Advice Wanted: Starting up in South America

Hi Clive,

You're definitely doing the right thing by planning early! We are embarking on the first stage of a similar plan:) and are lucky that each of us has worked and lived in different countries in the Conosur. So, for what it's worth, I'd suggest you choose a location with which YOU are very familiar and with which YOU feel comfortable. Everyone's thresholds of comfort are different. The main thing isn't what someone else thinks of Colombia, or any other place, but what YOU think of it and whether you could see yourself making a go of it there.

It's also important to bear in mind that going into a country and investing heavily in a new business where your contacts and knowledge of local business law and culture are limited could also be a recipe for disaster! If you're just at the beginning of your process and not yet familiar with the political landscape etc. of different countries in the region, you might want to start out by taking a quick look at HSBC's guides to doing business in different countries. These can be downloaded for free. The guides will give you a decent idea of affordability and institutional stability of each country at a very general level. You'll then have to do further research by looking (for example) at real estate listings for different locations within countries that you're interested in.

You can then develop a shortlist and start checking out locations individually ... as well as looking into local law on property or business ownership by non-nationals.

Vague and general guidance to start off with, but hope it helps! Just bear in mind that setting up shop even in a pretty developed and stable country (e.g. Chile) is extremely different from making things happen in a place like the UK or the US.;)

Michelle