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Hi list,
I amplanning to visit Costa Rica soon with the idea of exploring the possibility of semi-retirement and some business.
I am a Naturopath (Natural Medicine Doc) and own interest in a large vitamin plant in USA. We sell some finished vitamins to customers in CR but want to expand by setting a finishing (packaging) plant there and importing the capsules or tablets from my plant in USA rather than the complete thing.
The current sales volume is too small to justify the expense and we are looking to expand sales of specialty formulas designed for the typical problems of men and women over 50.
For those of you who know the country and the retired populacion what advise would you give me regarding the feasibility (or advisibility) of such an idea.
Is there an unfullfilled demand for vitamin formulas for the eyes, the brain, the joints, “energy”, circulation, diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol, etc.
What would the best location to reach the retiremnt community be? Is advertising to reach that community expensive?
Please feel free to expound I need all the help I can get
Many thanks
Frank Cuns-Rial
Chemist, ND, CNCMy brief experience here is that specialty preparations such as you advertise are not widely available, if at all. My local pharmcist has looked for Centrum Silver, for example, and can find none of it. So I know at least one person who would be interested in that, at least.
That said, I’ve read that some fifty percent of the Costa Rican population is under fourteen years of age. If that’s anywhere near true, then the market for “senior” vitamins, etc must be pretty small, since the total population is only about four million.
To be sure, there will be an influx of gringo retirees in coming years and some of them are potential customers for your products. Reaching them through retail outlets may be difficult, however, as most of them are scattered about the country. Other than in a few gringo neighborhoods, the concentrations of gringos aren’t very great.
Of course, if you set up a website, people in most parts of the country would be able to order them online. I’ll bet the majority of Expat retirees have computers.
I am a co-author of 3 books on natural remedies, supplements and complementary medicine. An avid user of natural remedies and supplements.
I may have to import cold milled organic flax seed, (USE IT DAILY), natural green power mutli-powders (DAILY use), and small things like wild-crafted oregano oil, tea tree oil, colloidial silver, etcetera.
There are health food style stores, I will be exploring in detail, when I am in Costa Rica my next trip June 26 to July 17, to finalize pensionado resident status details. Then wait for the bureaucracy to do what it does.
Is there a need? Yes. Is there a large enough target market and distribution system, I do not know. Many folks into that culture of self-health care and optimal health form a strong core of possibly thousands which might initially best be served with an internet site, selling and shipping within Costa Rica, preferably in bulk amounts using less packaging.
I hate buying top quality AOR multi-vitamin’s or EFA’s with DHA and EPA in small amounts (a months’ supply) as it is a waste of packaging, money and environmentally unsound.
I plan to make 2 trips to the USA or Canada each year, too load up with my needs. Am making arrangments with a couple of wholesalers for bulk purchases. A close friend and naturoptath works for a major vitamin supplier in Canada.
I also worked with naturoptths, pharmacisits, MD’s and assorted complementary medicine healers. The market is growing in Costa Rica. Rate of growth, unknown to me. I met many who have friends bring down supplements.
If I can be of further asistance, contact me at
ONLY send personalized handwritten emails. NO attachments. NO ads. Thanks.WHEN YOU GET UP and running, ADVERTISE ON THIS SITE, so VIP WeLoveCostaRica members can support the Costa Rican economy and jobs you create for them!
¡Buena suerte! Good luck!
Edited on Jun 02, 2006 00:12
I would be interested in being able to get high quality supplements when I move permanently to Costa Rica. The Macrobiotica in San Ramon carries most of what I take, and flax seed is ubiquitous but don’t know it it’s organic or not. I will probably buy a 4 – 5 months supply of all my junk — C, E, D, IP-6, Krill Oil, B-complex, Magnesium, Salmon Oil, Evening Primrose Oil and a few other things, then order from Vitacost and have it sent to my step-daughter’s so she can haul it all down when she comes to visit. What I don’t want to have to do when I’m in CR is drive a long distance to get this stuff, so the idea of a website from which to order does sound good to me, too!
Maravilla,
I haven’t posted in quite some time, but when this topic came up I thought I could add my 2 cents worth. I am a five year cancer survivor (b-cell Non-Hodgkins) and have become more aware of what I use to fuel my body. I take a natural whole food supplement that comes in a four month supply. If your interested in any info e-mail me at sbw@torchlake.com and I would be happy to call or e-mail more info.
Why not move the entire operation to Costa Rica. If it’s that big, it’s big enough to consider one of the many tax free industrial zones. PROCOMER and CINDE are the two CR governmental organizations you’d need to go through: http://www.procomer.com (Spanish) http://www.cinde.or.cr (English)
Costa Rica offers an excellent, well-educated and reasonably-priced labor force. Also, the level of sophistication and technology needed is available. Baxter Medical has a plant there, with a huge clean room for packaging the sterile products we use in the U.S.
Humidity & buying bulk – The environment in Costa Rica goes from humid to just plain clammy. Storing items susceptible to decay under these conditions requires some kind of dehumidification. Thank goodness video tapes are on their way out, they have a 6 month shelf life in CR – mold loves all those tiny metal scales.
Computer & copy paper is routinely kept in a cabinet with a light bulb turned on 24-7 to keep it dry so it doesn’t jam the machine.
If it can negatively affect paper and videotape, just think what it will do to foodstuff. You’ll need a strategy to deal with this.
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