Butterflies — Foreign and Filipino

This story is either so “corny” as my dear mother-in-law might say, or so sweet that anyone who has to watch their intake of sweets should just move on.  But those of you always troubled with the perennial “How Can I Make a Living in the Philippines” might want to keep reading … be sure to check your blood sugar before and after

According to an American Indian Legend -

If anyone desires a wish to come true they must first
capture a butterfly and whisper that wish to it.

Since a butterfly can make no sound, the butterfly can not reveal
the wish to anyone but the Great Spirit who hears and sees all.

In gratitude for giving the beautiful butterfly its freedom,
the Great Spirit always grants the wish.

So, according to legend, by making a wish and giving the butterfly its freedom,
the wish will be taken to the heavens and be granted.

We have gathered to grant this couple all our best wishes and are about to set these
butterflies free in trust that all these wishes will be granted.

interesting.  And what, you may ask, does this have to do with earning a living or operating a business, in the Philippines or anywhere else you might rightly ask?

The answer lies here: http://www.amazingbutterflies.com/

photo credit: wolfpix

This is a site owned by a fellow name of Jose Muniz and his wife Karen, originally from Florida.  Back in 2006 a friend of Jose’s made him a $100 bet that he couldn’t make a living out of selling butterflies.  (I’d love to have been a fly on the wall when that conversation took place, what on earth got them started on that track?)

Anyway, Jose was earning a living as a computer consultant and was bored, so he took his friend up on the challenge.

I don’t have 2009 earnings figures, but the company made it’s first $1.000,000 (that’s US dollars, not Philippine Pesos) in 2006 and they haven’t looked back since.

Could something like this be replicated in the Philippines?  Your guess is as good as mine, but as a person who lives here and has a pretty good understanding as to how business is done I certainly don’t see why not.  Some facts to consider:

• We have lot of weddings here in the Philippines.  Many popular venues have multiple “production lines” and run weddings morning, noon and night.
• Philippines wedding couples and parents are no different than any other people, a wedding is a huge event in a couple’s life and they want the best .. or as much as they can afford.
• The raw materials in this idea are cheap, and grow naturally … and the boxes can be shipped anywhere and no trained technicians have to go along to “operate” things.
• The Philippines is blessed with abundant, cheap internal express services … they don’t charge like a wounded bull, or like FedEx as the case may be
• In addition to a lot of weddings, we have a lot of “patays” (funerals and death memorials.  Even in low income areas it’s very common to see the tent of a funeria (funeral home) in front of the deceased’s home, even folks who can’t afford viewing at a funeral home at=re going to have a proper send off … and I think releasing butterflies to symbolize the ascent of a loved one’s soul is at least as important as wishes going up to heaven for a new couple.

Anyway, if you are late to the fray on this and are afraid someone may have already read this post and started working on this idea?  Fear not.  In my experience less than 0.00001% of the people searching for “business ideas” even bother to do anything about them.

As Churchill is quoted, “Many men stumble across opportunity, but most just pick themselves up and walk on, taking no further notice”.

If you are looking for more conventional “Earn a living in the Philippines” or “Start a business in the Philippines” ideas, I note that friend Bob Martin’s 49 Ways to Make a Living in the Philippines book is on sale … for well under a dollar an idea.  Bob has one thing an awful lot of people who read Philippines sites, write Philippines sites, etc., can never say … Bob actually earns as good living here in the Philippines and has done so for a number of years now.

I did a full review on that 49 Ways to Earn a Living in the Philippines book here, if you want to read more before you decide.

Related posts:

1. Philippine Attitude Toward Foreign Business
2. “But I’m Just A Filipino”
3. Foreign Exchange Philippines
4. What It Means To Be An American, Or A Filipino
5. Self Sufficiency Filipino Style