i want to start a New England\Cali marriage agency...thoughts?

[stnmasn]

Hi team,
Newbie to site here. Happily married to una colombiana for 8 years now. I went to colombia with an agency looking for a wife. And like many have probably found,,, once i got there i was basically on my own. Luckily i am resourceful and motivated and made things happen for myself in my 5 nights there. without speaking a word of spanish. I speak it fluently now ... I have a Large extended family in Cali. I have been there 8 times. We are all very close.
My inlaws come from cali and live with us for 3 to 4 months every summer to help take care of kid and house etc,,some of you may know the routine
My wife and I would like to start an agency. We would like to do something small and real with myself being there for the guys the whole time in colombia. Maybe even traveling with them from states. I have many thoughts and want to hear from others about their thoughts on this topic. My wife is very conservative so this is all about the wife finding thing not sex trade. And the reality is we are also hoping to make a meager living if possible.....thoughts  Thanks.

[Fuzzyone]

 I would not bother only because the day of the marriage agency is over if you wanted to do this back in 2000 then I would say go for it. There just is to many different other ways to accomplish for free what you will try to sell.

[stnmasn]

that is interesting and disappointing you say that cause the wife is in cali right now for holidays. as well as scouting mission , and it seems that the agencies are hard to find now, i was wondering if the economy has an impact as well ....what methods are guys using these days to achieve for free what i'd like to sell? 

[Fuzzyone]

that is interesting and disappointing you say that cause the wife is in cali right now for holidays. as well as scouting mission , and it seems that the agencies are hard to find now, i was wondering if the economy has an impact as well ....what methods are guys using these days to achieve for free what i'd like to sell?

   There use to be a ton of them there as well as the rest of Colombia. They just do not get enough business right now that might change in the future if the economy ever gets better.

[stnmasn]

yes i remember there being many agencias when i went on my search 9 years ago....now my sister in law who manages a hotel in cali frequented by gringos cant track any down....and the thing is when i went to cali for the first time, i stayed in her hotel  and the front desk had business cards from various agencias that were close by .....am i right in thinking that medellin is where the marriage industry has moved to or is still flourishing?

[DesmondID]

that is interesting and disappointing you say that cause the wife is in cali right now for holidays. as well as scouting mission , and it seems that the agencies are hard to find now, i was wondering if the economy has an impact as well ....what methods are guys using these days to achieve for free what i'd like to sell?

There are several threads on VJ to the effect of "how did you meet your SO?" .. The internet was of course the #1 method. A lot of "we bumped into each other on facebook" or via an online game or the myriad of very cheap singles sites. If a guy is thinking about a wife from someplace else what is the first thing he is going to do?? Hit google and type in something like "foreign wife" or something similar..  Like most people he would research and exhaust the free/cheap options first.. and there are lots of them.

Virtually all countries have high speed internet access, digital cameras and web cameras abound,  and translation (crappy translation but enough to communicate) can be had on the web for free..

Also for Colombia in particular: The number of visas alotted was around 20,000 last year.. That is down from a high of over 40,000 at one point. Compare that to some Asian countries that are exploding..

[fathertime]

Hi team,
Newbie to site here. Happily married to una colombiana for 8 years now. I went to colombia with an agency looking for a wife. And like many have probably found,,, once i got there i was basically on my own. Luckily i am resourceful and motivated and made things happen for myself in my 5 nights there. without speaking a word of spanish. I speak it fluently now ... I have a Large extended family in Cali. I have been there 8 times. We are all very close.
My inlaws come from cali and live with us for 3 to 4 months every summer to help take care of kid and house etc,,some of you may know the routine
My wife and I would like to start an agency. We would like to do something small and real with myself being there for the guys the whole time in colombia. Maybe even traveling with them from states. I have many thoughts and want to hear from others about their thoughts on this topic. My wife is very conservative so this is all about the wife finding thing not sex trade. And the reality is we are also hoping to make a meager living if possible.....thoughts  Thanks.

Hey Stnmasn!   How did you come up with that funky username, do you work in masonry?


Anywhoo, I was curious as to when you began bringing your inlaws here for the summers?  I mean how many years was your wife already here when you were able to get them the visa?


You know it does seem that agencies are very difficult nowadays.  Would it really be financially feasible to run one?  Travelling with the clients to Cali is quite a bit of money in itself.  Well anyway, it will be interesting to see if you can  make it work.


Fathertime!   

[mudd]

medellin is also on the downside, for various reasons. econony being the number 1 reason. colombian sweethearts was just sold to a local by a gringo friend of mine. unless you can live there full time and run it, dont bother, its a pain in the ass and you have to deal with so many things. cheap, social outcast gringos who have no clue on how to date women, old men chasing girls way too young and way out of their league,   too " players" who lie to every girl they meet, some even still married, i have seen it all.

[JimD]

There is still one functioning brick and morter agency in Cali. It is allcolombiangirls accross Avenida Sexta from Chipichape. The last agency to close was American owned Cali Charm. I don't know how sucessfull it was or wasn't as a business but the owner's reason for closing was simply that he got bored with Colombia. He remains an ex pat but in a different country. There is certainly room for another agency but you'd want to start with deep pockets and maintain personal control. Having it managed by a Colombian even (or especially) a family member invatiably leads to problems.

[Kiltboy1]

Like many said, if it were 2000, go for it but social media has killed the agency scene. There are a few exceptions like Jamie's in BAQ, but for the most part, it would be a losing battle. Fun to pass your time with , but little to no $$ income wise. Most guys are not going to pay 1500 dollars like Jamie charges. Most guys, me included, were looking for as many citas for as little jack as possible. Put bodies in front of me and I would do the rest.Dollar VS Peso is also a negative factor. I was getting 2900 per dollar when I started going to Cali 12 years ago. Now, [snip], I can live cheaper here in the USA then Cali now.

[stnmasn]

Mornin everyone,
Thanks for the input...it is very appreciated...more input is welcome....and yes fathertime i am a mason..been doing it for 24 years and i am fortunate cause i still really enjoy doing it. As far as inlaws r concerned it took only one visit to bogota for them to get their visas. with a letter of support from me. they had literally no problem... supposedly the agent didn't even open their paperwork he just approved their visas..when they went to renew last December when the 5 year visa ran out they once again had absolutely no problem getting a 5 year extension. They are in their 70s and probably pose little risk of overstaying or abusing their visa.  They have been coming for 6 years now and i LOVE having them around. They live in home with us and we all live very well together. They are VERY helpful and caring.  And i look forward to their return this June.
I am still very interested in starting an agency in Cali....i really enjoy it there and i think it could be a fun way to pass some time in Colombia...i have no false ideas of making much money at it, but i enjoy Cali so much and i enjoy the women of Cali so much i would like to share that enjoyment with others. And as it turned out I found a very good woman there who loves Colombia but also really loves the USA, is proud to be here and is doing very well here, living the American dream, working hard and contributing in a big way to our household. So we have been thinking that we want to start an agency. We just need to come up with an angle that may not necessarily be new but that could be feasible and work...even if just for a while, (until maybe we find out it is more of a pain in the rear than it is worth,  i follow you mudd).
So here i am looking for input from the crew here. I am thankful for all i have got so far and look forward to more...i am completely new to site but not new to many of the experiences and thoughts i have read posted from others in this forum. I look forward to more dialog with you all.  stnmasn

[Jeff S]

We just need to come up with an angle that may not necessarily be new but that could be feasible and work...even if just for a while...

That's the trick. As someone who's made his living online for a number of years, I'd like to suggest that you re-think the tired "agency" business model and come up with a completely new concept. My suggestion would be to think much bigger than "divorced gringo seeks foreign bride to live happily ever after" business premise the agencies used in the past. Who'd pay for the email addresses of the tens of thousands of single Colombianas already listed on Amigos.com, facebook, yahoo, etc. etc. There are new, workable business models though, IMO, and I'd think if you were willing to devote a few hours every day, you could turn one of them into a viable business.

[stnmasn]

Jeff S,
Thanks for your thoughts, they r similar to mine...i want to try a new approach and have been brainstorming....i want to try  regional approach. i live in a very rural area with great people. i would like to concentrate my efforts in my region for a more personal approach to each individual. Getting to know them ahead of time..maybe they'd like to meet me and wife,  to know we are for real and are here for them, they can see how we have made a life together even with the cross cultural issues that inevitably occur and that the life we have is great and they can have it also. we are for real.

 I also am not a huge fan of big parties and all the noise and craziness that goes with them so i haven't  thought that i want to organize those big gatherings with many women, loud music and gringos...i would like to appeal to a different niche that wants to meet women but in a more personal private manner. of course the parties could be arranged if that is what clientele wants...or meeting groups of women in perhaps a different quieter setting..?? I have been trying to think outside the box. I'd like to cater more to the individuals than to cater to the groups as a whole..which would mean i suppose smaller groups of men at a time or maybe  no groups at all just personal tours???..i know my agency experience was very lacking and i want to do something better, something new.

[fathertime]

Mornin everyone,
Thanks for the input...it is very appreciated...more input is welcome....and yes fathertime i am a mason..been doing it for 24 years and i am fortunate cause i still really enjoy doing it. As far as inlaws r concerned it took only one visit to bogota for them to get their visas. with a letter of support from me. they had literally no problem... supposedly the agent didn't even open their paperwork he just approved their visas..when they went to renew last December when the 5 year visa ran out they once again had absolutely no problem getting a 5 year extension. They are in their 70s and probably pose little risk of overstaying or abusing their visa.  They have been coming for 6 years now and i LOVE having them around. They live in home with us and we all live very well together. They are VERY helpful and caring.  And i look forward to their return this June.

thanks stnmasn,   I did not know it was that easy to get the inlaws here, with just a letter of support.  At some  point I may try to do the same because I'm sure my wife would love to have her mother here to have her help out and do things with.


I guess you are moving from the cement of construction into constructing the foundations of relationships with your new Marriage agency idea! 


Good luck with all,


Fathertime! 

[piglett]

welcome to the board Masn
i don't know about the whole agency thing
however i don't live that far from the ocean(new hampshire) & I'll be glad to go buy a few lobsters rite off the boat & deliver them if you decide to have a regional get together.
 
 
good luck
piglett

[V_Man]

I went to Colombia for the first time recently. I spent my first week in Cali. However while I was in Cali I didn't use any agency or even look for one.
An agency would have been my plan C. Plan A worked for me so I didn't even warn an agency I may come. In fact I didn't even write down their phone numbers.

 I am very clear and specific about what I want in a woman.
In practice this means I need a lot of women to choose from to find the ones that suit me. Hence online dating as a start works well for me.

I think that if I did go to an agency I'd be more interested in a match making service. However I don't know how feasible that really is in Colombian culture.

[stnmasn]

Hey Piglett....i am not too far from you in Vt. and i love lobster...so i think a regional get together is a good idea...i will think on that and it could be a fun get together...and a good way to make connections and friends. i may start a new thread on a meeting such as that to see what the response may be. i really like the idea!!!

Vman...the match making thing is more along the lines of what i have been thinking....i have seen the videos from the sites that parade an obscene amount of girls for you to choose from and to me that seems cool enough and fun i'm sure but also a little overwhelming and also like a huge stab in the dark...system overload.
i think a smaller selection of carefully screened girls that have been chosen based on compatible interests with the client is a more realistic way to meet the woman of ones dreams.
those enormous parties seem like it couldn't be possible to screen the women well enough to know what they r even about.   
 vman i was wondering what was your plan a and plan b..and how did you do down there? Did you Meet muchas chicas...were they ones you had previously corresponded with from your country of origin?  What hotel did you stay at?  Did you have any friends or a contact there before you went?
Those massive socials seem like fun and we all know how much las colombianas disfrutan una rumba buena, but if one is serious about a relationship and maybe a real love then the huge social doesn't seem like the most realistic way to narrow down a selection of women to just a few that one finds interesting.... the music is loud making conversation difficult...too many girls to choose from would make narrowing down the search to a realistically compatible few difficult.....the matchmaking approach with a more private personal setting for meetings seems like a wiser way to go for a big decision such as a lifemate....it worked well for me.
vman if you have anymore input and thoughts on your search..also any details about your cali visit would be appreciated... how did you go about things and what did you find worked and didn't work? if you care to tell us I'd really like to hear bout it.   
Anybody out there with thoughts and ideas to exchange on this subject please do....and please do so without fear of attack or ridicule...this thread is not about that, it is about the respectful exchanging of ideas and thoughts and so far so good...lets keep up the respectful dialog..... thanks  stnmasn