Ecotourism Business Incubator

Up until two years ago, Panama had a population of only 3 million people, half of which resided in the capital. Three years ago, when Panama was voted the number 1 retirement destination in the world, numerous North Americans and Europeans started purchasing retirement properties in Panama, many near the beaches and mountains. This caused an unprecedented construction boom. It is expected that the population of Panama will double within 5 years. The most remarkable aspect of this growth is that the newcomers have an average per capita income 10 times higher (http://www.finfacts.com/biz10/globalworldincomepercapita.htm [1]) than the average Panamanian resident, thus causing an explosive economic growth.

This bright economic future presents unrivaled opportunities for small international entrepreneurs but the decision to jump into Panama’s economic joyride often comes with a heavy price for the smaller businessmen. The bigger players can withstand the bureaucracy, errors, omissions, miscalculations, bad advice and the multitude of other surprises that come with operating in a Latin country in the midst of its economic furor. Smaller entrepreneurs start a new business within the field of their specialization but they don’t have the legal and financial expertise, nor the resources, to stay in the game long enough until they can be ready to rip the benefits of a flourishing enterprise. As a consequence, only a small minority of smaller foreign businessmen hit the jackpot in the Panamanian businesses world. The brash, small entrepreneurs get sizzled and have to return home empty handed while the wiser ones just keep out. The costs of the wasted opportunities are tremendous for both the foreign businessmen and the Panamanian economy that is in desperate need of foreign entrepreneurial talent, specialized experience, management skill and business expertise.

Panama Gardens intends to expand the impact of its commitment to the environment beyond the boundaries of Panama. Capitalizing on the current “green” trend and the myriads of emerging business opportunities in nearly every field related to ecology, the management found Panama as the ideal host for establishing an Ecotourism Mecca. It is not a coincidence that the only branch of the Smithsonian Institute (http://www.stri.org/ [2]) outside the USA is located in Panama. Another less well known, but just as important, scientific institution is the Liquid Jungle (http://liquidjunglelab.com [3]). Both organizations have their installations in Panama because of the country’s diverse ecosystems. The local government doesn’t only offer a lesser-fair, tax-free economic environment but, in the case of Ecotourism, they are also legislating laws that would greatly favor this specialized industry. Panama’s fertile land, low cost labor force, beaches and other natural attractions make it the ideal destination for ecotourism, agritourism, ethical travel and all the related businesses that could establish themselves because of the exponential growth of the local population and the onset of ecotourism.

Adapting the well-tested business model of the incubator would provide a solution to the many problems that new businessmen face when starting their enterprise in a foreign country. Furthermore, they will have the security of a tested network of local professionals without paying them excessive fees or suffering by their bad advice, errors or omissions. According to US statistics, 80% of all new businesses fail within their first two years but 87% (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_incubator [4]) of the new business that started within the environment of a business incubator continue operating in sound financial health. The shared pool of foreign business talent, supplemented by a trusted circle of local professionals will provide an excellent basis for the Ecotourism Business Incubator of Panama Gardens to ensure the success of all the start ups.

Panama Gardens is situated in the midst of the Capital city, the beaches and the mountains. Since it is located less than 15 miles from the beaches and 40 miles from Panama City, it can service not only Panama Gardens, but also the other nearby markets. For example, a business like a Gourmet Restaurant can position itself to also offer catering to the capital and all the beach area that is undergoing a rapid transformation because of all the newcomers. There is already a shortage of good restaurants and other quality services even though the bulk of foreigners have not yet moved into their newly built homes. Another good example is a European style bakery that could deliver fresh quality bread and sweets to the beach retail stores and restaurants or to the supermarkets of the Capital. For such businesses, the front part of the development has been designed to include 40,000 square feet of commercial space that would also service the Panama Gardens Complex. Finally, because of the availability of broadband internet, there is a large number of small enterprises that can be conducting online international business, call centers and other internet related venues with minimal regulation, absolutely no taxes and still take advantage of Panama’s low operating costs.

Many of the retirees that have visited Panama Gardens are not as of yet ready to retire and have a lot of interest to continue working while in Panama. Very often, they bring younger family members with them and they are all eager to start their own family business in one of the lucrative markets that are evolving in Panama. They find themselves in the ideal position to start a business and use their past experience which allows them to make a new career out of their hobby or passion. For example, a family that likes horses can start a Equestrian Club for under $100,000. The incubator team will help the new owners to purchase the land so they can start breeding inexpensive horses for sales or rentals to amateurs or expensive purebred stallions that can be sold for thousands of dollars to affluent families. The incubator team will also assist them in getting their business off the ground correctly and would help them operate successfully. In other cases, like the office services, medical spa, storage facility or the shuttle service, the developer will build the space for their operations within the Ecotourism Business Incubator of Panama Gardens.

Many of the amenities of the Panama Gardens Complex will be separate small businesses that are also servicing other areas. The individual foreign owners will provide their own financing from savings, local bank loans, alliances with local businessmen or some combination of all these sources. Thus, the new businessmen due to their affiliation with our incubator, will begin with an option for credit from the local banks, an introductory market within the complex and our shared pool of marketing talent and resources to promote their ecology related business. The developer will also benefit as they will be generating revenues from the building of the incubator facilities.