Business questions, Answers, and Stories

[H4run]

No surprises there. Spending the time (and money?) to get to know suppliers is a long term strategy that can pay big dividends.

Are there any books, articles, or tips available that can provide me with a certain method or step-by-step approach to understanding stockholders or potential partners? My small business is running fine because I mostly rely on myself and my store. However, when it comes to ventures that promise significant fortunes like serious export and import businesses, I often encounter failures due to bad characters and greed.

Just a few days ago, I attended a funeral and met up with a friend there. He asked if I could find a foreign buyer for hardwoods, a business his wife's family has been involved in for generations. He had previously tried to collaborate with the government for a better profit, but the fulfillment process can be quite lengthy despite the favorable price interpretation. He mentioned that he didn't have enough money to cover the expenses. I assured him that I would do my best because based on my experience in the charcoal business (both hardwood and coconut), buyers sometimes need to provide a down payment in advance. Therefore, I thought I could help him find someone who would at least agree to conduct quality control in Indonesia and make the payment after passing the QC, without requiring a down payment. He agreed with this approach then I asked him whether I should increase the price or should we share profit? After discussing his capital speculation, he proposed splitting the profit in half, with me taking care of the overseas aspect and him handling the local necessities. I found this arrangement odd and unfair since he would need to cover the production costs here, while my role would primarily involve sales. To show him that I genuinely wanted to make this work, I suggested that I would be satisfied with receiving only "25%" if the venture turned out successful. Which he say yes without argument, I just hope with this he understand my good intention and willing to be more transparent, because 50%, 60 or 99% of share mean no freaking crap if we eat each other, so lets just settle with me get 25 but we had trust on each other.

Dealing with peoples is frustrating Bird, and I lost quite good money also sending the sample product to German. But yes, no pain no gain, right?

What I want is, to meet a decent peoples that I can have a profitable relation with, and it is so damn hard, daamn hard.

 

[Birdjaguar]

What business are you in? Are you a consultant? Are you starting a new business? Are you helping friends and trying to make money off their ideas? Would your time be better spent looking for businesses that are not your retail company or putting all your effort into what you are doing now?

Any business needs a plan of some sort and those begin with questions. Your story above shows that you do not have a good plan.

In small businesses the person who owns 51% or more is the boss. Everyone else is just along for the ride.

 

[H4run]

What business are you in? Are you a consultant? Are you starting a new business? Are you helping friends and trying to make money off their ideas? Would your time be better spent looking for businesses that are not your retail company or putting all your effort into what you are doing now?

My retail is getting better, but it's not enough. I'm in whatever business I guess, aside my retail I also rent standing air conditioners and a projector just to give you a view that as long as it make money and legal I'll do it, and I'm not at all an expert in air-conditioner or projector, I just cooperate with my previous work-mate where he offer to rent the product for customers during their wedding, while standing air-cons I put it on a ballroom and whenever they use it they pay. But yes, that also not enough.

You see, I just want to make money, I'll be their daddy, their brother and their whatever, as long as there's a good profit. And this time is also quite simple, my friend wife's family own a Durian woods pool in West Java and they are looking for buyer from abroad, yes I never conduct this scale of business (I did that on smaller scales, sending package of goods from here to abroad and etc, but not in a container level, I don't have the money as well to conduct on that scale as well) before but I have to try and start somewhere, and I think there must be a demand, I haven't really started but I just want to give a picture, I don't really care I get lesser or who is the boss as long as we able to score profit together.

 

[Narz]

Do they grow durian in Indonesia? There are so many supposed "superfoods" (goji berries for example that burst onto the global scene maybe 20 years ago) but durian is the best.

For seemingly five minutes they sold dried durian @ Costco but then it disappeared

 

[H4run]

Do they grow durian in Indonesia? There are so many supposed "superfoods" (goji berries for example that burst onto the global scene maybe 20 years ago) but durian is the best.

It's easily the most celebrated fruit in the country, it's easily my favorite fruit, and it's called here as the King of Fruit, so yes, we grow Durian here.

 

[Narz]

My favorite as well. I wonder if I'd get tired of it if I had it every day.

One time I was eating one in a train station in Delaware, US and someone, not recognizing the smell called the cops and before I knew it there were smelling dogs and some sort of bomb squad. I quicker chucked the container and ran to my train platform early

 

[H4run]

My favorite as well. I wonder if I'd get tired of it if I had it every day.

One time I was eating one in a train station in Delaware, US and someone, not recognizing the smell called the cops and before I knew it there were smelling dogs and some sort of bomb squad. I quicker chucked the container and ran to my train platform early

I really don't get it why peoples with Westernized taste, even say, my wife who usually eat food with minimum spices and oil and eat bread (very classic west part Anatolian diet that's similar to Greek than say central asian or mideast), find Durian scent and taste to be upsetting. Whenever I offer her one, she just refuse and tell it to has a very repulsive smell, I just don't get it because it smell good and it taste sweet, lol.

 

[Narz]

Yeah I think it smells amazing

 

[Birdjaguar]

My retail is getting better, but it's not enough. I'm in whatever business I guess, aside my retail I also rent standing air conditioners and a projector just to give you a view that as long as it make money and legal I'll do it, and I'm not at all an expert in air-conditioner or projector, I just cooperate with my previous work-mate where he offer to rent the product for customers during their wedding, while standing air-cons I put it on a ballroom and whenever they use it they pay. But yes, that also not enough.

You see, I just want to make money, I'll be their daddy, their brother and their whatever, as long as there's a good profit. And this time is also quite simple, my friend wife's family own a Durian woods pool in West Java and they are looking for buyer from abroad, yes I never conduct this scale of business (I did that on smaller scales, sending package of goods from here to abroad and etc, but not in a container level, I don't have the money as well to conduct on that scale as well) before but I have to try and start somewhere, and I think there must be a demand, I haven't really started but I just want to give a picture, I don't really care I get lesser or who is the boss as long as we able to score profit together.

That is part of the problem. It appears that you are grasping at whatever seems likely to produce some kind of immediate return and might be successful over time. Quick fix solutions rarely work well. When all parties involved are looking for quick money, nobody cares about the consequences other than putting money in their pocket. Long term customer satisfaction, business partnerships, etc. are not priorities.

What are your strengths?
Where (in what arenas) are your strongest contacts?
List your best resources for knowledge, capital, partners, products, services, etc.

How much additional revenue would your retail business need to make to relieve your immediate pressure for income? How does revenue convert to income for you?
What are the obstacles to getting to that level? More product? More sales? Higher average order size? More customers?

 

[H4run]

That is part of the problem. It appears that you are grasping at whatever seems likely to produce some kind of immediate return and might be successful over time. Quick fix solutions rarely work well. When all parties involved are looking for quick money, nobody cares about the consequences other than putting money in their pocket. Long term customer satisfaction, business partnerships, etc. are not priorities.

Spot on! I already give up doing something that I'm passionate of, I adopt job or new trade and learn or ending up loving it over times. In this sense, I can always adopt or try new things if I think it can bring me some incomes.

What are your strengths?
Where (in what arenas) are your strongest contacts?
List your best resources for knowledge, capital, partners, products, services, etc.

My strongest perhaps is contacts, and I know how to move commodities around, it's a long story to tell but that's actually what give me money so far. My contacts are mostly my current Turkish customers that's looking for Indonesian herbs like say temulawak, temu mangga, honey (focus on trigona, product of a stingless bee). In Indonesia I have contacts with government workers and apparatus due to my previous job as Business and Development (even though I spend a long time being an HR). Network so far is what brings me money, I thankfully able to connect with several good peoples or partners in Turkey which I actively sell products to them and also actively buying product from them as well, and I know where to find good wholesaler herbs in Indonesia that I actively buying their commodities for 3 years or more, even though unlike my contact in Turkey I'm unable to establish a personal connection to them, with this particular Indonesian herbs' agent and provider (who was from central-Java) I mostly contacted their admin/marketing, I never talk to their management or owner before (the management quite hard to reach). And aside of that I know clovers agent also in East Java who supply his clover to huge kretek cigarette brand like Gudang Garam (the owner directly, he is quite humble), and currently I'm trying to explore the possibility of selling clover essential oil as well, which my connection seems to be too big for the scope of my business, as I buy it in amount like 2 litters while this guy sell per barrel like 80 litters.

How much additional revenue would your retail business need to make to relieve your immediate pressure for income? How does revenue convert to income for you?
What are the obstacles to getting to that level? More product? More sales? Higher average order size? More customers?

It need so much BJ. Currently the product that sell quite good is henna, even though it sells quite good as a natural henna powder in comparison to my competitor, but my competitor have so many other products that also generate revenue for them, while my main MVP is currently only henna while others is really still crawling. Tokopedia have the best and the easiest interface for online platform so I mostly use that because it's easy, but in comparison to shopee, tokopedia have quite low traffic it has 100 million users (which is still much) but shopee has 150 million active users, tokopedia mostly favourable among males because it's practical and easy to use while shopee is more popular among females and it's known to be good to sell beauty product (which include henna). My shopee store currently suffering due to low performance because being neglected for quite long (during my working period), so even though I actively put some ads on it, the algorithm is not recommending my store enough (it has a perfect 5 stars customers review, but very low chat respond score, yes we neglected it, shopee is a headache) it enough to the customer. Idk man, I feel like I'm currently planting seeds, and hope it grow into trees one day, my only regret is I start all of these quite late.

 

[Birdjaguar]

I'm thinking about ^^^. Meanwhile, how about looking for a job with an existing business? It that a reasonable path?

 

[H4run]

I'm thinking about ^^^. Meanwhile, how about looking for a job with an existing business? It that a reasonable path?

I don't think that's an option now. If I took a job, this business will be neglected once again, and now there are mass lay off everywhere, it's better if I can somehow make me able to rely on myself than at a mercy of a company at the time like this. My position also back then pretty much almost on management level, and I'm on my late 30s, I think they prefer someone that's much more younger, cheaper and easy to train and lead than me. And so far, I have enough money for food, rent, education, electric, etc with the current income, but not great enough to increase my saving, because it's a long way to go and in order to expand my business and speculate I also spend money as well.

 

[H4run]

And aside of that I know clovers agent also in East Java who supply his clover to huge kretek cigarette brand like Gudang Garam (the owner directly, he is quite humble), and currently I'm trying to explore the possibility of selling clover essential oil as well, which my connection seems to be too big for the scope of my business, as I buy it in amount like 2 litters while this guy sell per barrel like 80 litters.

There was a time when Tomy Soeharto handled and manage all the clovers business and cultivation in Indonesia, he got full control over the price, regulation and whatever it is. So this particular area was part of the place where Tomy designated for clover cultivation. The huge agent that I currently know and in contact with me actually was a driver, but because he know the area quite well, and know how to pool and quality control the clovers, he pretty much become the biggest agent and clover pooler there. So farmers brings their clovers buds and oils in bulk, and sell it to him, which his workers will control and QC then pay them in cash. The oil making process is still quite traditional, it's a home-industry basically, the method also quite safe it's through steaming, I know all of these because my friend, we were quite close back then in University due to activism, is living there. So, for 1-2 litters of oil, I think we can just buy it directly from the farmers and got a better and cheaper price, but of course if the quantity is for export then we are pretty much depended to the agent who able to collect clovers and oil in large quantity. And I can grip hold both of it, farmers (through my friend) and the agent, my friend also pretty much an eccentric person, he's a University graduate with scholarship and an ex-activist who right now just spend most of his time farming and living a very simple life and he never work in his life as well, he doesn't have any bank account, and he went to pick up the product for me and sent it to my home and refuse any payment, "back then there were time where I live in your house and you provide me cigs and food as well", in my dictionary he is a cool guy.

 

[Birdjaguar]

When I held classes with those folks hoping to start a new business we talked through the questions in this pdf file about their particular enterprise. The questions are listed in order from most important to least important. You need to be able to answer most of these thoroughly.

 

[Birdjaguar]

There was a time when Tomy Soeharto handled and manage all the clovers business and cultivation in Indonesia, he got full control over the price, regulation and whatever it is. So this particular area was part of the place where Tomy designated for clover cultivation. The huge agent that I currently know and in contact with me actually was a driver, but because he know the area quite well, and know how to pool and quality control the clovers, he pretty much become the biggest agent and clover pooler there. So farmers brings their clovers buds and oils in bulk, and sell it to him, which his workers will control and QC then pay them in cash. The oil making process is still quite traditional, it's a home-industry basically, the method also quite safe it's through steaming, I know all of these because my friend, we were quite close back then in University due to activism, is living there. So, for 1-2 litters of oil, I think we can just buy it directly from the farmers and got a better and cheaper price, but of course if the quantity is for export then we are pretty much depended to the agent who able to collect clovers and oil in large quantity. And I can grip hold both of it, farmers (through my friend) and the agent, my friend also pretty much an eccentric person, he's a University graduate with scholarship and an ex-activist who right now just spend most of his time farming and living a very simple life and he never work in his life as well, he doesn't have any bank account, and he went to pick up the product for me and sent it to my home and refuse any payment, "back then there were time where I live in your house and you provide me cigs and food as well", in my dictionary he is a cool guy.

This "opportunity" seems to be that of a distributor selling to who?

 

[H4run]

When I held classes with those folks hoping to start a new business we talked through the questions in this pdf file about their particular enterprise. The questions are listed in order from most important to least important. You need to be able to answer most of these thoroughly.

Thank you, noted.

This "opportunity" seems to be that of a distributor selling to who?

Well, that's the piece of the puzzle that I need to solve. I already send half litter to Turkey to give some of it to aktar for free mixed with carrier oil and can work as pain or muscle reliever that way they can see themselves regarding the product quality. And yes I use it myself as well, I also read it's good also to help hair growth and to maintain scalp-skin health, so perhaps I can try to mix it with carrier oil that I have like kemiri oil that we use for one of variant of our henna product to make a smoother henna paste with a great benefit for hair also. I just don't want to waste this opportunity, hence I buy more of it even I don't have any clear buyer yet, at worst scenario I can use it for myself as hair tonic, muscle reliver, aroma therapy, it's a luxurious product that I buy in insanely good price.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Who would your customers be? Stores or individuals? Somebody else?

 

[H4run]

Who would your customers be? Stores or individuals? Somebody else?

Currently the sample products that I send to Turkey are directed to stores/retailers. And I'm also contemplating on making natural (non-chemical) hair mask, also to added it to the carrier oil of my henna package to increase my product quality, my target in that case will be end-user.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Currently the sample products that I send to Turkey are directed to stores/retailers. And I'm also contemplating on making natural (non-chemical) hair mask, also to added it to the carrier oil of my henna package to increase my product quality, my target in that case will be end-user.

Those are two very different businesses that need two different planning cycles. Trying to do two different things at once will weaken both efforts. Developing a new product for your henna line marketing effort has nothing to do with building a distribution network to retailers. I will write up a "quick & dirty" method to analyze the potential financial future for both.

 

[H4run]

Those are two very different businesses that need two different planning cycles. Trying to do two different things at once will weaken both efforts. Developing a new product for your henna line marketing effort has nothing to do with building a distribution network to retailers. I will write up a "quick & dirty" method to analyze the potential financial future for both.

Thank you so much, really appreciate your times and effort Bird.