Setting up a small business in Manila

Hi kuni72 & welcome to Expat.com!

Hope that you'll soon be enlightened.

Harmonie.

Hey there! Basically foreign investors choose to do business here in Manila because of lower labor cost.  The minimum wage in Manila is just P 425 a day and lower by a hundred or so if its outside Manila (provincial rate).  Some companies even give lower than that for blue collar workers.  As for office spaces, I think you can find one in this site sulit.ph. This is where I looked for commercial spaces for rent for my seasonal mini boutique this year.  You may choose to find office spaces in CBD (central business district) areas such as : Pasig (Ortigas), Makati, Pasay, Quezon City. But of course it will be cheaper outside those cities. If you want to look for interns, it will be easy. Just post your opening at jobstreet philippines or partner with school of your choice and talk about how to invite their students to apply as interns. Some schools require their students to render hours during school days (ordinary days) but a lot of schools also require the completion of internship only during summer break.  For the business permits and fees, it will also depend on the city you want to invest into. Plus you also need to register at SEC (another government agency).   From here, if you set aside a budget for the business permits and fees, I think you can compute the total investment you needed for setting up your business here and determine your estimated return of investment.  This is pretty much a general info that I can give as I don't know much about design business.   Hope this helps