How come there aren't too many liquor stores in Cancun? I see that they sell alcohol in the big box stores (walmart, commercial mexicano, costco, and La Europea), but I did not see too many "mom and pop" places. In Mexico City there are Divina Stores and the like all over the place. Any reasons why they don't have these type of stores in Cancun? You would think it would be a very profitable business.
Simple answer... liquor licenses are upwards of $20,000 usd last I heard.... most smaller stores, restaurants, and bars that sell liquor have agreements with one of the "houses" that make and distribute the products, to sell under their licenses.. with set sales quotas that they have to meet every month. The rest are simply breaking the law and bribing the inspectors when they come by. The license for "beer" is a separate one that operates the same way, making it difficult to be profitable if you don't have a fair amount of sales.
Poco, did you have a chance, on this trip, to interview any successful, expat businessmen/women to learn more about the business climate, here?
V - I was only in Cancun for a couple of days(Sunday to Wednesday) I did not have a chance to talk to any expats (I don't know any expats either). We went to Cancun to check out a few schools for my children and houses to rent. I did however meet and talk a few local Mexicans who all have dreams and ideas of starting/owning a small business (and are looking for investors). I will be back at the end of June, hopefully I can meet up with some people with business experience at that time. I did however notice that there is a lot of opportunities there.
It's too early to be offering further advice but, here goes anyway. I would avoid partnering with any Mexicans: put them to work but don't offer them an interest in your business or buy an interest in theirs, if you don't want to run a serious risk of getting "screwn", down the road. (For that matter, why partner with anyone, unless you have to, as it just makes your task that much more difficult.) The environment in which Mexicans must operate is different from the one in which expats can operate: I see them as much more vulnerable to getting shaken down for money, whether by government officials or just plain thugs.
V - You are right about being partners. Even here in the States (or anywhere else) it is risky to enter into a business partnership. I wasn't really thinking of going that route anyway. I would rather lose my own money my way then have it lost (or stolen) by someone else. Anyway, I see a lot of potential business ideas to implement there, I just have to figure which on is best for me, though, I am under the impression that it should be kept "low profile" as to not attract too much attention. Also, I am going to take some time to unwind, relax, be with the family before jumping off into any ventures right away. I am also going to get an FM2 (My wife is a Mexican Citizen) and consider working for someone else for a while (I can use my 20 years of Hotel Experience to find a job in a resort). Ultimate goal = start a business, timeline = not in a rush.
