Have any of you made it rich in Taiwan? Or, do you know anyone who has made it rich in Taiwan? If you answer yes to either (or both) of these questions, how?
My plan is to marry into money…so far, unsuccessful.
In life experiences, yes. Financially no lol. I still check my receipts though.
Yes, because some people are hoarding the magic formula.
good idea + hard work + a bit of luck + a lot of balls + connections = opportunity for financial success
Yes, because some people are hoarding the magic formula.
good idea + hard work + a bit of luck + a lot of balls + connections = opportunity for financial success[/quote]
If by doing business, I would add a good head for business, and deduct the connections bit, the latter gets built up as you work along.
What is your definition of “rich”? How much money in NT$ or US$?
Unless you plan on hitting it big in the lottery, you best get ready for 10 years or more at least in whatever industry you find yourself in Taiwan to get to your “rich” target.
I know a foreigner who owns his own english bushiban for at least 10 years now, but again that took 5 years or more before setting up his school to build up a list of students to rely on to start with. Probably makes at least over N$2-400,000 per month by now.
Another industry to build your retirement in would probably be the financial or consulting industry which pays rather well.
Whatever job you choose, I’d recommend learning to speak and read chinese. Both will put you far ahead of others in the same competition for the golden pot.
Be careful what you wish for. 
Sure, a director in a tech. company. Works day and night and has a wife with two Masters degrees in finance. He’s aggressive, works his tail off and she is a master investor. She’s brilliant, he’s not. No magic formula, they just really really love making money.
Yes, because some people are hoarding the magic formula.
good idea + hard work + a bit of luck + a lot of balls + connections = opportunity for financial success[/quote]
- a good fake story + guanxi + connections at the media … and 22 million Taiwanese that believe it all …
I think it takes hard work, commitment to executing a plan, and a bit of luck. Most people are too distracted to take advantage of all of the opportunities around them, or too mired in self-doubt.
I think that was my wifes plan.
I’m hopin it works out for her.
+1 on this advice.
The basics work. Be reliable, be dependable and don’t get distracted by BS.
Yes, because some people are hoarding the magic formula.
good idea + hard work + a bit of luck + a lot of balls + connections = opportunity for financial success[/quote]
- a good fake story + guanxi + connections at the media … and 22 million Taiwanese that believe it all …[/quote]
Haha good one Mr He, it works for consumer goods alright, you need good cash backing to push the marketing though and sponsor the celebs to give you a recommendation.
And then again, some aren’t. 
Yes, because some people are hoarding the magic formula.
good idea + hard work + a bit of luck + a lot of balls + connections = opportunity for financial success[/quote]
- a good fake story + guanxi + connections at the media … and 22 million Taiwanese that believe it all …[/quote]
Haha good one Mr He, it works for consumer goods alright, you need good cash backing to push the marketing though and sponsor the celebs to give you a recommendation.[/quote]
I think he is talking about governemnt, not necessarily businesses. maybe Im wrong about his meaning but when i read that all i could think about was the upcoming elections.
I dont mind the pistols, its yer other guns that scare me.
Succeeding in business is 90% luck, but the difference that makes a successful entrepreneur is a willingness not to give up and keep trying different things to increase their odds.
Most business ventures fail in their first year, and most people never try again. If you try 10 different ideas and gradually learn more about business through failures your chance of success skyrockets. You still need a lot of luck but there’s nothing to stop you creating luck by trying a lot of different things.
I agree with Llary, keep re-iterating and trying different things, eventually, if you still have a place to stay and family and clothes on your back, you may become rich.
Unfortunately the best way to be rich is to be rich already and that is truer here than many people know.
Making it poor in Taiwan…I will give you tips another time.
If getting rich is tremendously important to you, it shouldn’t be terribly hard to achieve it.
It strikes me that one of the easist ways of doing so now is to sell something or other on the internet. With a global customer pool at the end of your fingertips, and potential buyers all over the world actively seeking you out if you’ve got something they want or may want, you can rake in a fortune in no time at all if you do your homework right, and without having to shoulder any of those burdensome bricks-and-mortar costs.
If I could be arsed to try to get rich, I’d be looking to do it by flogging stuff online.
Have a look into flogging stuff online and you’ll realize it just isn’t that easy. It’s no easier to get “rich” online than it is offline. You still need an enormous amount of luck, and the “shotgun” method mentioned above is your best way to go. Throw enough shit at the wall until something sticks and then you are set.
I don’t think it’s that easy… for sure some people have hit on a once-in-a-lifetime idea that they were able to monetize, but the best way to make money is to have a physical product that people want.
Our company is based 99% on internet sales but it took 10 years to be really successful and we have a huge investment in staff, equipment, offices, logistics etc. to make the products we are selling. We need both the internet AND bricks and mortar to succeed.
A lot of people do miss out on opportunities that they could turn into a business. For example, if you hear that a friend of a friend has a business selling printer inks in their country you could ask some Taiwan suppliers for volume pricing and offer them a pricelist plus 10% or 20% margin. If it doesn’t work out you have lost a few hours that would be spent sitting on your ass anyway, if it does work out then you have a business on a plate that you can learn from and grow organically. I think that’s how Mr He started his packaging business.
Most of my business is internet related sales as most of my clients are not in Taiwan.
It takes time to develop and fortunately for me I have longstanding clients who renew their services every year. I have had many clients who have been with me several years and they always introduce new clients. Llary and I both personnaly develop our customer base but we also have great staff that work for us. I have people ask me what I would sell my business for. Normally it should be based on 4 years of profits, and maybe some goodwill.
Out of range for most of the expats that have asked me but plenty of locals look at the turnover to profit margin and understand the numbers. You can succed with an internet based business. However for hose who think just opening a web page and getting rich overnight is going to happen it wont.
I dont want to do my business forever, but selling it isnt easy as many people don’t offer serious money. Often they ask me to lend them the $$$ to buy my business, now thats a laugh. I have people ask could they be investors, I ask what for? So they can get profits with no effort. I just reply then buy the whole business as I dont want nor do I have any business partners.