Surviving in a Refugee Camp: How to earn a living when you have nothing.

It is always nice when you come across accounts of people actually getting through disasters and learning what they did to survive and stay afloat. In the case of the refugees in Europe from Middle East, life in a refugee camp sure is challenging and there’s lots of lessons to be learned.
I found this article in La Nacion about refugees in Idomeni, Greece. Los refugiados apelan a una imaginación inagotable. The article is in Spanish but these are the most interesting accounts:
Rachid, a 36 year old mechanic from Iraq, makes a living in the camp by working as a barber. “Each day it rains is a day I don’t get to work” he complains about the Greek weather ruining his “business” which consists of a couple chairs set among the tents, a couple scissors and combs.
Rachid and his brother rented a generator “ I prefer to work even at night”. he states proudly. His brother Faisal is in charge of the “communications” business, charging the cell phones of other refugees for a fee.
Syrian Malik set up a General Store in the camp: Peppers, lemons, tomatoes and canned greens. He buys most of the produce he sells from the nearby farms. His cousin Ali sells fruits, four boxes of oranges and applies which he refills twice a day.
“With just 3 Euros our women can do miracles, prepare meals from back home” says Abdulá Kamir, a Syrian IT that grew tired of the bombings back home.
But the business that really booms in the refugee camp is the sale of prepaid phone cards. These are useful not only for calling family back home and those already in the countries of destination, but also to keep up to date regarding the situation in the different frontiers and the changing regulations in each country. Samir (20), Omar (20) and Mustafá (23) make a living providing these, which they consider their trade secret. “The day we reveal how we get our intel is the day we are left without a business”. Edith Duncan, a British nurse volunteers, says they are the three most popular people in the camp “wherever you see a crowd of people, there you will find one of them” she says.
Hazan, eight years old, sets a few packs of cigarettes on top of a box “¡Marlboro! ¡Marlboro!” he shouts, selling cigarettes to help his older brother, age twelve, who also works. Hazan claims he will own a grocery store chain in Munich when he grows up.
FerFAL
Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”.

Post-SHTF Business: Renting Generators

http://www.clarin.com/ciudades/Equipo-hogar-puede-costar-entre-_3-400-_20-000_0_1288071211.html
Argentina always had problems with power outages. Back when I was a little kid it was something that happened pretty often, especially in summer when power demand increased. Back then we had a drawer in the kitchen that was stacked with candles. Now, its not that I’m THAT old, it’s just that LED technology is still pretty new. It just wasn’t practical to use incandescent lightbulb flashlights for illumination. They went through batteries in a matter of minutes and it wasn’t really that bright anyway. Instead you would get a candle or two, get one of the old candle holders kept around the house, or if you couldn’t find one just lit a candle, drop a couple drops of wax on a small plate, place the candle on top and be careful not to drop it and burn down the house. So you did that, waited a few minutes, sometimes a couple hours until power was restored.

Honda EU2000I 2000 Watt Super Quiet Inverter Generator $999

The thing is that as I’ve said many times, Argentina post 2001 is the same story, only worse. You still have power outages, but after 14 years of structural neglect from the government and power companies outages tend to last days, not just hours. This may be expected in more isolated locations, but in a large city like Buenos Aires where millions live it can be challenging.
It used to be that with power outages that lasted a few hours a generator was a “nice to have” item, but with those lasting days not having a generator means some people can’t leave their homes any more. You can’t ask someone with a disability or +80 years to walk back and forth to their 6th floor apartment. Water needs to be pumped up, so no power means no water for many as well. For many stores, no power means their merchandise goes bad and they can’t stay in business without working refrigerators.
Buying a new generator in Argentina right now isn’t cheap, expect to pay between two or five times more than the price for that same unit in USA. Then you have to worry about repairing the generator, maintenance, making sure it doesn’t get stolen, storing it, etc. Because of this, renting generators has become a popular choice, especially for business, stores and buildings who need larger units. The prices are all over the place, from 50 dollars a day (for a genny that costs 400 USD in America) to 600 USD a day for some of the bigger 200kva units such as the ones large stores and buildings need to operate pumps and elevators, fuel not included.

Champion 4750 Watt DUAL FUEL Generator w/Electric Start (CARB Compliant) $516,57

Just something to keep in mind. In certain climates and certain locations, having a generator is pretty much mandatory, one of those facts of life. But also keep in mind that it may be a significant asset in certain scenarios, everywhere from powering your neighbours in exchange of other goods and services or simply renting it out for cash. In this case getting bigger, reliable generator makes sense.
FerFAL
Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”.

Apartment Rent Prices after the Crash‏

Hi Fernando!
Have been following you for several years now and now I have one question.
How did financial crisis influence rental prices for small apartments?
I am thinking of buying loft to create small apartments (30 to 60m2) to rent them out. Therefore I am interested to know, how how rental prices were doing during the initial crash, during “recovery” and how they are doing now.
Maybe you have some links to rental price graphs or something similar.
Thanks in advance for your answer!
Thanks a lot for the job you are doing! It really helps people around the world. And unfortunately – the further we go, the more it helps!
Kind regards from small country – Latvia ;),
JA

A small apartment is actually a good investment

Hello JA!
In the case of Argentina, the prices pretty much followed inflation, and by this I mean they followed the real inflation, not the much lower official one. This is important when you consider that we’re talking 30% to 40% inflation each year in Argentina. In most modern day economic collapses and crisis we see something similar going on. It’s interesting to notice that while property prices may drop, in some areas more than others of course, you rarely see rent prices drop much. Especially for the kind of property you are thinking of, an apartment or condo, probably in a larger city center.
Sometimes people are surprised by this but when you think about it, it does make sense since its closely related to the rule of 3: You cant live 3 minutes without air, 3 hours of exposure to extreme conditions without shelter, 3 days without water or 3 weeks without food. Rent is basically modern-day shelter and unlike selling prices it’s something that the lower income class will depend more on. Of course there are squatters and such but in general you get the picture. When it comes to food, water and shelter (housing) those are pretty basic necessities so it’s usually considered a pretty solid investment. With bigger houses, and further away from town, there’s usually more offers and more room to bargain, but if you need to be in town for work or study then you’re already talking about a more limited segment. Of course, it has the advantage of eliminating the need of commuting, which in hard economic times is a valuable asset. A small apartment for rent in town in a good area makes for a good investment in my opinion.
FerFAL

Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”.

Jobs and Businesses after an Economic Crisis

Just what the title says. A few ideas and thoughts here and there that you might want to consider. FerFAL

Precious Metals and running a Business after the Collapse

I read you site religiously everyday, bought your book, and also many
other items through your site. I have a question. I have a small
jewelry business, mostly items in the $20 to $50 range, using silver
and gold-filled. business has collapsed. I have a stock of raw
material and am trying to decide whether to buy more. I am convinced
silver is going to $300 at least, which will make buying more
prohibitive. Business in the shops I sell to has fallen off a cliff. I
know barter didn’t work out longterm in Argentina, but did it work for
a while?  and could jewelry items be used as a bribe to burearcrats
later to speed up things, or a trade item for some other purpose? or
should I just use up what i have and forget it. Or is inexpensive, but
PM jewelry too useless to be used as a item of exchange?  In other
words, would it be useful longer term in a SHTF scenario? I would
appreciate your thoughts on this matter.
Druidhouse

Hi Druidhouse, thanks for your support.
I’m sure there are some, but I don’t know of a single jewelry store that went out of business after the 2001 collapse. Right away all of them set up signs of “I buy gold” and got into the business of precious metals, smelting jewelry gold. There was more than enough people in a fragile financial situation, and many of them ended up selling what gold jewelry they had.
If you haven’t gotten into this I, suggest you do. It’s one of the most lucrative sides of such business during a financial crisis and I know that this is also happening in USA. It may not be the line of work you are used to, but you have to understand that adaptation is key during times like these. There’s people that because of the crisis started new business they knew nothing about. In your case it shouldn’t be that great of a jump to start buying junk gold and silver and selling it to a smelter or having it smelt. You could even learn the process yourself if you know enough about it. All I can tell you is that all jewelry stores here have a big “I buy gold” signs and none of them has gone out of business.

Besides this, you should start looking into new strategies for your business. Before you even get started know that yours isn’t a bad situation. If you find the right angle I know you can make it work. My brother in law’s uncle, he started making silver jewelry in his 40’s not knowing the first thing about any of this. As I mentioned before, the price of gold made silver jewelry more attractive and he started selling to a handful of store and he’s still doing ok.
Maybe the stores you were dealing with haven’t adapted, how about looking for new ones? How about starting your own online store selling silver jewelry? Invest in a good website designer.  Evaluate the jewelry designs, are they trendy? Are they appealing to what people like these days? Do a bit of research and see what’s selling well. There’s a market for steel jewelry as well. I suppose these are mostly resellers but people do buy them. Again, I’d study your business, evaluate your marketing strategy and try offering new models and find new dealers.

About your PM, yes of course, prices will keep going up and when there’s shocks in the economy like the US rating, expect a jump in the price. Bribing is almost a cultural thing in South America, of course I don’t encourage any sort of illegal activity in first world country like USA. In South America? Sometimes you don’t have a choice. In case you ever travel down here and get into trouble, just for the record and since you asked, officials favor cash.
Barter did work for some time, but it was the last, desperate resort and everyone involved in it would have preferred cash. When there was no money, it was better than nothing, that why we had barter clubs after 2001. I’m not saying its not an option, it may as well be for some time, but you’ll want better means of doing business than bartering.
Don’t lose faith in your business. Change your strategy and find a way to make it work. It is possible and people have done it before here. Trendy fashionable designs, (study what people want), affordable prices, you seem to be aiming already at the $20-$50 gap and explore new marketing alternatives and dealers.
I hope this gives you a few ideas of how to make it work.
Take care and see you around.

Join the forum discussion on this post

 

FerFAL

Skills and Making money after the Collapse.

Sir,

Thanks for your blog, I check it weekly and enjoy it a great deal.  I think you offer a very valuable counterweight to the “Roadwarrior” perspective on economic collapse and subsequent survival.  You made a statement about “the head blacksmith in Bartertown” that made me chuckle:  I’m old enough to have viewed the release of that movie!

Your point is well taken, but I wanted to poke at that a little more and get your thoughts.  I took a trip recently to India and it me struck how even in the poorest neighborhoods every second or third “apartment” had a downstairs where there some useful activity going on: bicycle repair, sewing, blacksmithing, something.  This brought me to thinking about my neighborhood.  Mine is like every other middle class neighborhood in the country where you have 100 families that don’t know how to do anything at all besides “manage” or “lawyer” or “doctor”, and 1 guy like me.  I have a garage full of “primary manufacturing” tools, and I know how to use them.

The question I have for you is this:  are these skills useful in a collapse?  Once Pottery Barn and Ikea are way too expensive because of currency rates, and things are generally collapsing because of widespread poverty, do local craftsman find they have a greater ability to put a chicken in the pot than folks who don’t have these skills and tools?  Or do people simply not replace the cracked dishes and the broken chairs?

Joe

Hi Joe, Your accounts of India remind me of the poor neighborhoods here. Some of the things you come across here just blow your mind. I’ve watched a shanty town (commonly known as “Villa”) called Ingeniero Bunge, grow from day one. It started as a large, vacant lot, maybe 100 acres or more. This empty lot had been refilled with garbage and it floods with just a few drops of rain, but these people didn’t seem to care.

One day they get the political approval to take over the land, usually in exchange of political support, showing up at the president’s rallies and such.

The next day the same vacant lot is full of improvised shacks and tents, made of plastic, cardboard or old, rusted corrugated steel. Soon enough they throw power lines, stealing power from the main power cables and every one of these shacks suddenly has a 100W light bulb and a TV inside. Of course this promotes accidents due poor installations. People get electrocuted or the place catches fires. Given that most of these materials are pretty inflammable sometimes you have tragic fires like the one we saw in Villa El Carton, mainly because people there where scavengers that collect paper and cardboard.

Even in these places, eventually the shacks are replaced with brick and mortar structures. Its usually one or two rooms. Then when space starts to run out they build one room in top of the other, and the place starts to look like this.

Villa 31 in Buenos Aires

Why do this instead of looking for another land parcel? Because these “villas” are usually located within the city or in the proximity of. This means hospitals, schools and more important work for both honest people and of the other kind. This is of course an accident waiting to happen because these structures are made my people that don’t exactly know how to calculate bearing loads.

In the above picture you can see what you mention, the floor level usually has some sort of store or shop, sometimes an improvised grocery store, repairs, I even saw someone put a neon sign on top of such construction that said “Hotel” so they had these rooms for rent. This kind of organic structure is common word wide when it comes to the poor building “as is”, with no prior urban organization. You actually study these things in Architecture, its interesting to find that its not that different from insect hives. Its also a cop’s worst nightmare with all those tight quarter corridors that spread like a labyrinth.

Now, about your question. Bicycle repair, sewing, etc, are these skills useful after a collapse? Well of course they are, but the question you want to ask yourself instead, do I want to repair bicycles or sew clothes for a living after a collapse, and the answer to that is certainly no. Why? Because there’s a lot of people already doing that, because its just not well paid. Even if you think that right now people are lazy and pretty much useless, it doesn’t mean that that situation will go on afterwards. As things get worse, it wont be just you thinking about opening a small grocery or repairing bikes and mending clothes. Competition and poverty will bring the prices down and you’ll find yourself working a lot for relatively little income. I’m not saying don’t do it, I’m just saying that its going to be very competitive and even if you are good you wont be making much money out of it.

I have a guy that repairs TV and appliances in general. He’s good at that, he has clients but he’s making little money and has a tough time getting to the end of the month. It could be worse, he could have no income at all, but his situation isn’t something you’d want for yourself. And then you have this other guy who started a business selling parts for repairs. TV, washing machines, and so on, he sells the parts to the guys that do this for a living and the people that prefer to do their own repairs. Now this guy has a sweet deal. He’s not rich but he’s making more money. Why? He’s smarter about the repair business. He knows that being the one that gets the parts means he benefits from every customer the various repair guys have in the area.

You have people selling cheap clothes in fairs, cheap china imports, DVDs, you name it. But these guys aren’t making much money. Now the guy that bought the abandoned warehouse, got the security to keep it safe and is renting the space to all these people selling stuff, he has two of the latest Mercedes-Benz 500, one in silver gray and the other one in black.

You have people driving Remis, a kind of improvised taxi that boomed after the 2001 collapse, probably the worst paid job around. Most common remis offices have 4 or 5 drivers. They look awful, smell bad, overcharge and drive crappy old cars. Yet the guy that organized it into a clean looking business, offers a quality you can come to expect, with well groomed drivers, new cars, GPS installed and radio connection, he’s the guy making very good money. And he’s not even buying the cars himself. You can invest in his business by buying a car and putting it to work with him. He provides the brand and logistics and ensures the quality control. See how the approach is different? How being more entrepreneur about it means better income? One guy drives a remis for a living, or owns a crappy little agency that is always about to go bankrupt. The other one is smarter about it and offers a better service for the same price and ends up with a +70 car fleet.

Skills are important and its good to have them, but when it comes to making money out of them you have to go a step further and see how that knowledge you have can be maximized for better profiting.

Cracked dishes aren’t repaired. They are used until they break completely and then replaced with the cheapest dishes they can find. You may want to be the guy that sells those dishes (or chairs) but its even better if you’re the guy that is importing them from China. You may be the guy that starts building very inexpensive furniture and selling it to the new offices opening up because of the cheap labor offered by the new 3^rd world conditions. I know a guy that did just that, sells cheap office supplies, and he’s doing very well.

Having a skill will put a chicken in the pot as you said( or a piece of it, chicken is pretty expensive these days) but being smarter about it, understanding the different niches the crisis creates and learning how to provide a service that satisfies these new needs will maximize your profits.

FerFAL

Cutting of police forces in USA and job observations‏

First off, the cutting of police forces:

http://www.kcra.com/news/23167334/detail.html

Sacramento has a large "conurbano" that has no other government other
than county supervisors, and no other police other than sheriff's
deputies. It's unincorporated, IOW. We call it "The Uncity". Well, life
in The Uncity is about to get a whole lot more dangerous when the
sheriff's office stops patrolling it! If you call them, they won't come.
There will be no more patrols. This is "hypothetical" now, but it's
about to become real. This means that the only real policing will be in
Sacramento city, Folsom, and Galt, since Citrus Heights, Elk Grove, and
Rancho Cordova rely on the sheriff. Free rein for criminals in the
American zonas liberadas. Many other municipalities are doing the same
thing.

Now for the job observations:

As you know, I repair computers. And as GTA regulars know, the market in
my city is flooded with former IT guys who can't find work, so they do
virus removals, meaning I can't get any work. Well, now I've noticed a
LOT of computer repair shops opening up, in seedy shopping centers in
rundown suburbs like North Highlands and Citrus Heights. First it was
Craigslist being flooded with ads, now this. Apparently these out of
work repair guys are taking the last of their savings and renting
rundown shop space-Sacramento and California is WAY glutted with retail
space-in a last ditch push to make some money and stave off ruin. But
shop space is expensive, even at a few dollars a square foot. I'm
betting that they will run out of money before getting business, since
they seem to be doing little real advertising, and the business that
they do get in these bad areas won't be worth it. So eventually, they'll
all disappear. What's your experience with this in Argentina the first
few years after the collapse? Did lots of small shops open up and then
close as their proprietors ran out of money?

Loquisimo

Hi Loqusimo, I remember tlaking aobut this with you at GTA forums some time ago.
Your observations are correct, and yes, it did happen like that here too.
Many of these stores and little shops poped up after the crisis and they tried to make a living. Some were more succesful than others.
When we talked about it back then I told you its important to be good at marketing, make contacts, advertize, and have a good relationship with clients. Try offering various serivces with stepping into things you have no experitize of, offer different packages for you clients, discounts, etc.
I'd say 8 out of 10 of these business failed in the first, year.The ones that did well made a good living after that.

FerFAL

Market gardening during an economic crisis‏

Hi Fernando,

I listened to Rawles's interview and even if I like his blog, I think he's too radical. I'd like to hear you and I sent an email to C2C as you asked.

I email you today to ask you about veggies during the economic crisis in your country. I'm working for an organic market gardener and I'm planning to run a small scale market garden in two or three years. I wonder what were the availability and prices of vegetables in post-2001 Argentina ? Are there CSA or box schemes ? Do people started to plant private gardens (that's competition for the professionals indeed) ? Is there a strong market for seedlings (which would be a direct result of more people gardening their yard) ?

Regarding security and transportation, I suppose it would be wise to have my garden on the edge of a small town, so that I'm not isolated and I don't have hundred miles to drive to sell my products. What's your opinion ?

Your readers interested in market gardening should buy Eliot Coleman's "The New Organic Grower", it contains relevant informations for those who want to start such a business IMHO.

I read Don Williams's comment about self-sufficient agriculture on the meat prices surge topic and I disagree about fertilizers being a problem. Before we mined phosphate rock, we had to make do with cow poo and other organic matter !! Crop rotation, greem manures, composting grazers' poo : these are the solutions. And don't forget humanure, because it's the only way to fully close the nutrients cycle. China used it for thousand of years (it's like gold in a way xD).

Another thing : you mentioned in your book the availability of game in the city. I can add rabbit to your list as I found some of them on the edge of a half-a-million souls' city. I think they would be wiped out if the push come to the shove but it's interesting thing to know.

Bye,
Etienne

Hi Etienne,

Thanks for sending an email. Every single one helps and I’m sure I’ll eventually get a call. (I aslo so several new 5 star reviews in Amazon, so thanks a lot for that as well guys)

Prices went up consistently but that doesn’t mean gardening will make you rich.

Its usually due to prices in general going up, the middle man’s cost, transportation, rent, power and taxes for the grocery store going up as well, as well as everyone increasing their own profit margin trying to stay up to date with inflation.

The Hollywood survival theory says that you’ll grow your food, feed yourself and your family, and sell/trade what’s left for whatever products and services you need but don’t produce yourself.

Why, according to that logic, half of the poor in Latin America should be rich or at least well off since that’s what they do.

So, it doesn’t work that way in 3^rd world countries or after a collapsed economy.

When I say it doesn’t work, I mean that you have several other much more profitable jobs and income generating activities that make small scale gardening for a living in most cases impractical. (there are exception and we’ll talk about that later)

First, its impossible to produce yourself everything you need for a balanced diet. As my buddy Nomad concluded after years of survival and preparedness research and some time in Emergency Response school “Money makes the world go around” , even after SHTF, I might add.

Again the Hollywood based theory says you’ll sell your beans and tomatoes for whatever you need, it’s a perfect plan!

Well… no. 

I’ve even read some comments in forums ( and I’m pretty sure the posters did consider it a joke) say that they’ll trade one of their chickens for a bar of gold. Because that would be HIS price… after SHTF.

Today he would be just a fool for even suggesting such a trade, what on earth makes these people believe that will change with a worse or collapsed economy?

Unless you’re dealing with a guy with a bar of gold in a stranded island, that unrealistic.

Neither you nor I set the price of gold or anything else for that matter, the market does it. You can either accept it or customers will go somewhere else.

But then again, food, just like everything else is expensive when you have hyperinflation.

It was just last year or the year before, that tomato reached a world wide historic record in Argentina, a kilo of tomato cost about 4 dollars in grocery stores and supermarkets. The small producers thoughts they could just grow gold, but as soon as everyone got into tomatoes, the excess of production sent it back to normal prices, even below that. Damned tomatoes where everywhere.

The truth is that, while the price is inflated at the grocery, the guy actually growing and otherwise producing the food isn’t getting rich.

He gets a couple cents for what he does, he needs BULK, and that’s why the great majority of small producers are poor.

Poor as in they would be better of getting a regular job in town.

With the succession of economy crisis in Argentina that’s what most people ended up doing. Buenos Aires got overpopulated and many of the small towns in the country just died.

Another example, milk costs around one dollar if you want one that isn’t shamelessly cut with water. That’s around 3 pesos per liter. The producer? He gets paid 7 cents per liter, that’s pesos guys, so he gets 0,02 dollars per liter of milk produced. The inflation makes it expensive at the shelf. Go with a truck full of milk and sell it yourself? Good luck with that.

 Argentine farmers protest in the province of Santa Fe during the the "Country Crisis"(Crisis del Campo)

  Some people do sell vegetables on the streets or in market fairs. I don’t envy their lifestyle nor does anyone that has at least a minimum wage job.

What I mean by this is the following:

Please, understand I’ve got nothing against gardening, or hard working people, specially farmers which is such a honorable job. What I’m saying is that its only going to be harder to make money out of it, not easier as the couch survivalists that apparently didn’t bother to check their own country’s history seem to believe.

http://www.iptv.org/iowapathways/mypath.cfm?ounid=ob_000064

Now, for the good news, you do have options if you know how to market your products well, find several organic stores that may be willing to sell your products.

“Farm chicken” and “Farm butcher” are still pretty popular here and they usually have cheaper prices that supermarkets. That means people will buy. They offer these products supposedly free of all the junk found in the mass produced supermarket meats, but the price is the most attractive thing people notice.

You’ll either need: a) A store somewhere where there’s enough clients b) Store owners, groceries, butchers or organic food stores that may be interested.

If you market it well and the price is right you may do good money.

If you’re planning on getting involved in this type of activity, specially with hard economic times already here and getting worse, I’d tell you that without a doubt the mot important aspect of your business and the key for its survival will be the connections you have to offer your product and how well you market it. You have to be clever regarding doing business. Just producing a good product wont cut it.

Another tip, aim for clients with good income levels.

The poor guy will find a way to save as much money as he can. Even with inflated grocery prices, you still have places like Mercado Central where meat, milk, fruits and vegetables cost 5 to 10 times less.

Takes time, requires you to go to some dangerous parts of town but people do find away, so aim for the higher income client interested in “organic” “green” “pesticide free””100% natural” “ I read Hamlet to the chickens before cutting their heads off”.

 The “CSA or box schemes” may work beautifully... if you know how to market it well and have the right clients.

Advertising is important, fliers in your target neighborhoods, maybe publicity in local radio, TV or papers, but so is connections, developing friendly business relations and word of mouth reputation spreading in your community.

Edible game does disappear pretty fast when things like these occur. Suddenly everyone feels like hunting instead of paying for burgers. It happened during the Great Depression and it happened here too, anything that can be eaten it hunted almost to extinction fast.

FerFAL

Panasonic Toughbook as a Survivalist Computer

hello said...

Neat idea. I bet the Eee PC would work for most people but for some reason, only the toughest survive my use. That's why I bought a used Toughbook for the same money. A lot of EMT and police use them so there is a surplus market here.

The average notebook has a 25% failure rate within 3 years. I imagine that number goes up with entry models. A top of the line laptop, the Toughbook is built under excellent quality control. They have a much lower 2.5% fail rate.

Not only that, they're monsters. It will survive being run over, falls from desks, and is resistant to dust, water, and extreme temperatures. They have destruction test videos like Glocks that show how much they can survive.

The specs are lower compared to other similarity priced laptops but is still plenty for regular tasks. The only con is that it's a 9 pound brick and is twice as thick as normal, but it can be used as a club or a hammer and still work.

The rugged models have soldered CPUs and less space for upgrades, but offer other customization opportunities. An extra hundred dollars will get you internal GPS or a touchscreen.

In summary, the weight and size may be a downside but the toughness can't be beat. The other thing I noticed is that it doesn't need a carrying case. It has loops where straps can be attached directly. The Toughbook is begging to bump into walls and tables, just so it can turn on and laugh!

Hi, thats a pretty good idea.

I knew about Toughbooks but they are prohibitively expensive here in Argentina. 

Buying one in the used market would work nicely and you’d have means to keep working if you have an internet based business, keep looking for jobs, stay informed and a number of other things.

Used Toughbook for $324.99

 

Panasonic Toughbook CF-M34

 or New ones

 

Panasonic Toughbook 52 - Core 2 Duo P8400 / 2.26 GHz - Centrino 2

While not an essential for survival, having a computer means you have a wealth of information and other capabilities at your finger tips. It’s an essential for most jobs and as I hope most people already understand you WILL keep working after SHTF.

Thanks, very nice suggestion.

FerFAL

Small Business Survival.

The economic situation is kicking in.
Spoiled or not, the people from the NY video I posted a few days ago are dealing with a problem common to people both in Europe and all over USA: Unemployment, salary reductions, hours getting cut, all while inflation slowly creeps under the foundations of the family budget.

I’m telling you those marketing guys are sneaky sons of a gun. The containers change shape, in ways they look abut the same volume but once you read the actual weight you see you are getting less product.
That’s inflation.
Containers getting smaller, then prices increasing a few cents at a time and one day you find that the cart is only ½ way full for the same amount of money. How did that happen?

If you’re one of the lucky ones maybe you’re still in your comfort zone. A good job that pays well, you’ve got medical, your retirement.
There’s millions out there that where in that same situation my friend.
No one plans on getting shot next week, mugged tomorrow. No woman has scheduled to be raped on the parking lot next month. It just happens. It’s no different with getting fired.
Sure maybe there were a few little signs, but its too late when you notice it. Ask the millions that got fired this year, most never saw it coming.
This is why its important to have your own thing going on, your own business. Nothing is too silly or too small, but man, having at least SOMETHING makes all the difference when you get home with a box full of office junk. At least you’ve got better than nada, you have a fishing pole, a tool you can at least use with enough patience and time. You’ll have plenty of time in your hands.
It’s sad, but some people that unexpectedly get fired after decades of a steady job, they get up at the same time, dress similarly, walk up to that same building… but keep walking, and end up having coffee nearby, using their laptop to job hunt, or read the paper.

It’s much better if you already had something.
You don’t need to be Donald Trump, but some sort of home business at the very least.
There’s people that have websites, blogs (you don’t need to be a genius or have crazy computer skills, I don’t) there’s people that buy and sell stuff on ebay, guys that have their own home office besides their job and do private work within their field. Many here that had just zero resources, they just sold Avon products (kind of Amway) the woman that sold the water filters I talked about, math teachers that give private support lessons, Spanish teachers.
Are you getting the picture already? SOMETHING, anything at all is better than zero. If you lose your job you at least have a home business to keep you busy.

Ok, How do I do it?

Don’t expect much from me people. I can only give you a few tips I saw, some I used myself, with greater or lesser success.

Since its impossible to know the skills, traits or abilities of each person reading this, I can only give general pointers. Most is common sense, but I guess its not that common sometimes.

1) Be extremely cautious about spending money.
Just lost your job, and this “friend” has this killer deal, but you have to put like ½ of your saving into it. Yes, you’re supposed to get filthy rich after a few weeks. Don’t do it.
Rent an office/shop? Yes, after you’ve been doing whatever it is you want to do successfully from home for a couple years, THEN think about renting or buying.
Be extremely cautious about spending money when starting a small business. Only spend money on those things you absolutely cannot avoid, and always within your means. I’m not wealthy so for me that’s little or no money at all people.

2)Be realistic about your expectations.
Specially since you’re not investing much at all, be very conservative about your goals and expectations. We’re not talking about becoming millionaire within the next 12 weeks. (as many books promise, and thus only managing sales to all those guys that want to be rich, in the end the only one making money is the book author who’s greatest skill is marketing and selling the millionaire dream to the mass population. )
Remember, we want a small side job, a small part time, home run company that makes a little extra money each month and which can grow if you end up losing your job or if it shows great promise.

3)Create you network.
The people that will become your suppliers, the guy that solves your internet problems, even if it just calling customer service to see how they handle things. Its all part of the network you need and the learning process. The people that will become your potential clients regarding whatever it is your do, from clients of your little home based consulting firm to the people and small shops all around you that buy the excess of what you produce at your home orchard.
Do you see already how broad a term I’m referring when I’m talking about a small business?

4) Be consistent.
The difference between a millionaire and someone that isn’t is that the millionaire simply never stopped trying.
I kid you not, I just resumed right there hundreds of “how to get rich” books. There’s no secret folks, the only secret is simply that the guy that got rich didn’t envision himself any other way.
He never stopped trying.
Maybe money isn’t that big a deal for you, and well, that the difference.
In average, every guy that got rich failed 17 times before actually getting there.
Need I ask? How many times did you try it?
Translating this to our current subject, you must be consistent regarding your business. Don’t expect to start, leave things unattended for a couple weeks, then kind of do something else, then get back to it half heartedly… no. Doesn’t work that way. Set up realistic goals and achieve them.

5) Find your thing.
Ah! The hardest part of all. Or maybe not.
1)What are you passionate about?
2) What do you like doing?
3) What are you good at?

Whatever the answer, it can be done in a way it makes money.
You’re good at painting? I bet half the people reading this right know believe they are. Maybe you really are. Have you ever sold one of your paintings to anyone? Don’t worry, most people haven’t, even the people that are really good at it.
Yet I know rather crappy painters that make a few bucks just doing that. They talk with architects, interior decorators, they do custom jobs at reasonable prices and sell their work for decoration, something that simply matches the colors and character of what the client wants.
Its not about becoming the next Leonardo DaVinci, its about selling a few painting and making some money. Do you see the change of perspective here? How many people do you know that took hours of painting classes yet never made a single cent out of it? Its simply the perspective you have of things. One guy is just doing his hobby, yet for another one (maybe even less talented) he’s doing his job. A job he enjoys but a job none the less.

For a lawyer, accountant or other professional, a home based office as a side job should be a no brainer.
You have no talent, no skill, nothing at all? If you really have the will at least, then you have something.
Real example here: A few days ago I learned what a woman was doing as a side job. She’s not what you’d call bright, but she works in a traveling agency.
I knew she didn’t have much of a salary but I could tell she had a better standard of living than what you’d expect. Her big secret?
She sells stuff on the internet. New Harry Potter movie? She buy s the latest toys and sell them here before they are even imported.
Some toys, she gets people to by them for her abroad or buys them herself when she travels because of work, mostly in USA, and sells them here for anywhere from 10 times to 20 times the price she got them for in USA. As you can see, even after a crisis there’s people that will spend the extra buck to buy nice toys.
Before saying you can’t do that think of the yard sales and some of the prices on ebay.

Another guy I know he just buys appliances and machinery, fixes them and sells them. When he’s got no job in his machinist shop, he does that for a living.
Find your “thing”.

6) Adequate ( as in adapted to the crisis) Marketing is the key.
You can’t expect the same strategies to work during a depression. You need to go out there and hunt your clients.
Someone once commented in my blog, all you need to do is be good at what you do. I love you man but bs, bs, bs. Let me say that one more time, BS.
Even if you’re good, clients wont come flocking through the door. How will they even know about you if you don’t take the first step.
Based on what I’ve seen here, of course being good helps and keeps customers happy and the word gets around, but most of the people that do well are good at selling whatever it is they have to sell.
You’re the best hair dresser in town, but you sit all day in your saloon bitching about work going down 50%.
Meanwhile the woman in the other street that isn’t ½ as good as you are, she’s offering special prices, she’s finding cheaper yet good products, she’s offering crazy Monday and goes home to home doing hairs for no additional cost (“bring a friend and get a discount for both!”), she’s also learned makeup and is doing makeup for sweet 16 and weddings at a competitive price and people already know her. You know what, she even went to the community center or church where she learned makeup and asked about teaching hair dressing herself, for a modest price.

Can you see how this could be applied to a hundred other businesses?
There’s a dozen other examples I can think of, it all depends on what you do, but I think you get the general idea.
Apply it to your situation and set of skills and get started.
Take care people.

FerFAL

Home Business

My mom is oblivious to the oncoming economic avalanche. She's a recent divorcee` using the settlement from the divorce to start a wedding cake business. She lives in a small town but is near a medium-sized town (just big enough to have a public airport). Next month I'm going there to visit her.

My question is this: did any bakeries/confectioners/caterers survive the Argentinian collapse? If so, what was their angle? Since she's set on doing this, I am thinking of trying to persuade her to sell "little luxuries" like cupcakes instead of "big luxuries" like wedding cakes.

By the way, I bought your book and enjoyed it. Well, I won't say "enjoyed" it... it scared my toes off... but I appreciated the information in it. Especially your wife's advice at the end. Wish there were more articles on the web from lady preppers.

Best wishes,

Tall Sally

Thanks!
I’ll see if I can convince Ms. FerFAL to write a bit more :-)
I think its interesting because she went from being very naïve in some ways to very realistic of the situation we live in. Maybe not in a gun-ho type of way guys usually relate to more, but seeing things for what they are and just taking a lot of precautions, some of which I never would have thought of.
About your moms business.
Of course we have bakeries and such. In spite of the crisis Argentina is a modern country unlike some of the extremely poor dirt holes sometimes seen in movies. We have almost everything you can find in USA, including many of the luxuries. It’s just more… devaluated in general terms. And there’s of course much more poverty, the zonas liberadas I mentioned (and will post about next) , poor infrastructure outside major down town areas, etc.
Banks, shops, bakeries, and everything you can think of, those business that weren’t solid fell during the collapse or barely managed to keep running. There’s plenty of everything, but many shops went out of business and the more solid, more prosperous ones, those survived.
Which ones survived? The ones that were good at doing business.
Note I’m not saying good at what they did, but good at doing business. Two completely different things.
I know people that are very good at what they do, yet they are poor business minded, and they don’t do as well.
This means knowing the market, how to sell your product, how to advertise it, the niches to provide for, etc.
Maybe your mom knows the area well, maybe people there are sort of upscale and can afford her product, maybe it’s a rather poor neighborhood and aiming for a market with tighter pockets it’s a good idea.
These are times to be very conservative, this means being very cautious about spending money, sticking to low risk, and analyzing the market in full detail before going for it. There’s got to be no doubt in your mind that be business or deal will be successful and telling someone you trust and having his objective view as well wouldn’t hurt.
It’s not just hard work. Hard work not always = making money. People in sweat shops make clothes 15 hours a day, and that’s not making them rich.
Now, if she really loves the cake business she has in mind, then that helps a lot. When you put passion into it, and you use your head as well, sooner or latter you succeed. Sounds corny but its the truth.
Help her out listening to her, analyzing the numbers she has in mind from a different point of view, and helping her come to a decision, how to structure the business so that its more successful.
My wife’s best friend works in something related to that. She cooks for parties, weddings and events. She moves in a higher middle class market ( even if its small compared to 1st world countries) and she does ok. She’s not getting rich but makes a living.

FerFAL

Work during the recession

Ferfal,
I have read your entire blog as well as your book and I find the information that you provide to be very helpful. I think that you are doing an enormous service for a large number of people worldwide. I thank you for what you do and encourage you to keep up the good work. I work as a strength and conditioning coach for a major university here in the US. Our athletic department actually makes a profit unlike most, but I am seeing cut-backs and major differences in policy and procedure. Employees who have been here much longer than me have said things like “we never had to do this before” and “what is this new paperwork for?” Unfortunately my job doesn’t pay very well and I work very long hours. Even though I recognize the benefits and contributions that my job provides, I don’t think that my position and others like it are valued as much as they should be considering how much money we can save the university by preventing injuries to the athletes. I am curious about how professional and collegiate sports (if you had them) were affected during the economic collapse in Argentina and if they even exist today. A private sector counterpart for my job would be working as a personal trainer and this has been a pretty decent way for me to make money while I was in between jobs. What is the fitness industry like in Argentina? Can you make a living in it? I know that you stress the importance of being physically fit, but do large numbers of other people recognize how important this is and are they willing to pay for it? What profession do you see someone with a knowledge of healthy lifestyle changes, fitness, nutrition, exercise, and athletic performance training having during times of economic hardship like what we are facing in America? I feel like I need to develop another skill set, but I don’t feel like I have enough time to do it. Thanks for your time and once again, I greatly appreciate what you do. Best wishes to you and your family during this difficult time.
Brady

Thanks Brady, I appreciate your support.

I am curious about how professional and collegiate sports (if you had them) were affected during the economic collapse in Argentina and if they even exist today. A private sector counterpart for my job would be working as a personal trainer and this has been a pretty decent way for me to make money while I was in between jobs. What is the fitness industry like in Argentina? Can you make a living in it?

It’s hard and not the best paying job in general terms, but as always when you do what you love it’s much easier, you put more energy into it and your chances of success increase.
Hey, Billy Banks made a fortune, why can’t you?
It’s mostly thinking a lot and using your head, and most important never giving up.
About your question, of course we have gym teachers, personal trainers, etc.
I’ll admit most of them have a hard time. Schools don’t pay much. Private schools pay much better and I know some coaches and gym teachers that do very well indeed.

The personal trainer idea is a very good one and yes, we have many here and a lot of guys make a living being personal trainers. They’ve adapted, worked harder at their customers network and marketing, maybe aiming for more regular people and not rich folks alone. Middle class moms that needs a couple classes two times a week or so.
Maybe you can get 2 or 3 moms in the same block interested, and that makes it easier for them to pay. You get together in one home and do the session there, go out running, I dont know.

Other’s go the opposite route, they have the contacts and train actors, models or people that can afford them and they stay within that higher profile target.
Two different alternatives and both may work if you find the niche and make it work.
You have to explore your area, your market, see the possibilities and GO FOR IT.

Don’t let the naysayers get to you. Most people don’t have the guts to do anything, they are too afraid of failure. Do your homework, have a clear goal and go for it.

A blog or website that offers one health program or schedule or another may be an alternative as well. Read a lot about web business and blogging. It can be done. The advantage is that it requires almost no investment, the disadvantage is that months can go by without making any money.
Check this guy for starting your own business. I like him because he’s not offering fake BS promises. He explains how to get started and is realist about the hard work it requires. Check his "Monday-Interent Business" videos. RCPowers

The good old gym may be another viable route. May be you can include Mixed martial arts or self defense programs ( find a guy to partner up if needed) since self defense will be a growing market as things get worse.
My vale todo instructor associated with another guy and a woman. They teach TKD to kids and adults, MMA, Vale todo, Tai boxing, and self Defense.
They have a nice variety of “products” to offer, an that enables them to cover various markets and niches.
These are a few choices, there are many others. Maybe you can do more than one. For example working on you personal trainer business while at the same time investing time in a training course you’d offer on line in your blog.
It’s all hard work, but it can be done. I’m not saying anything here that someone didn’t successfully try before.

Argentina for example is the land of Futbol (that’s soccer for you guys) everyone wants to be Lionel Messi and make 100.000.000 Euros a year.
If you specialize in soccer players, you’d do very well in Argentina. Maybe in USA its Football, basketball or baseball.
Most people don’t recognize how important it is to be fit and healthy. Argentina is no different though its easy to see that people here are more fit and slimmer than in USA. Still, you have to go out there and convince them of it, they won’t come knocking on your door. That’s why marketing, relationships, and working on your clients list is so important.
Also, you mention lack of time. We’ve all been there. I had to sacrifice ( and risk) a lot to get enough time to finish my book. I risked and achieved my objective. But if I hadn’t risked…
You may want to keep your job but work less hours to invest on oyur personal business.

I read somewhere once that the average millionaire fails 17 times, has 17 failures before making it.
Now don’t think about becoming a millionaire, have a realistic objective and try to succeed at that. Will you quit as soon as you find the first signs of trouble, problems or after the first failure? Heck, no keep pushing and working towards your objective and if it doesn’t work then maybe try something else but the point is, never give up. If you never give up, eventually you succeed. I’m sure you know this very well.
That’s all I have. I don’t know much about fitness industry but these things I’m talking about, creating business opportunities, they apply to everything from fitness to knife-making or computer skills or whatever. Its’ the entrepreneur mindset that makes it happen.

FerFAL

RCPowers Videos

I found about Dave Powers a couple days ago.
The website name implies remote controlled planes and such, but there’s much more.
http://www.rcpowers.com/
He does a youtube show each day and of special interest would be the Survival one on Thursdays, Internet Business on Mondays and Health and Fitness on Tuesdays.
About the ones where he talks about Internet business, people, learning how to make money from home and being self employed is of particular value these days.

Its is possible, people are doing it and Dave gives some great, hard earned advice.
As they say, people learn from their mistakes, smart people learn from other’s mistakes.
Dave is doing things right in his project so learn from his experience.
I might be doing some youtube videos of my own in the future ( not any time soon) and I’ll be watching his videos to learn.
Forget feel good bestseller books about working 2 hours a week and making more money than Bill Gates. Doesn’t work that way.
As Dave says it’s a lot of hard work, more than likely harder work than working from 9 to 5, specially at first.


FerFAL

Credit and Financial Situation in Argentina

Aloha Ferfal,

Thank you for your blog. I cannot tell you how terribly helpful and reassuring it is to hear your take on what a real economic collapse is like first hand. I have all but ignored anyone else, because how would they know? Most are just trying to sell their newsletters or survival supplies.

My questions are

1) What happened to people's bank accounts during the 2001 crisis (checking, savings, credit cards) and thereafter? You mention the bank holiday, restrictions on cash withdrawals, and termination of credit in several of your posts. So, I sort of get the picture. You can't get the majority of your money out and you can't use credit cards anymore, but what about having to pay bills, like the mortgage, electricity, etc. Certainly, you can still write checks and use debit cards; yes?

2) After everyone lost faith in banks, do people who have money to save, just keep it in foreign currencies & metal, or what?

3) How are banks surviving today as opposed to pre-collapse. If there is no credit, how do they make money and survive?

I am in the banking industry and see a need for my bank to have to change our business model. I am just not sure what the new model will become. Anything you can share would be most helpful.

Thank you again!

Kevin
Honolulu, Hawai

Thanks Kevin,

1) Things are pretty much normal these days in terms of credit cards and debit cards. Checks are a bit more tricky since there’s a check tax, another insane move to steal money form people. Also, checks in dollars are not allowed in Argentina any more.
Most places in the capital district where the most activity takes place and tourist do their shopping readily accept credit cards just like anywhere else in the world, same for regional down town areas. But the smaller you get the less chance of shops accepting credit , debit or anything other than cash.
The time we spend with no money plastic at all lasted most of 2002 but now it’s been getting back to normal.
Still, there are many places that don’t accept credit, debit is more commonly accepted.
It took a long time for people to trust plastic money again.
Most gas station for example, most want cash and some accept debit.
Bill can be assigned to be paid with your credit card, but its not a smart idea since these companies sometimes over charge, or invent extra charges out of thin air and you later have to fight to get your money back. For example now with the insane tax to natural gas and power (about 600% in some cases) they’d just charge you while if you have it set to pay with cash instead, you can fight it a bit more, just pay for the usual service and present a complain for the rest, claiming there’s no way to can pay the outrageous tax (almost ½ of what the minimum wage person earns. Imagine paying 600 USD each month on either gas or power)
2) Depends on how much money you have. Most people don’t have a lot so they keep cash home. If you have more you buy a car or better yet some real estate. We never had the huge bubble USA and Europe used to have (now gone) so prices didn’t vary that much before and after 2001. As we say around here, the land and brick on top of it are going no where.
Gold has a value like anywhere else in the world, but its something older people used to do, every month saving some and putting it into gold coins.
For example right now in Argentina, people are buying dollars like crazy. It’s expected to go up like crazy after the elections for senators next week. Euros and dollars are preferred currencies instead of our much weaker peso.

3)According to the way things are today, a more conservative attitude is in order I believe. They are very careful about how much money they lend (credit is something we’re simply not used to here, at least none that has reasonable interest rate). The local joke is, you need to be right to qualify for the loans banks in our country provide.
How do they survive? Many didn’t. They got sold, closed, etc.
Being honest the financial activity in Argentina is minimal. Few trust banks any more, the richer the person the lest he trusts it, they mostly work with small loans and deals they make with the government, house loans that usually get used to gain political favors.
Then there’s the typical small time client, gets his salary deposit on his account, maybe gets a small loan to buy a TV or help pay a car (which cost a small fortune in Argentina, even used ones, MUCH more expensive than in USA, about 5-10 times as much)
A bank in Argentina isn’t doing money after 2001, at least not in any honest way.
The best bet is to be a bank with a small scale attitude (cut down expenses to a minimum, very conservative spending and lending) , micro loans for clients starting their small business, maybe buying machinery for whatever they do, but always doing so very conservately and following the client up close, a tight bank/client relationship. Stick to safe investments and aovid the medium and high risk ones.
Other financial companies make money with micro -loans, most often lest than 1000-2000 pesos (less than 600 USD). The interest rates in these cases are terrible, but poor people will usually fall for this maybe to buy a cell phone or some other shiny object.

FerFAL

Financial Preparedness

FerFal,
Thanks for all of your efforts in helping us prepare for the impending crisis.

Many of us here are certain that inflation will hit hard very soon because our government is accelerating the rate at which it prints "funny money". My question has to do with preparation as it regards to your finances.

Since it is almost certain that our savings will be stolen from us by the government in the form of hidden taxes (aka inflation), is it best to buy durable goods with our savings now? Should we be buying our kids shoes and clothes to last for the next five years? It doesn't seem like a good idea to have a huge lump sum of cash sitting around to be stolen, confiscated, or metered out by our banks (government).

It makes sense to have gold around, but shouldn't we just buy goods and supplies that we know will last us, and then have enough in gold to keep around for emergencies?

Thanks,
-J

I was calculating REAL inflation today with my wife ( not the BS reported by INDEC, even INDEC workers openly state that the gov. modifies the numbers they don’t like), compared to 2000 prices.
We estimated it in 500%, roughly speaking since 2000.

In both our families ( back when we were single) they would buy a month worth of groceries for 300 pesos. Now you need 1500 pesos and the quality of the products isn’t nearly as good as it used to be.

Guys, get this into your head: The number of poor will likely double in USA these following years. And no that’s not the end of the world, life still goes on, but it’s a pretty bitter situation.
The new poor wont come form Mars, they’ll drop from middle class.

It’s survival of the fittest. For us humans, it’s survival of the smartest.

Unless you are smart and find ways to crawl up the sinking pyramid, you’ll end up in the “poor” section.

If you want my honest opinion, save it in gold and silver instead.
DO NOT buy stuff you try to “guess” you’ll end up needing. If a year from now you need shoes, more food or whatever, the same amount of gold will buy you the same amount of product, or even more since gold goes up during hard times.
Of course have extra pairs of shoes and clothes. Don’t know about you but three pairs of shoes last me a long time. What I mean is don’t eat up your savings buying stuff. You’ll sure need that money later on for things you disn’t guess correctly.

You’ll soon see how every little spend becomes and important decision in your struggle to save as much money as possible.

Salaries and earning wont go up along with inflation, at least not at the same rate. That’s what makes poor people.

I’d try very hard to come up with new sources of income.
Here’ it’s unthinkable for a wife NOT to work. There’s really little doubt in that regard. If both parents don’t work, unless you are truly rich you can’ live here with the salaries and wages we have.

If you want your better half to stay home then get serious about home business. The internet is full of ideas. But do something that makes money.
If your wife can make money by staying home watching over the kids and you have some land and she can keep a garden and some far animals that sounds great, but be serious and calculate how money you are actually making and saving by doing this.

Staying home just to make 500 bucks worth of groceries doesn’t sound very effective when she can make 2000 working a normal job.
OK, you’ll need a nanny for the kids, but with a normal wage its still profitable to pay a girl you trust and go to work.

Wrapping this up, SAVE AS MUCH MONEY AS YOU CAN.
For every buck you spend, think:
Will I use this?
Is it worth it?
Do I need a 200 dollar knife/watch or a 1000 custom 1911?
Do I need the fanciest 4x4 ATV?
What benefit am I getting for my money? What the real benefit/cost rate?
If you already have 6 to 12 months worth of food and as much water stored as you can put aside,. plus a few weapons ( you do need at least a couple handguns in my opinion) ammo, cleaning supplies, medicines you may need, other than some gear I’m leaving out, don’t keep buying any more junk.

There’s a market out there for this stuff, and the crisis is being good business for many. That’s fine, I love capitalism, I myself have ads from Amazon that sell stuff, get a small % for each item sold, but that doesn’t mean you should go desperate and buy everything you’ll ever need the rest of your life.

This is a crisis guys, a depression, economical collapse, whatever you want to call it. Things are tough and will get tougher, but people, this is not the end of the world and people will not die by the thousands, ok?

*Save your money, odds are you’ll need it in the future.
For larger amounts of money, I'd invest in real estate right now.
For smaller amounts I'd go for gold.


*Find new ways of making money.
Even something as simple as starting a blog is easy, has no initial cost, and can generate some spare cash.
Start a blog in blgospot ( just like this one, its as easy as opening a hotmail acount)
Write about something you like. Try learning a bit aobut blogs.
Then add some ads like the ones by adsense or some other afiliate programs, and writing regularly will make a bit of extra cash for you.
Starting a home business is something relatively simple. You dont make a ton of money but you dont invest a lot either. A number of housewives here started theri own business making scneted candles, breakfasts, etc.

*Reduce your expenses as much as possible.

*Yes, buy the basic necessary gear and supplies, get the necessary training and know how. Knowledge and mindset will make the real difference.

*There are a few items you might want to buy now.
For example: I’d try to use just one car at a time but have a second car ( cheap, low gas mileage, common model with cheap and commonly available parts) in case your other one brakes.
Going out buying a car after a crisis can burn a bit hole in your pocket. Its just not an option for most.
Same for certain appliances such as a fridge , chest freezer, and washing machine. If a generator is essential for you, have another one. No guys, don’t buy new, I’m talking about keeping eyes opened for these kind of things at garage sales and such. If you can get an extra fridge for cheap, Yes, I would do it. If you work with computers a lot, an extra used PC or notebook might be a good idea too.

I’m mentioning this because in my case buying theses things are very expensive right now, and before the crisis they were dirt cheap when bought used.

People will survive, we saw that here in Argentina. Even with 50% poor and 25% below the line of poverty people in general still get by and survive somehow.
The difference is that some live better than others.


FerFAL

Reply:"Making money after the crisis"

A Mean Green Bean said...
FerFal,

This topic is timely as we are having a discussion on the Life After the Oil Crash Forum about starting micro businesses based on the top items needed after a crash. Can you give us an idea of what items / services people want the most post crash. Here's a link to the discussion. http://www.doomers.us/forum2/index.php/topic,40122.0.html.

Thanks in advance!

Of course you have the basics: food, water, shelter and medicine. (Renting real estate will become a good business, by the way)

Problem with the food market is, it’s as old as mankind itself, you can hardly compete with the big firms.
The smaller producer will find himself out of his league unless he has a couple hundred acres.
It’s better to try to exploit the “small mom and pop” thing, find the marketing niche, organic food.
But this is very tricky. I mean most people I know that grow food small scale know well enough its for them and not profitable as a business idea.

This is a common mistake among the survivalist community if you ask me. What I started calling the “Little house on the Prairie “ syndrome.

Guys, the only way you’ll go back to 1800 is if you build a time machine.

Serious. Barrel maker, carriage builder, carriage wheel repairer, making horse shoes for a living… making a fortune selling candles. Even trapper was suggested somewhere.
What can I tell you? I don’t see that here. I’ve researched and talked to others on eastern Europe and Africa and nope, not the kind of thing that will get you serious money.

Some of the lists going around the various forums are simply lists of skills used a couple hundred years ago, very wild west like. But again, it’s wishful thinking, and not something I see reflected here or in other places where SHTF.

Even gun smithing. Gunsmithing is something that will certainly go DOWN, not up.
People will have guns for defense but spend as little money as possible. No more tacticool 2000 USD 1911 for many. Those are “nice to have”, and “nice to have” doens’t cut it for SHTF market. They wont spend what little money they have on something like that, at least MOST people wont.

This is the kind of subject that could go on forever. Serious, the dynamics of the post SHTF market could fill libraries.

My friend in USA asked for bit of advice regarding business ideas the other day.
He told me a bit about what he had in mind, and at some point he said he had a buddy that offered him a percentage on a car sound system installation shop, also doing tainted glasses and car alarm.

He said that he didn’t think people would want to spend money on an fancy sound system during the depression.
We talked about how car alarms and security film for windows would go up in demand. Also tainted for security reasons.

When we got to the sound system part, he asked what I thought about that.

I told him “well… there’s a few things people want when SHTF: “Booze, religion, drugs, prostitutes and gambling.. and a loud car”
I told him that its common here to see total rust buckets from the 70’s with maybe 1000 bucks worth of sound system. Maybe more expensive than the car itself.

Of course any business can fail, but if his friend does things right and is a smart business man, he has a fair success chance.

My friend say “Man, peoples are stupid”
I told him “YES, dude, they are”
But why, why would a poor guy spend his hard earned money, the little he has, on something like that?
Because that’s the way people are! Maybe the guy hasn’t got a week worth of food and water OR cash, but he’s gladly going to spend it on drugs, or a fancy sound system, simply because it makes him feel less miserable.

That’s valuable folks, ESPECIALLY when SHTF and getting depressed and feeling miserable is so easy.

It’s what I like to call “affordable luxuries”.
I see it here all the time, and you see it in other poor nations.
They can’t afford the fancy car anymore, but they can afford the expensive tires or sound system.
A loud sound system can be turned up the volume.. wake up everyone… everyone sees you have the fancy gadget … ego boost for our poor guy. See the mentality I’m talking about?

Something similar happens with cell phones. Selling cell phones is a pretty nice gig during depression. It’s an “affordable luxury”.
I don’t have a home of my own, or a car, “but take a look at my nice (toy) phone”. The guy/girl already feels better about himself.

Same happens for jewelry. Most women can’t afford the gold anymore, and it’s too dangerous even if they can. But there’s still silver, and “quirurgic steel” jewelry is becoming more and more popular.
Affordable, looks good, shiny, wont get stolen in 10 minutes. Research the market and promote it well and you have a winning combination.

Forget the old days, at least as business ideas. Recognize the new needs and the new society you are dealing with and what they want/need.
There’s how you start a real post SHTF business.


FerFAL

Making money after the crisis

I’ve been asked this a couple times and guess it’s time to go through a few things again.
I’m not even going to talk much about jobs specifically.
People will ask “what jobs”, but that’s not really what they want to know. They want to know how to make money to get by.
Problem is making money and working isn’t always related. As a matter of fact most people that have a LOT of money work relatively little. Just like a lot of people that work VERY hard ALL day many times barely make enough money to survive.
You want me to tell you what jobs you’ll be more likely to find after a crisis? Easy.
Security.

I can open the newspaper on the couple pages with job adds, drop my finger with my eyes closed and I can bet good money my super divination powers will tell me what that add is about.

I can even use my prophetic powers and tell you many of the words you’ll find in the add.:)
Serious, it’s a mathematic fact, since 50% job offers are the same:
Male, 1,75 height minimum, school diploma, CLU (gun license card)

Private security job offers are BY FAR, the most common adds you’ll find in Argentina or in any country that’s gone through a crisis.

Second most popular add is for the ladies. Would read something like this:
Young lady, excellent presence. Age 18-25. No Prior experience required. Full body photo required.

What’s this about? They want hot looking women for promotions and events.
When unemployment is so high, it’s been proved that hot looking women advertising and giving away pamphlets works. Usually its too expensive. But with a crisis you’ll have girls that look like models begging for work. With high unemployment they can afford to audition lots of them.
Then, there’s the ever popular telemarketer..
These are jobs you can probably get during the recession.
Salary? Well, they’ll border slavery. And the private guard gig is as dangerous as swimming with starved crocodiles.

Hmmm.. how about changing the question then? :)
How do I “make” money?
Now we’re getting somewhere.
I have no secret that will make you rich. What I can tell you is what I’ve seen others do that worked well for them.
There are several fronts from where you can attack the problem.

a)Do what you love doing/ What you are good at.

This is always recommended but people hardly listen. Parents and grandparents usually recommend it, but why?
Because it works. Because when you do something passionately you usually do it well, thus greater chances of making money.

Go to college or community college, or learn some craft.
Doesn’t matter if you are a doctor, lawyer or carpenter. Some lines of work do better than others during recession, but if you are good at it your chances are good.

Contrary to what many believe, when there’s really high unemployment, more people go study and hit the books. Why? Because there’s no job and it’s better than staying home depressed.

Then again, in some cases just being very good at something simply isn’t enough. Sometimes even if you are good, even the best, the economic crisis will hit you and hit you hard.
Blacksmithing for example. Many survivalists thought blacksmithing for some reason would be in high demand.
Why are the best blacksmiths in the country doing so poorly then?
Want to know why?
Because I don’t “need” a fancy handmade blade, certainly not when money is tight. If I need a knife I can buy one in a store for a fraction f the money and it will still serve me well.
Besides, competition is fierce due to unemployment, even among blacksmiths. The more competitive, the more they have to lower the prices.
Today I can buy a handmade knife rather cheap.
The handful that refuse to see these and still sell knives at several hundred bucks hardly stay afloat with thanks to a few high end customers, most of them from abroad. As the crisis spreads all over I fear they’ll be doing even worse.

b)Satisfy an unsatisfied niche.
This is where many have made real fortunes THANKS to the depression. I’m talking about a lot of money in some cases.
The cases I’ll mention are ones that I know of and that have had lots of success precisely because they satisfy a new need created by the crisis.

These aren’t my “guesses” or “estimations”. These are real people doing very real money.

1)Transportation business.
Owning a bus line is very good business. There’s more poor, fuel is more expensive, thus, there’s more need for public transportation.
Doesn’t take a genius to figure out why bus companies are making nice money here these days.
“But FerFAL, I’m not Bill Gates, I can’t afford this BS your talking about”
Well, that happened to some people here too. But they didn’t cry a river because they didn’t have that kind of capital.
What they did was offer another alternative: Combies.
For 5 bucks, this guy takes a bunch of people in his minibus from suburbia to downtown to work, everyday.
Pay another 5 bucks and they drive you back to suburbia at the end of the day.
It’s a bit more expensive than the ordinary bus but it’s faster, you travel seated, doesn’t smell like urine, and has working AC, and it’s still ½ the price of the fuel you’d need to do that trip with your own car.
These guys started with one or two minibus, then added more, hired drivers. Then started selling the “brand” people with their own buses using the brand name and logistics, for a fair %, of course.
Now that’s smart. That’s learning to exploit the needs of the new market. Give the economy Nobel prize to the guys that came up with “Lomas Express” and “Adrogue Bus”.


2)Security.
I’ve said it a million times. Private security will be the greatest gig once crime goes up.
If you want, becoming a cop will be an alternative given that USA cops are well paid and there’s WILL be a growing demand for them.
But for those with the vision, a private security company can mean a lot of money.
Offering security to some high end neighborhood. You set a guy on a few strategic corners.
It’s obvious that if you are getting paid by say, 3 blocks, and you only set guards on those 3 places, criminals will start hunting out of the “guarded” territory. Soon the word gets around and they’ll want a guard of their own to keep an eye on things.
Be serious, be professional, and as crime goes up a private security company will be a good money maker for you.

3)Education.
As public education goes down and the O indoctrination gets worse, you’ll want better education for your kids. Mom can’t afford to home school any more, she has to work now. As salaries keep going down, due to cuts or indirectly due to inflation, both parents working becomes more and more common.
A respectable neighbor that parents trusts can set up a private school. One that’s not expensive but offers good atmosphere and a good education level.
I’ve seen it done a number of times, and know of several people that did very well with their schools or daycare centers. (mom has to work, remember?)
This would fall both in the “market need” and “things you love doing” category, since making a school and teaching has to be something you love doing. Do it just for the money and chances are you wont be good at it.

4)Lending money.
There’s no credit, so lending a little money (usually 1000 or 2000 tops) is a good deal for some people.
The greatest problem here is that you need some “muscle” that will collect those that want to get off the hook. So this can be a bit “grayish”. Either that or have a collector’s company that are real sharks. Anyway, lots of new places lending money, so I guess it’s good business.

5)Home business.
This is a bit more tricky and I probably know more failure stories than success ones.
Starting a business during a recession is “risky” to say the least.

Some things are almost certain failures.

A computer shop that just sells hardware and software and assembles PC and offers network and repair service has a poor success rate.
During a recession people buy very little, they try to save as much money as possible, usually take the time and trouble to learn how to assemble stuff themselves.
The one or two successful hardware dealers that I know of operate with HUGE volumes of merchandize, and offer VERY low prices and publicize on line.
These are businesses that required capital, lots of “know how”, import contacts, and certainly not for amateurs. Try opening the friendly computer shop on your own and more than likely you’ll fail.
Small shops in general do poorly during recessions.
Video rental stores for example, they’ve closed by the hundreds and few survive.
People have little money and prefer to download the movies themselves to safe a few bucks. Before they didn’t care, but when money gets tight they do.
Running your own business requires a deep knowledge of the niche and market if you want to have any chance of success.

For example, I know a guy that made a good business with clothes.
He knew the are well, knew that there was still some people with money, middle class, but a middle class less powerful than before.
They couldn’t afford the fancy brand name clothing they once did, but he expected to do well if he offered good clothing, nice fashionable designs, but at an affordable price. The store had to look a mixture of cozy and high end, and a designer was required for the store, a professional graphic designer for the advertisement displayed and labels used in the clothing. This was how the “Snowball” brand was created. He ended up opening over a dozen stores in the southern suburbs of Bs As.
Need a present for someone? Most of the time women do the buying, and most of the time they buy clothes. Snowball is affordable and people like it.

There are many, many other stories and niches that were exploited.

These are just a few business ideas to think about.
Think how you can make money in your region by satisfying the new niches being created by the economic crisis.


FerFAL