Your best business development ideas in Colombia

Priscilla et al, I've been involved in resturants, bookstores, woodworking, organic farming, fair trade(helping people in poverty get their products to market and receive a fair wage) real estate remodeling and commercial diving. Yes I'm tired but am now in a tourism business and semi retired at 61 years of age. I'm well travelled, self educated but since I was raised in the 1960s I think at this time getting involved in marijuana would be very smart and timely. Pot is soon to be legal in many more states and countries. Everyone should be invested in it because it's going to be bigger than when alcohol was legalized.

Pot has many things going for it.There are different parts to the plant. CBD Is medicinal- can be used for skin cancer and other cancers, Parkinson's, PAIN, happiness, seizures etc. There are so many different kinds of pot, they all offer something different.

Then the THC part you can use it recreationally to relax. Or the sativa variety is more energizing.

Then with hemp (no THC) which is a billion dollar industry making strong clothing, carpet , rope etc. The oil is nutritional.

Pot has always gotten a bad wrap from uneducated brainwashed politicians, The drug war in USA cost trillions then come to find out it cures everything !!! What a waste! And big crime with it.

So looking at Rio Negro where I live it would be an easy transition from flowers to pot. And I'm sorry this would only be a successful business. I'd be happy to be a helper if anyone is ready to cultivate pot and knows a lot about the business. I know some things not everything, but I'm making $$$ being invested in it which makes me very happy😄😄😄😄🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉yes you'd need guard dogs at your grow house

What do Gringos need, especially the 90-plus percent whose grasp of the Spanish language is weak?

Your business could provide....

1.  Translation services.

2.  Obtaining housing / real estate services.

3.  Touring services.

4.  Visa services for those willing to pay for assistance rather than deal with bureaucracy and finding the location of government offices.

5.  Teaching of useful Spanish phrases, including situation-specific Spanish.

6.  Assistance in obtaining health care / insurance.

7.   Shopping assistance for anything more complicated than buying fruit.  For instance:  furnishing an apartment, possibly including ordering of custom-made furniture.

cccmedia

cccmedia: Based on your profile photo it looks like you might be doing Elvis impersonations (or Roy Orbison?)  I told my wife that I always see the same gringo actor playing DEA agents on Colombian telenovelas, and maybe I could get a job as a gringo actor in Colombia.  She said (in Spanish) "Not only 'No', but 'Hell No'".  She doesn't want me on set with the Colombian actresses.  :-)

They don't have basil, cheese, Chinese food, or real steaks. I'm guessing the first person to do any of these things would be rich.

Basil is used in Colombia, perhaps you've just never encountered it:
http://www.colombia.com/gastronomia/asi … n-albahaca

And they do have cheese although not much compared to many countries:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cheeses#Colombia

Chinese food places are all over Cali, although they are not what I'd call great...

And steaks?  In Cali there's Restaurante Sabor Llanero which has excellent meats, and other regions, notably in los llanos like in Villavicencio, also have good meat.  Although I agree they just don't compare with what's available almost anyplace in the USA...

They do technically have cheese, but it's all bland. I'm not sure if the more flavorful cheeses would even sell in Colombia unless you sold it in a Gringo area like Poblado. Their cheese reminds me of that rubbery cheese sold alongside a meat stick as a snack in US convenience stores. It's just there and doesn't taste like anything. I tried Costeno because a Colombian told me it was salty. And it was. It still tasted like nothing but with salt added.   I think perhaps Velveeta might sell well there. I know it's not the epitome of cheese, but it's mild like they like but it still has a bit of flavor.

I ate at various Chinese places and they were just regular Colombian food with store-bought sweet and sour sauce and soy sauce on the side. You can't just serve Colombian fried trout with sweet and sour and call it Chinese! I walked into this one "Chinese" place with a Colombian girl. I knew what to expect already. I said, "Everyone working here is Colombian. I know I'm going to be disappointed, but let's try it anyhow." She says, "Who else would be working here besides Colombians? We're in Colombia!" I guess it's no use in arguing with that logic.   If you want Asian cuisine, oddly, the Peruvian restaurants have Asian stirfries that are quite nice. Peru has a lot of Chinese immigrants and they made "Chifa" popular there. I had some nice Peruvian-Asian fusion dishes at various places in Bogota and Medellin, so it's not super hard to find.

Still couldn't find basil, even in the upscale markets in the city. I made it a mission to find some, even the dried stuff, but I never could. Every time I'd go into a market I'd go look for it. Whoever I was with would say, "Why do you need basil right now?" I'd say, "I don't; I've just made it my mission to find some in Colombia." I never did.

And I could never find a nice steak, either. Not a tender marbled cut like you'd get in the US. I didn't see any ribeye or t-bone or filet. I'd had lomo several times hoping that loin meant tender loin. But their version of loin is very lean and chewy like the rest of the beef. And they tend to overcook it which makes it even tougher. I know they have cows in Colombia. I saw lots. And I don't figure their cows are genetically different from gringo cows. Maybe they sell the nice cuts to other countries like they do with their best coffees for max profits.

I know I sound piddly about such trivial matters. And these things are indeed trivial. But we were talking of business opportunities, and I figure if there's a void in the market, the first person to fill that void could possibly do well.

I have an idea for a business that I'm not going to share here. I think it's brilliant. It's something they do not have whatsoever or have even heard of. But they would love it. I have no doubts. It's my personal plan for whenever I can sock away enough money to make it happen. Wish me luck!

Oh, and it's hard to find great Mexican in Colombia, but it's possible. The trick is to find a Mexican shop with Mexicans. Not a real shocker, I know.

This little hole-in-the-wall is in Parque Lleras near Eco Bar (the bar where you sit outside on the tree stumps). Very good authentic Mexican street tacos.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_ … tment.html


If you live in Eje Cafetero, and make it to Filandia, this little shop is owned by a young Mexican guy. It's very good.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_ … tment.html
I gave him his very first review on TripAdvisor in January.   I tried to post a link to a food picture, but I'm seemingly not bright enough.

BrandonBP wrote:

I think perhaps Velveeta might sell well there. I know it's not the epitome of cheese, but it's mild like they like but it still has a bit of flavor.

Velveeta gets a bad rap in the U.S. ... considered unsophisticated.  But it's delicious .. and, when fairly fresh, it has a delightful texture.  I would be thrilled to find boxes of Velveeta at the cheese counters where I shop in Colombia and Ecuador.

Brandon wrote:

If you want Asian cuisine, oddly, the Peruvian restaurants have Asian stirfries that are quite nice. Peru has a lot of Chinese immigrants and they made "Chifa" popular there. I had some nice Peruvian-Asian fusion dishes at various places in Bogota and Medellin....

Peru has gotten a reputation as the gastronomical center of South America.  I found restaurant food in the Miraflores sector extremely tasty during my trip to Lima this year.  A modest Chinese restaurant near Kennedy park had food tastier than any chifa I knew in Quito.  The staff was definitely Chinese.

Brandon wrote:

And I could never find a nice steak, either. Not a tender marbled cut like you'd get in the U.S.... their version of loin is very lean and chewy like the rest of the beef. And they tend to overcook it which makes it even tougher...

I know I sound piddly about such trivial matters. And these things are indeed trivial. But we were talking of business opportunities.

Nicely cooked food is not trivial to me or a lot of other Expats in South America.  The over-cooking of pork is a real issue.  I sometimes ask for it to be cooked jugoso, or rare .. but the best most places seem to do is what I consider less-leathery, but not tender/rare, not by a long shot.

cccmedia

You can find basil - albahaca in Spanish - at the La 14 shopping centers which are in many Colombian cities.  Do a search here for albahaca and it will show what they carry:

http://www.la14.com/Tiendala14/Default.aspx

I think the problem with opening a food vendor or restaurant in Colombia is making prices competitive. For example, I think if you had a burger cart where you sold 100% beef burgers for $2.00, they'd still go to the burger stand down the street selling fake soy burgers for $1, even though it's a crappy tasting fake burger, they'd still buy it because it's cheaper.

Most gringo type places I visited in Colombia just had gringos as customers. Like Brunch in Salento. It's nice food that N. Americans and Europeans appreciate, but the prices are a bit high for the locals. I've eaten there perhaps 8 times and never remember any Colombians there.

There was an exception... There's a great burger place in San Gil called Gringo Mike's that's pretty pricey for Colombian standards, but I saw quite a few Colombians eating there the times I went.

So, I still don't know what to think about it all. I'd love to come live the dream and open a  restaurant in some small Colombian town, but it's very scary. It's a very difficult thing to create a successful business in your own country, but then to come to a foreign land not knowing the regulations, labor laws, and food preferences of the local people makes it even more difficult. You could open a shop and import the finest cheeses and meats, only to find out the Colombians would say, "I don't recognize what that is, and it's way too expensive."

I guess that's why Gringo Mike's and Brunch do so well. They cater to the people they know (Gringos) in touristy areas. And there are still a lot of little towns where gringos frequent that still don't have any non-Colombian dining options. I think tourism and expatriation will explode in Colombia like it did for Costa Rica and Panama. If you could get into the scene first, you could maybe do well for yourself.

I wish some attorney would call me today and inform me that I had a long-lost uncle that just passed and left me a couple hundred grand.

cccmedia wrote:

Nicely cooked food is not trivial to me or a lot of other Expats in South America.  The over-cooking of pork is a real issue.  I sometimes ask for it to be cooked jugoso, or rare .. but the best most places seem to do is what I consider less-leathery, but not tender/rare, not by a long shot.

I don't want to hijack the thread, but since you live in Ecuador, I wanted to ask you something that perplexed me while I was there. Maybe this is just a Banos thing, I mainly just hung out in Quito, Cuenca and Banos, so perhaps it's just a local ordinance or something.

In Banos, they will have shop after shop on a single street selling all the same thing. Like grilled plaintains with cheese. Another street a few blocks over will all be selling sugar cane products and candy. Across town, you can find carts selling grilled meats all on the same street. All these places are in a single line with the same exact products. I found it odd.

Because why would you stack up your shop with 15 other places selling grilled meats when you could go park by the grilled banana carts and sell meats on the side of town where no one is selling meat? Maybe someone wants a chuzo with their grilled bananas... I don't understand if it's the Ecuadorean mindset or if the law requires it.

I saw the same thing in Guatape, Colombia. All along the lakefront, there are 20 something restaurants all selling the same exact Colombian food. Fried trout, Sancocho, chuzos, etc. Why wouldn't one of them say, "There are 25 restaurants all around me selling my same product. Maybe I'll learn how to make some nice tacos..."

The practice of similar businesses locating in close proximity to one another is common in Ecuador -- the two mom 'n pop shops on my block in El Centro are right next door to each other -- and other countries too.

Take Manhattan in New York City.  My uncle and grandfather had a diamond dealing business on W. 47th Street.  The whole block is chock full of diamond, watch and jewelry businesses.

Same type of thing in the Garment District, the Fulton Fish Market and upscale Fifth Avenue fashion/shoe shops.  New Yorkers know where to shop for something .. and they like the convenience of going next door to see more/different/better offerings of the same category of goods.

cccmedia in Quito

cccmedia wrote:

New Yorkers know where to shop for something .. and like the convenience of going next door to see more/different/better offering of the same class of goods.

Well, that makes sense for jewelry, but what if I just want some meat and all they have is 12 carts with grilled plaintains? I was always like, damnit, now I have to walk across town just to get some meat on a stick.

I just thought it was odd.

BrandonBP wrote:

what if I just want some meat and all they have is 12 carts with grilled plaintains? I was always like, damnit, now I have to walk across town just to get some meat on a stick.

Have Carulla or a restaurant deliver whatever you need.

Colombian culture is famous for delivering foods and products of ‘all kinds,' though this may be truer in Medellin than in Popayan.

cccmedia in Quito

You're so right.  You can serve the best food in the world right here in Colombia and you're still going to be competing solely on price.  I have a small restaurant here in the middle of a booming tourist town and I sell delicious food (if i do say so myself ) with an average plate price of around $20,000 COP.  One day a young gringo couple walked in and looked dejectedly at my menu before walking out.  I stopped them at the front door and politely asked them if there was a reason they wouldn't be dining in my restaurant today.  The young man said they loved everything on the menu and would gladly eat here but that they were travelling and their daily food budget was only 6,000 Colombian Pesos (around US$2.20) per day.  I do very well here serving food to my principal demographic - young couples and families.  I could start selling cheaper "street" food (empanadas, pinchos, flautas etc) but that would simply serve to complicate my marketing message and drive away my key demographic.  My best bet would probably be to buy another lot down the street and open up another restaurant catering to another demographic.  Take care and thank you for making this such an interesting forum

Work sharing- engineering in Canada and US  done in Colombia at  one quarter the price.

Except you compete with India- but there is no ta big a time difference.

I have other ideas-related to energy and water management- that dont require any or little upfront capital- but I dont have the energy. Too busy enjoying the retired life.

Ginger

You cant be serious?

Selling Pot in Colombia?

Do you have any idea whose feet you will be stepping on?

If you dont, just watch a couple episodes of "Narcos"

I am sure "La  Oficina" would be really interested in our plans, Ginger

There are excelent Mexican  restaurants all over Colombia

A real good one called "DF" in Manizales

You guys have the North American taste for food. Tr to sell Colombians on a Curry restaurant or Dim-Sum just wont work. t has already been tried

Hi, we are looking into moving our company's call center operations to Medellin. Is there a qualified pool of English speakers in Medellin to employ say 50 people in a Call Center? Any advice you could give would be greatly appreciated.

Jonny Vegas wrote:

we are looking into moving our company's call center operations to Medellin. Is there a qualified pool of English speakers in Medellin to employ say 50 people in a Call Center? Any advice you could give would be greatly appreciated.

Dear Jonny Vegas,

Welcome to the Colombia forums of expat.com ...

The following factors are submitted for your approval:

Due to the negative publicity generated by Pablo Escobar, FARC, the ELN, paramilitaries and other bad actors in the past half century, Medellin has not yet attracted a significant percentage of English-speaking Expats compared with Cuenca, Ecuador .. and some places in Mexico (close to a million USA Expats in that country).

The population of the capital city of Colombia, Bogota, is several times that of Medellin.

A high percentage of English-speaking Expats in Colombia are retired .. and probably consider themselves outside the "pool" of employables.

A Google search of 'territorial entities where English is spoken' would lead you to Belize, the Bahamas and one of the Guyanas.  The locals may speak in somewhat-accented English.

IMO, rolling the dice on Medellin, Mr. Vegas, would be quite a gamble.

cccmedia

You should be able to find.............approach those academies or universities that teach english

@cccmedia I see this is a very old post. Are you still there?

And what if we talk about clothes? Or this is a failed idea and it is better to switch to something else.