that on a motorbike and sidecar...

Make food at home........ buy a motorbike and sidecar, buy gas bottles some pans, plastic bags even some paper plates, cheap ready made business with small outlay if you have a few other Villages around..

Always was a pickup that had a BBQ on the back, and chicken, very good + 20 baht, husband drove wife on the BBQ in the back.... sadly he died almost 2 years ago, no one offers BBQ anywhere near , they used to come every day and lots of people in this Village used to buy, there is only 63 houses all detached 3 or 4 bedroom type here..

Edit: opps 'wife on the BBQ in the back' maybe better wife working the BBQ on the back

Edited August 19, 2013 by ignis

[Cam Khao]

1. Dig big hole in ground.

2. Fill up with water.

3. Throw in a few hundred talipa.

4. Feed them now and then, although you don't really need to they just grow slower if you don't.

5. Wait a few weeks.

6. Catch them.

7. Profit.

Super deluxe method:

3a - Throw in a few hundred catfish, they eat the talipa crap.

Wholesale option:

Sell the fish.

Vertical market option:

Get the Mrs to BBQ them and sell them outside the house along with sticky rice.

[cardholder]

1. Dig big hole in ground.

2. Fill up with water.

3. Throw in a few hundred talipa.

4. Feed them now and then, although you don't really need to they just grow slower if you don't.

5. Wait a few weeks.

6. Catch them.

7. Profit.

Super deluxe method:

3a - Throw in a few hundred catfish, they eat the talipa crap.

Wholesale option:

Sell the fish.

Vertical market option:

Get the Mrs to BBQ them and sell them outside the house along with sticky rice.

You have ommited the nocturnal fishing option.

This is the one where the local 'night fishermen' come and take the fish out for.

They don't actually TELL you they are taking them out, they just do as a display of 'greng jai'

[IsaanAussie]

A few thoughts about selling here in Thailand to build on what Cardholder shared about markets:

(a) Several comments speak of selling to farangs or concentrating on farang likes. If you live remotely you will know that 1. there won't be many customers. 2. They pay Thai prices for everything else they buy. Why they will not pay you more? and 3. Their wives do most of the buying.

( Westerners are not stupid nor will most pay more than they have to.

© Do not delude yourself by comparing prices in Bangkok or your home country to what you can get for your produce here. In both markets the price is set by the customers ability and willingness to pay.

(d) Understand that many Thais will show initial support for something new, but initial successes will quickly fade if there is no sustainable market.

(e) Many locals will not buy from you or your wife simply because they believe that you are rich already and they need not help. Further that Thais are generally proud people and dislike foreigners "succeeding". Since these same people would make poor accountants, you waste your time trying to explain ROI and capital expenditure or margins.

[cardholder]

A few thoughts about selling here in Thailand to build on what Cardholder shared about markets:

(a) Several comments speak of selling to farangs or concentrating on farang likes. If you live remotely you will know that 1. there won't be many customers. 2. They pay Thai prices for everything else they buy. Why they will not pay you more? and 3. Their wives do most of the buying.

( Westerners are not stupid nor will most pay more than they have to.

© Do not delude yourself by comparing prices in Bangkok or your home country to what you can get for your produce here. In both markets the price is set by the customers ability and willingness to pay.

(d) Understand that many Thais will show initial support for something new, but initial successes will quickly fade if there is no sustainable market.

(e) Many locals will not buy from you or your wife simply because they believe that you are rich already and they need not help. Further that Thais are generally proud people and dislike foreigners "succeeding". Since these same people would make poor accountants, you waste your time trying to explain ROI and capital expenditure or margins.

I agree with all that.

In my location I decided that I had to offer value. I wanted to do this, not the Thai way of providing crap material at low prices, but by high quality at fair prices. I actually worked on a GPM of 50% (because even I could calculate that ) and even40% on the top-priced dishes. It was probably insecurity that made me do that because, as Ian says, local Falangs will only want to pay Thai prices and will benchmark against a 30 Baht khao pad. I think the majority of my money was taken from those who don't mind spending (and actually think Pattaya prices are cheap compared to home) - these were the Farang tourists i.e. here for a 2/4 week holiday and the part-time expats i.e, those working a month on, month off or come to Thailand for 1-3 months at a time. The best spenders were the first time visitors, brought up to Isaan by their newly found teeraks

If I did it again I would aim at the upper part of the Thai market (the Falangs would find me anyway) with something like Prakhonchai Steak House. I would aim for 66% of my customers to be Thai.

Edited August 19, 2013 by cardholder

[IsaanAussie]

Grow pigs. Cant lose

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Totally disagree! Been there, done that and lost money. Unless you are going to raise them in your living room, the first thing that you have to do is invest in building the pig pens with adequate water supply at pressure and electric. Unless you are going to amortize that cost over a very long period you aren't going to make anything. When you buy the piglets, the price is always up and when you sell the pigs 3-4 months later the price of pork is down. The price of feed constantly goes up never down. When you sell the pigs and buy more piglets a few weeks later, guess what the price is up again. And it's a dirty 7 day a week job cleaning and feeding them twice a day.

All of the Thais in my village raised pigs at one time and now nobody does. When you mention raising pigs they just chuckle.

WOW, I missed your comment before. You must really have been kicked around on the pigs! Sounds like you didn't have to much control on the operation and worse then that, didn't like the pigs! It is capital intensive and needs hands on management.

There is an old saying that pig farming is either muck or money. Here that is very true, the market is seasonal and subject to corporate manipulation. The prices have risen a long way this year after a long downturn and there will be another rush of people getting into raising a few pigs. The balloon is being blown up again.

For those in the game, Betagro reduced feed prices near me several weeks ago. Obviously their independant customer sales are down. But I wouldn't relax for a minute.

For anyone thinking about it read the pinned topic Pigs 101. The guys still involved are posting occasionally. Basically the biggest pitfall is the feed bill. My sty was built to accommodate around 130 pigs. Before sales at full capacity, the feed bill would now be 100K per month. Next major error is to assume that the local market will absorb your output. The only way you sell one market pig locally is if you are either the only one with stock or you are the cheapest. My five years keeping pigs was more the muck end than the money but something I miss. Think long and hard before getting involved.

[krisb]

Internet shop. Thai kids love online gaming. 15 baht an hour. Once popularity grows, add more computers. You can also do translations and help village girls talk to their falang bf as well as helping them setup accounts in English on Thai love links and other introduction sites.

[ozzibitch]

G'day I know a bloke up country who makes a clear THB 50 k plus has internet caf and a beaut home upstairs

they have a good life

[cardholder]

G'day I know a bloke up country who makes a clear THB 50 k plus has internet caf and a beaut home upstairs

they have a good life

Is that per day/week/month/year ?

It does make a difference.........

[ozzibitch]

I know............... a month

[swissie]

I know it and above posts seem to confirm it: A Farang should be here to enjoy live. Having made money "before" he ever came to Thailand. Needing to make money here, in order to survive ?

In agriculture? Wife happens to have land. (The poorest people in Thailand are Farmers).

Mom and Pop shop,etc.? (This must be the ultimate joke).

As a general rule: If Thai-Wife comes along with a splendid business-idea, just say no! She may not be happy, but saves the Farang money and aggravation.

AND THE MORAL OF THE STORY: Farang must have money to begin with, or have a secure income from his home-country on a monthly basis. If this does not apply, a sad ending of the Farangs "Thailand-Adventure" is already programmed.

Cheers.

[swissie]

Grow pigs. Cant lose

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Totally disagree! Been there, done that and lost money. Unless you are going to raise them in your living room, the first thing that you have to do is invest in building the pig pens with adequate water supply at pressure and electric. Unless you are going to amortize that cost over a very long period you aren't going to make anything. When you buy the piglets, the price is always up and when you sell the pigs 3-4 months later the price of pork is down. The price of feed constantly goes up never down. When you sell the pigs and buy more piglets a few weeks later, guess what the price is up again. And it's a dirty 7 day a week job cleaning and feeding them twice a day.

All of the Thais in my village raised pigs at one time and now nobody does. When you mention raising pigs they just chuckle.

A few words about the "HOG-CYCLE". Works the same way all over the world and especially in Thailand, because here farmers are especially not able to understand the benefits of "Anti-Cyclical" behavior and market-forces in general.

a) Hog prices are high = everybody including his uncle start raising pigs with the result that an oversupply of pigs will hit the market sooner or later. Prices will go south (cellar-prices.).

Cellar-Prices: Everybody including his uncle will sell the rest of their pigs (loosing money, the hell with pigs !

- Anti-Cyclical behavior is when the Thai-Farmers start to "chuckle" when a stupid Farang starts to expand his pig inventory at exactly this moment only to reap the reward when prices are high again and everybody including his uncle are eager to enter the "profitable-hog-business" again.

The Farang, acting accordingly and having made money with pigs, will gain much respect and karma since he must have excellent connections to the world of ghosts controlling hog-prices.

Cheers.

[ChrisB87]

English lessons?

[Sandman77]

The best way to make money in Isaan is to install a beer self service automatic mashine, in every corner of your village, and you can be sure you have a lot

Of customers, espasaly in. The night time..

[cardholder]

English lessons?

"French" lessons ?

[cardholder]

I know............... a month

ozziebitch, this is not a quiz

If you are going to guess at least put some evidence behind it.

[krisb]

I know it and above posts seem to confirm it: A Farang should be here to enjoy live. Having made money "before" he ever came to Thailand. Needing to make money here, in order to survive ?

 

In agriculture? Wife happens to have land. (The poorest people in Thailand are Farmers).

 

Mom and Pop shop,etc.? (This must be the ultimate joke).

 

As a general rule: If Thai-Wife comes along with a splendid business-idea, just say no! She may not be happy, but saves the Farang money and aggravation.

 

AND THE MORAL OF THE STORY: Farang must have money to begin with, or have a secure income from his home-country on a monthly basis. If this does not apply, a sad ending of the Farangs "Thailand-Adventure" is already programmed.

 

Cheers.

Not true at all. Sitting round all day is a sad ending. In fact your pos is junk.

Sent from my LG-E612 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[wayned]

Grow pigs. Cant lose

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Totally disagree! Been there, done that and lost money. Unless you are going to raise them in your living room, the first thing that you have to do is invest in building the pig pens with adequate water supply at pressure and electric. Unless you are going to amortize that cost over a very long period you aren't going to make anything. When you buy the piglets, the price is always up and when you sell the pigs 3-4 months later the price of pork is down. The price of feed constantly goes up never down. When you sell the pigs and buy more piglets a few weeks later, guess what the price is up again. And it's a dirty 7 day a week job cleaning and feeding them twice a day.

All of the Thais in my village raised pigs at one time and now nobody does. When you mention raising pigs they just chuckle.

WOW, I missed your comment before. You must really have been kicked around on the pigs! Sounds like you didn't have to much control on the operation and worse then that, didn't like the pigs! It is capital intensive and needs hands on management.

There is an old saying that pig farming is either muck or money. Here that is very true, the market is seasonal and subject to corporate manipulation. The prices have risen a long way this year after a long downturn and there will be another rush of people getting into raising a few pigs. The balloon is being blown up again.

For those in the game, Betagro reduced feed prices near me several weeks ago. Obviously their independant customer sales are down. But I wouldn't relax for a minute.

For anyone thinking about it read the pinned topic Pigs 101. The guys still involved are posting occasionally. Basically the biggest pitfall is the feed bill. My sty was built to accommodate around 130 pigs. Before sales at full capacity, the feed bill would now be 100K per month. Next major error is to assume that the local market will absorb your output. The only way you sell one market pig locally is if you are either the only one with stock or you are the cheapest. My five years keeping pigs was more the muck end than the money but something I miss. Think long and hard before getting involved.

Unless you amortize the cost of building the 130 pig sty in your business plan and you are recovering this cost over a set period of time and still make money, it is not a business, it's a hobby. The food price was also an issue and keeping my wife from lending food to the local Thais that could not buy it during the growth cycle was almost impossible so I threw in the towel. I was not a popular person when I did it and soon thereafter all of the local pig farms disappeared.

When my wife opened her local restaurant, I told her that she should name it "pig Farm" which didn't go over to well.

Edited August 19, 2013 by wayned

[ChrisB87]

English lessons?

"French" lessons ?

They would probably prefer English lessons. I can't imagine French lessons selling as well.

[IsaanAussie]

I know it and above posts seem to confirm it: A Farang should be here to enjoy live. Having made money "before" he ever came to Thailand. Needing to make money here, in order to survive ?

In agriculture? Wife happens to have land. (The poorest people in Thailand are Farmers).

Mom and Pop shop,etc.? (This must be the ultimate joke).

As a general rule: If Thai-Wife comes along with a splendid business-idea, just say no! She may not be happy, but saves the Farang money and aggravation.

AND THE MORAL OF THE STORY: Farang must have money to begin with, or have a secure income from his home-country on a monthly basis. If this does not apply, a sad ending of the Farangs "Thailand-Adventure" is already programmed.

Cheers.

Perhaps this simplistic view could become the visa requirements for farangs? Sounds like a well read pile of <deleted> to me.

[CTO]

Out of reach of many, and most places gone, but there is a "small" cinema franchise starting, small as in each cinema seats a smaller number of people, franchise I think is less than 2 million per cinema, inc the building costs. I think first sites being built now.

Rule in Asia regardless your doing a big business or small shop, your in Asia, work on Asian prices and margins.

Exceptions to rules (cars) but most cases this is the case often over looked.

[puchooay]

I know it and above posts seem to confirm it: A Farang should be here to enjoy live. Having made money "before" he ever came to Thailand. Needing to make money here, in order to survive ?

In agriculture? Wife happens to have land. (The poorest people in Thailand are Farmers).

Mom and Pop shop,etc.? (This must be the ultimate joke).

As a general rule: If Thai-Wife comes along with a splendid business-idea, just say no! She may not be happy, but saves the Farang money and aggravation.

AND THE MORAL OF THE STORY: Farang must have money to begin with, or have a secure income from his home-country on a monthly basis. If this does not apply, a sad ending of the Farangs "Thailand-Adventure" is already programmed.

Cheers.

Perhaps this simplistic view could become the visa requirements for farangs? Sounds like a well read pile of <deleted> to me.

Agreed IssanAussie. I know a myriad of westerners who live here and work.

One doesn't have to be retired to enjoy the joys of life in Thailand/Issan.

With the way the economy is in my country of origin, I can actually save more money per month over here than I could if I was working there.

Not sure if I will ever totally retire here. Need something to keep the brain ticking over.

[tingtong]

I know it and above posts seem to confirm it: A Farang should be here to enjoy live. Having made money "before" he ever came to Thailand. Needing to make money here, in order to survive ?

In agriculture? Wife happens to have land. (The poorest people in Thailand are Farmers).

Mom and Pop shop,etc.? (This must be the ultimate joke).

As a general rule: If Thai-Wife comes along with a splendid business-idea, just say no! She may not be happy, but saves the Farang money and aggravation.

AND THE MORAL OF THE STORY: Farang must have money to begin with, or have a secure income from his home-country on a monthly basis. If this does not apply, a sad ending of the Farangs "Thailand-Adventure" is already programmed.

Cheers.

Not true at all. Sitting round all day is a sad ending. In fact your pos is junk.

Sent from my LG-E612 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

since this post mainly concern those older/established farangs who has presumable an outside income....ie. pension, i dont think sitting around has to be an option.

there is lots of other things to take up apart from losing money on a sad business venture.

another thing to lose a bit to keep wife a hobby, as some mentioned.

and again another to try to make income, if one has no outside income...

lots of truth in this thread about small thai business, that one should consider,

such like thais copy everything if they can, such as in a remote area hard to sell things that not yet selling and has the population to support your venture, such like you not only need the capital input to raise animals, but also a ready market to absorb it, produce-cycle, etc, etc.

opinions can and do differ, but i dont think the post you refer to is junk. a different opinion than yours, granted.

[tingtong]

English lessons?

"French" lessons ?

They would probably prefer English lessons. I can't imagine French lessons selling as well.

make it both?

English to cater thai and French to cater to occasional farangs?

win-win, or should say happy-happy?

[BKKdreaming]

there are 100s of Thai Ladies buying clothes in Bo Bae etc and taking them home to sell ,

if you are going to have a store the prices have to be cheap enough they do not go down the road to 7-11 , Tesco express etc

If this is going to be a Hobby business figure up front how much a month you want to donate to keep it going ,

One thing is get rid of things that do not sell, at cost or less and move onto the next thing that might sell ,

The real problem is they have no training in business , do not understand things we think is common knowledge in the West , thats hard to teach .....