Keeping up appearances...

May 29, 2006
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I'm back in Hig?ey staying with my GF for the month. She has a nice little spice business and it's doing well enough where she's looking into buying one of those TRex scooters that have become all the rage. But she wants to keep her old beat up SuperCub for work, because she says if she starts doing her rounds in a shiny new bike, her clients are going to want to start wanting credit instead please of COD, because if she can buy such a fancy ride, she obviously doesn't need to get paid right away for her products. Makes sense, I guess, but I hope she puts some work into it.. It's been treated like a rented mule..
 

the gorgon

Platinum
Sep 16, 2010
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I'm back in Hig?ey staying with my GF for the month. She has a nice little spice business and it's doing well enough where she's looking into buying one of those TRex scooters that have become all the rage. But she wants to keep her old beat up SuperCub for work, because she says if she starts doing her rounds in a shiny new bike, her clients are going to want to start wanting credit instead please of COD, because if she can buy such a fancy ride, she obviously doesn't need to get paid right away for her products. Makes sense, I guess, but I hope she puts some work into it.. It's been treated like a rented mule..

TRex has been the rage for well over 5 years.

glad to know she is being a success.
 

4*4*4

Bronze
May 4, 2015
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Just to play devil's advocate, a shiny, new bike may send a message that her honest, hard work had rewarded her and they are doing business with a trusted professional.
 

the gorgon

Platinum
Sep 16, 2010
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Just to play devil's advocate, a shiny, new bike may send a message that her honest, hard work had rewarded her and they are doing business with a trusted professional.

a shiny new bike means she has a successful business, and causes every drone in the area to come looking to borrow money.

Signed,

Devil?s Advocate.
 

4*4*4

Bronze
May 4, 2015
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a shiny new bike means she has a successful business, and causes every drone in the area to come looking to borrow money.

Signed,

Devil?s Advocate.

I should have said, "Demon". I bow to your greater understanding of the situation.
 
May 29, 2006
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Including her clients.... Most of the money she makes gets spread out over her family. A couple hundred pesos here and there adds up. On the plus side, they all pitch in on the labor with the business too.
 

CristoRey

Welcome To Wonderland
Apr 1, 2014
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To advertise one?s success in the DR will often lead to one?s failure.
 

Hillbilly

Moderator
Jan 1, 2002
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What generally happens to mpymes (emepeemes = micro-small-medium enterprises) is that someone sees their success and then imitates their processes and takes a share of the market.

Keeping a low profile, while providing a good service to customers, especially on a COD basis, is certainly a winning formula and the object of envy and imitation.

Use the new toy on Sundays...with caution...

One of the wealthiest persons I know used to come to the university (he did not need the money--one day his secretary found 6 paychecks in his desk drawer)--Anyway he used to come to school in a 15 year old Land Rover..(with his Piaget watch of course_...

Congrats on maintaining the business.

HB
 
May 29, 2006
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"The lobster that triesto climb out of the pot gets pulled back down by the others.."
~Pacific Island saying.

In other words, your friends will pull you down rather than be happy for your success..
 
May 29, 2006
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What generally happens to mpymes (emepeemes = micro-small-medium enterprises) is that someone sees their success and then imitates their processes and takes a share of the market.

Keeping a low profile, while providing a good service to customers, especially on a COD basis, is certainly a winning formula and the object of envy and imitation.

Use the new toy on Sundays...with caution...

One of the wealthiest persons I know used to come to the university (he did not need the money--one day his secretary found 6 paychecks in his desk drawer)--Anyway he used to come to school in a 15 year old Land Rover..(with his Piaget watch of course_...

Congrats on maintaining the business.

HB

Yes, she is very savvy on this. I'm helping her improve her economy of scale on the buying side. I give her 1000 pesos to buy spices and she pays me back two days later after netting an 800 peso profit.. Her pinchpoint now is doing production to order. Once she can buy full 50 pound sacks of spices, her costs will go way down.

She wants to use the new moto for going to the beach and she specifically mentioned Sundays.
 

4*4*4

Bronze
May 4, 2015
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Yes, she is very savvy on this. I'm helping her improve her economy of scale on the buying side. I give her 1000 pesos to buy spices and she pays me back two days later after netting an 800 peso profit.. Her pinchpoint now is doing production to order. Once she can buy full 50 pound sacks of spices, her costs will go way down.

She wants to use the new moto for going to the beach and she specifically mentioned Sundays.

This is a terrific success story!! This will inspire many (in non-competitive markets of course) to attempt to do the same. It is amazing how a smart plan and hard work leads to such luck!!
 

beeza

Silver
Nov 2, 2006
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I think it's universal. People in sales shouldn't be too flashy. I remember an estate agent who came to my house in the UK to put it on the market. He arrived in a brand new Audi convertible, a very smart Italian suit, and an Omega Seamaster on his wrist.

I gave the contract to the next man who showed up in a five year old Peugeot. (Although I did spot his Patek Phillipe!)
 

melphis

Living my Dream
Apr 18, 2013
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Years ago I had a customer in a small western Canadian town that bought his wife a lower end Porsche. It was about a 35k car. She parked it in front of their business and within a week they had a noticeable decline in business.
They promptly got rid of the Porsche and business got back to normal. He then bought her a Cadillac Escalade and no one noticed. Perception is everything.
The Cadillac cost more than the Porsche.
 

HUG

Silver
Feb 3, 2009
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And with her partner being a gringo she obviously has enough dignity to not want wagging tongues, which might be inevitable as the jealousy of her success in all areas is realized by others. It's often hard for some to digest people making a go of it on their own merit when a gringo is involved. Well don't to her, and you for really helping her rather than just plying her as is so often the case.
 

4*4*4

Bronze
May 4, 2015
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Sr. Brat, if my wife wanted to buy some of these spices, where would we find your gf exactly and when?
 
Aug 6, 2006
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Spices are surely one thing that the DR can use. A little goes a long way and many local dishes are of legendary insipidness.
In light of this, it seems strange that neither tofu not mushrooms are very popular.
 

4*4*4

Bronze
May 4, 2015
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I guess patents and intellectual property laws are not on the radar here?

It's quite simple. You must copyright your intellectual property after an updated legal branding, but preceding any outstanding patent while in accordance with existing matching and verified trademark. It's all on the application.
 
May 29, 2006
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This is a terrific success story!! This will inspire many (in non-competitive markets of course) to attempt to do the same. It is amazing how a smart plan and hard work leads to such luck!!

She's had the business for eight years. Given her start up cost was under 1000 pesos, it's way above the curve. It's a lot of work, and she has a long term business with over 80 clients. What's nice is it doesn't look like easy money, because she only makes a few bucks per storefront per week, but it does add up.