# opening a business in Mexico?



## future expat1 (Jul 26, 2013)

i have been thinking about opening a small bar or hotel or something in mexico

is 900,000 pesos enough for this?

and which business is best? bar, hotel, restaurant, cafe, cloths store, or what?

is it wise to buy a franchise?

and which town or city should i set this business up ? and where in the town or city?

i also want to be able to live on my business premises

what are the immigration problems and complication i will face when trying to do this ?


----------



## sparks (Jun 17, 2007)

I'm afraid these are pipe dreams. Come to Mexico and look around for 4-6 months


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

It seems to me that before thinking about starting a small business in Mexico, often an iffy proposition even for Mexicans, you should think about where you'd enjoy living in Mexico. How much time have you spent here? What areas of the country are you familiar with?


----------



## future expat1 (Jul 26, 2013)

i have never been there, and that is one the reasons why i wanted a suggestion, i don't really mind much where just as long as its a decent place for me to start a business with a relatively low crime rate(yes i know crime is everywhere there, but i just mean not so much crime, if you know what i mean)

and is 900,000 pesos enough to start a business there ?


----------



## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

future expat1 said:


> i have never been there, and that is one the reasons why i wanted a suggestion, i don't really mind much where just as long as its a decent place for me to start a business with a relatively low crime rate(yes i know crime is everywhere there, but i just mean not so much crime, if you know what i mean)
> 
> and is 900,000 pesos enough to start a business there ?


Sarting might be too difficult but buying one feasable if you are in a hurry. IMO


----------



## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Are you fluent in Spanish?
That amount may not even be enough to get a residence permit.
How will you handle the competition if they visit you with demands? ..........
Will you have an exit strategy?
Can you survive for a year or two without profits?
Why Mexico, when Spain is closer to England?


----------



## future expat1 (Jul 26, 2013)

RVGRINGO said:


> Are you fluent in Spanish?
> That amount may not even be enough to get a residence permit.
> How will you handle the competition if they visit you with demands? ..........
> Will you have an exit strategy?
> ...




no i don't speak spanish, but i'm willing to learn

are you sure its not enough ? then what is?

and i don't know what you mean when you say "competition" and "demands" please elaborate

and i dont know what u class as an "exit strategy" but im guessing ur referring to if i should fail in mexico? if so, then i don't have a choice, i will just come back to London

and no, i don't think i could survive a year or two without profits, and i pray it wont come to that

and you are obviously not up to date with european news! spain has 30% unemployment and the worst unemployment rate, economy, recession and trade deficit in european history, with constant riots every day.


----------



## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

You might be hit up for protection or worse. I has happened and a foreign business owner had to sleep in different locations and then left in a hurry. 
A residence visa will require you to prove foreign income of about $1900-$2500 USD/month. The consulate can give you more accurate figures, as well as requirements for investors and the required employee responsibilities that the owner must comply with for insurance, medical, discharge, time off for various situations, etc.
Being instantly profitable might be a pipe dream anywhere.
I suggest that you continue doing your homework and that you begin by studying Mexico, then visiting likely areas for several months at a time, in all seasons.


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

Here's another question for you: What sort of experience have you had in your home country running a small business?


----------



## future expat1 (Jul 26, 2013)

Isla Verde said:


> Here's another question for you: What sort of experience have you had in your home country running a small business?


thanks for asking, i have had lots of experience managing my sisters beauty salon, and i was the assistant manage of a british supermarket called morrisons, so I have an idea regarding how businesses operate, however i dont want a salon or supermarket, i would prefer one of the things i previously stated

can i please get the answers to these questions ? 

s 900,000 pesos enough for this?

and which business is best? bar, hotel, restaurant, cafe, cloths store, or what?

is it wise to buy a franchise?

and which town or city should i set this business up ? and where in the town or city?

i also want to be able to live on my business premises

what are the immigration problems and complication i will face when trying to do this ?



please help


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

future expat1 said:


> thanks for asking, i have had lots of experience managing my sisters beauty salon, and i was the assistant manage of a british supermarket called morrisons, so I have an idea regarding how businesses operate, however i dont want a salon or supermarket, i would prefer one of the things i previously stated
> 
> can i please get the answers to these questions ?
> 
> ...


I have the feeling that almost no one active on this forum has had the experience of starting and operating a successful small business in Mexico, given that a lot of us (though not all) are retirees. Hopefully, someone will come along to prove me wrong!


----------



## future expat1 (Jul 26, 2013)

Isla Verde said:


> I have the feeling that almost no one active on this forum has had the experience of starting and operating a successful small business in Mexico, given that a lot of us (though not all) are retirees. Hopefully, someone will come along to prove me wrong!



so you can't answer any of my questions ? well, ok thank you anyway


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

future expat1 said:


> so you can't answer any of my questions ? well, ok thank you anyway


Well, I can't since my sole experience of working in Mexico has been teaching English and working as an editor and translator. You might try googling to find a website that caters to expats in Mexico who want to become small-business entrepeneurs. Good luck!


----------



## GARYJ65 (Feb 9, 2013)

I can give you my input on this, since I have my own business in Mexico
To be concise:
I think that what you need is to hire a business consulting company, your questions are too wide to be answered lightly.

In fact, most people would love to know the answers to your questions

Saludos

Gary J



future expat1 said:


> i have been thinking about opening a small bar or hotel or something in mexico
> 
> is 900,000 pesos enough for this?
> 
> ...


----------



## future expat1 (Jul 26, 2013)

GARYJ65 said:


> I can give you my input on this, since I have my own business in Mexico
> To be concise:
> I think that what you need is to hire a business consulting company, your questions are too wide to be answered lightly.
> 
> ...



thanks and i get what you mean, and what kind of business do you own?


and can i just have your own personal opinions as answers to my questions?


----------



## GARYJ65 (Feb 9, 2013)

future expat1 said:


> thanks and i get what you mean, and what kind of business do you own?
> 
> 
> and can i just have your own personal opinions as answers to my questions?


I own a construction and real estate company
Send me a PM

Regards!


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

GARYJ65 said:


> I own a construction and real estate company
> Send me a PM
> 
> Regards!


I'm sure that GARY will give the OP good advice, but the OP should keep in mind that GARY is Mexican, so what has worked for him might not work for an expat.


----------



## maesonna (Jun 10, 2008)

There is a recent thread on having a business in Mexico, did you read it yet?


----------



## GARYJ65 (Feb 9, 2013)

Isla Verde said:


> I'm sure that GARY will give the OP good advice, but the OP should keep in mind that GARY is Mexican, so what has worked for him might not work for an expat.


Dear Isla, you are right about that, but....I was also involved in the start up and operation of a multi million dollar american company from scratch.


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

GARYJ65 said:


> Dear Isla, you are right about that, but....I was also involved in the start up and operation of a multi million dollar american company from scratch.


Very impressive, Gary! How is the company doing these days?


----------



## GARYJ65 (Feb 9, 2013)

Isla Verde said:


> Very impressive, Gary! How is the company doing these days?


It broke!

Just kidding!

It's the second largest company in Mexico
And still a Fortune 500 one


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

GARYJ65 said:


> It broke!
> 
> Just kidding!
> 
> ...


Do you mean "it went broke"? 

You must have done something right!


----------



## GARYJ65 (Feb 9, 2013)

Isla Verde said:


> Do you mean "it went broke"?
> 
> You must have done something right![/QUOTE
> 
> ...


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

GARYJ65 said:


> Isla Verde said:
> 
> 
> > Do you mean "it went broke"?
> ...


----------



## Longford (May 25, 2012)

Wal Mart is the No. 1 company, and the second in line is either Pemex or Chrysler or one of the other auto manufacturers .... I'm recalling.


----------



## Detailman (Aug 27, 2011)

future expat1 said:


> thanks for asking, i have had lots of experience managing my sisters beauty salon, and i was the assistant manage of a british supermarket called morrisons, so I have an idea regarding how businesses operate, however i dont want a salon or supermarket, i would prefer one of the things i previously stated
> 
> can i please get the answers to these questions ?
> 
> ...


 You are looking for opinions. OK! I will give you mine.

I have spent over 30 years dealing with individuals wanting to start businesses and locate in Shopping Centres that I helped develop. With your stated experience and lack of focus on what you now want to do I would not even consider you for a tenant in a Centre that I was involved in.

Why do I say that?

1) You have little experience. Some, yes, but not the experience to start your own business, especially in a foreign country where the "rules" differ completely from your native country.

2) You are not focused on what you want to do or what you bring to the table.

3) You are unrealistic in thinking that in starting a business you will be making money in the first few years. (That is something you already expressed in a prior post.) For that reason alone I would never consider having you as a tenant. (Yes, I know you are not asking to be one of my tenants.) 

Most businesses (anywhere in the world) do not make a profit right out of the gate. If your business expectations are to make a profit right out of the gate you do not have business acumen or realistic expectations.

4) With expectations of success in the short term most people have not planned for a extended period of time when they might have to subsidize their business and as a result they fail due to not being able to carry the cost of their business through to the time when it starts to make money (which is often much later than they think.)

I would suggest that you visit Mexico, spent some time, and consider what might be prudent.

This might seem like harsh criticism. So be it. It can save you a major monetary loss.

I will not get into my qualifications but I assure you that I can read between the lines and tell you that you are not ready to start a business in a foreign country based on the questions you are asking or your stated experience.


----------



## GARYJ65 (Feb 9, 2013)

I agree with Detailman !


----------



## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Write again when you have found the shift key and have also spent time exploring Mexico in person.
Then, you will have better questions.


----------



## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

[quote_=Detailman;1265517]You are looking for opinions. OK! I will give you mine.

I have spent over 30 years dealing with individuals wanting to start businesses and locate in Shopping Centres that I helped develop. With your stated experience and lack of focus on what you now want to do I would not even consider you for a tenant in a Centre that I was involved in.

Why do I say that?

1) You have little experience. Some, yes, but not the experience to start your own business, especially in a foreign country where the "rules" differ completely from your native country.

2) You are not focused on what you want to do or what you bring to the table.

3) You are unrealistic in thinking that in starting a business you will be making money in the first few years. (That is something you already expressed in a prior post.) For that reason alone I would never consider having you as a tenant. (Yes, I know you are not asking to be one of my tenants.) 

Most businesses (anywhere in the world) do not make a profit right out of the gate. If your business expectations are to make a profit right out of the gate you do not have business acumen or realistic expectations.

4) With expectations of success in the short term most people have not planned for a extended period of time when they might have to subsidize their business and as a result they fail due to not being able to carry the cost of their business through to the time when it starts to make money (which is often much later than they think.)

I would suggest that you visit Mexico, spent some time, and consider what might be prudent.

This might seem like harsh criticism. So be it. It can save you a major monetary loss.

I will not get into my qualifications but I assure you that I can read between the lines and tell you that you are not ready to start a business in a foreign country based on the questions you are asking or your stated experience.[/quote]_


Cogent remarks and an important warning to would-be entrepreneurs with dreams of rapid success (or any success at all for that matter) in start-up, undercapitalized businesses and the definition of "undercapitalized" is whatever capital you have to begin with less the amount you will spend getting your business off the ground which equals far less capital than you thought you would need to achieve breakeven much less make a profit. Add to that the dangerous uncertainty of starting a business in a foreign country with only a passiing familiarity if any wiith local laws, customs and tastes and things become even more difficult if not impossible. I am reminded of the lament of the Mexican owner of a SUBWAY Sandwich shop in San Cristóbal de Las Casas who was actrually from San Cristóbal and had a bang-up location next to the principal plaza, a major tourist draw. "I don´t know what to do," he lamented, "locals won´t eat anything with which they are not familiar and resist buying my sandwiches and, sure, I sell to tourists, but they come and go and I have to pay for the rent and the help and the food inventory. I know you only live here part time but the next time you roll in from Guadalajara, don´t expect to find me here." Then he went back to work making my Italian Sub because on that day his help had not shown up and he was working 12 hours making sandwiches himself before going home utterly exhausted having lost even more money that day for his efforts. 

Who, you may ask, doesn´t like a Subway sandwich now and then? Well, apparently a lot of Coletos (natives of San Cristóbal) don´t care for them but prefer their own famous tamales which are not only better tasting but a hell of a lot cheaper . What an expensive market research project.

I also dealt with small busineses for some 35 years as a commercial banker in San Francisco and I, like Detailman, have seen more broken dreams than I can ever hope to remember. This was especially true when the real estate market was booming in the San Francisco Bay Area and I can´t tell you how many times would-be entrepreneurs came to me and some with detailed but naive business plans and pledged all that excess equity in their personal residences to, say, start a restaurant/bar operation among many examples, only to lose their businesses and their homes in short order and end up destitute. I always warned these folks of the serious risks involved but they often had stars in their eyes and failed to listen to me. "What the hell, you have substantial equity in your home", I would say, "if you want a home equity loan, what you do with the proceeds is your business. Good luck. Remember, however, that just because Aunt Betsy loves your pecan pie and the brothers down at the Raccoon Lodge love your BBQ ribs doesn´t mean you can run a restaurant. Also, keep in mind that, here in the Bay Area, meat suppliers expect to be paid in seven days because the product they sell is perishable and if you don´t pay them on time they will cut you off without mercy and what good is a BBQ joint without meat?"

Too late normally. The itch is there and must be scratched. There goes the retirement nest egg. At least there was the remaining asset in the restaurant of the bar inventory with which to become soused in your now abundant leisure time before the landlord closes and seals the doors for non-payment of rent.


----------



## Detailman (Aug 27, 2011)

Good addition Hound Dog. I have seen many people lose the equity in their new business and also in their homes. Sometimes their ideas are excellent but they just do not budget enough to get them to the point where they start to make money.

Sometimes someone else comes along and builds on what they started and voila! Success because they start to turn a profit in the near future based on the work that had already been done. by the person who couldn't last until the profits started.

One of the first questions I always ask relates to how long they can go without making money. If it is not realistic the conversation ends immediately as I do not want to see people get themselves in such a situation. I tell them I just did them a huge favour!


----------



## RPBHaas (Dec 21, 2011)

future expat1 said:


> i
> 
> is 900,000 pesos enough for this?
> 
> ...


Yes you can start a business in Mexico for 900,000 pesos. It won´t be easy though. Answers;
1. 900,000 is enough depending on what you do and what your standard of living expectations are.
2. Best business depends on your experience and qualifications. What are you qualified to start and operate?

3. I don't think you have enough for a franchise. Some franchises in small towns are successful due to being the only game in town. There is obvious inherent risk.

4. Town depends on many factors which are too many to list. You would have to spend some time here first to gain experience. The north and east of the country tend to be "generally" more dangerous due to the group that basically controls those parts. Michoacan and Guerrero are more dangerous than most other parts.

5. You can obtain a residente temporal with permiso para trabajar visa after you establish and register your business. You would have to come to Mexico on a tourist visa and create and register your mexican company prior to obtaining this type of visa. I believe a Mexican citizen can start a company as a sole proprietor but you will most likely have to be a persona moral for financial purposes. There are several registrations necessary for a foreign owned Mexican company.

I have done what I believe you are asking, start a business in Mexico. However, I am fluent in Spanish, had a Mexican workforce in the US and spent 3 years traveling the country before choosing my location.


----------

