| The idea of owning a bar on a tropical island | | | | motorbike accident. He never drove drunk but |
| is many people's fantasy but does the reality | | | | motorbike accidents happen easily out here. |
| live up to the dream? | | | | He discharged himself from hospital too |
| | | | quickly, again ignoring doctor's advice. His |
| In a good year, in excess of four million | | | | next boozing session was too much for a body |
| people visit Phuket in Thailand. A lot of | | | | that was tired of it. He passed away in his |
| those visitors will love it. Some will love | | | | sleep. |
| it so much that they want to live here. | | | | |
| | | | The crazy thing is he didn't even need the |
| Every year thousands of people come to Phuket | | | | bar. He had worked hard in his home country |
| hoping to set up a new life on a tropical | | | | and was in a position to retire. I and other |
| island. Many of them need to make a living | | | | friends had tried to persuade him to give it |
| and quickly discover that employment | | | | up. The problem was he was one of the few bar |
| opportunities for foreigners are very | | | | owners who was making a good profit and he |
| limited. So what are their options? Well one | | | | found it hard to walk away from a good |
| of the most likely avenues is to invest in | | | | business. In the end he was too good at being |
| your own business. And what is the easiest | | | | a bar owner for his own good. |
| business to get into? Owning a bar. | | | | |
| | | | The strange thing is most of the people who |
| To many people it sounds like a dream. A life | | | | buy into bars have come to Phuket for a |
| on a tropical island, days by the beach and | | | | better lifestyle. They want to live in a |
| evenings partying in your bar. But does the | | | | tropical island paradise. Phuket is their |
| reality match the dream? | | | | dream home and owning a bar is how they will |
| | | | fund their life here. The problem is owning a |
| It is something I considered doing when I | | | | bar excludes them from enjoying the island. |
| first arrived in Phuket. I checked out the | | | | |
| options; spoke with estate agents, bar | | | | Most bar owners wake up mid-afternoon with a |
| owners, even bar girls. In the end, I decided | | | | hangover. They lounge around their budget |
| it just wasn't worth it. | | | | apartment shaking off the hangover until it |
| | | | is time to go into the bar and start work |
| I was new to Phuket and still naive to many | | | | again. They could do this anywhere. Phuket's |
| of the pitfalls that await bar owners but | | | | glorious beaches, islands and other tourist |
| even then, I could see there were so many | | | | attractions are irrelevant to the bar owners |
| problems with owning a bar in Phuket. To | | | | because they hardly see them. |
| begin with, 'owning a bar' is a misnomer as | | | | |
| you will almost certainly be leasing and | | | | I know a couple of bar owners who did not |
| probably at very unfavourable terms. | | | | even know there had been a tsunami until the |
| | | | evening when they set off to work. I know |
| It is difficult to make a decent living from | | | | another who after three years in Phuket had |
| a bar and in fact most fail in the first two | | | | not yet seen Phang Nga Bay, Phi Phi Islands, |
| years. Even if your bar does make money, your | | | | Nai Yang Beach, Nai Harn Beach, in fact |
| working status will probably be illegal. The | | | | anywhere more than a few kilometers from |
| laws in Thailand are stacked against | | | | Patong. |
| foreigners owning a small business. | | | | |
| | | | I don't want to totally put off potential bar |
| As much as all these things concerned me, | | | | owners. I just want to open their eyes to the |
| they were not my biggest concern. The biggest | | | | sort of life they will be buying into. I |
| factor in turning me away from owning a bar | | | | think for the right type of character, under |
| was the lifestyle. I got to know quite a few | | | | the right circumstances, it is an okay |
| bar owners and when I looked at their lives, | | | | option. If you are young, you can handle this |
| I knew it wasn't for me. It is just such a | | | | lifestyle much better. I know when I was in |
| crap life. | | | | my twenties I did lots of boozing and was |
| | | | always able to shake it off ready for the |
| Don't get me wrong. I love a night on the | | | | next session. As you get older, your powers |
| beer. Even several nights on the beer. But | | | | of recovery diminish. |
| having to do it every night at the same bar | | | | |
| as a job? It would soon lose its charm not to | | | | For somebody who is looking for a couple of |
| mention the obvious health problems that go | | | | years partying and is willing to get in and |
| with such a lifestyle. | | | | out, owning a bar in Phuket is a decent |
| | | | option. If you have the sort of discipline |
| Since I made that decision to leave the bar | | | | where you can go to the bar and entertain |
| business alone, there has not been one second | | | | customers without getting drunk every night, |
| when I have looked back and regretted it. I | | | | then maybe it is for you. But as a long-term |
| know plenty of bar owners and consider | | | | source of income - for most people it is just |
| several to be friends but I never envy their | | | | not worth the sacrifice. |
| lives. Recently, the untimely death of one of | | | | |
| those friends really drove it home for me. | | | | Another bar owner friend decided to sell up |
| | | | after a couple of years in the business. He |
| He was not yet 50 years old. He owned a bar | | | | was a young guy and his bar was making him a |
| in one of the sois (side streets) off Soi | | | | living. The problem was he had got to the |
| Bangla in Patong. He was a nice guy, easy | | | | stage where he hated his bar. He hated going |
| going and easy to talk to. Although I saw him | | | | to the same place night after night, he was |
| no more than once a week, we always enjoyed a | | | | sick and tired of dealing with bargirls and |
| good chat and he was one of my favourite bar | | | | their petty squabbles and he was tired of |
| owners. | | | | feeling crap all the time. |
| | | | |
| Over the previous year, he had a few health | | | | So he sold up and got out with a nice little |
| problems. He had been in hospital several | | | | profit. It wasn't until after he sold the bar |
| times and the advice from the doctors was | | | | that he discovered the reason why he felt |
| plain and clear - stop drinking! | | | | crap all the time. It wasn't just the |
| | | | hangovers; they were masking the real |
| The problem is it is very difficult to stop | | | | problem. He had Leukemia. |
| drinking when you are a bar owner. The two | | | | |
| things that bring customers to these small | | | | I'm not saying that owning a bar actually |
| bars are the girls and the owner. And often | | | | caused his Leukemia but it certainly did not |
| the girls will not work very well if the | | | | help his body deal with it. What it did do |
| owner is not there. | | | | was put him in a frame of mind where he |
| | | | thought it was normal to feel bad all the |
| Regular customers like to have a chat with | | | | time and he accepted it. Fortunately, he got |
| the owner. Often, if the owner is not there | | | | out in time, was diagnosed and returned to |
| they will just move on to the next bar. Quite | | | | his home country where he was successfully |
| simply for these bars to work, the owner has | | | | treated. |
| to be there most of the time. | | | | |
| | | | He is now all clear and he hopes that one day |
| So couldn't my friend have drunk soft drinks? | | | | he can move back to Thailand. At the moment, |
| Well he did that for a few days but the | | | | his regular check-ups prohibit that. He says |
| boredom got to him. You spend the evening | | | | that now he looks back at his time in Phuket |
| sitting at your bar, bombarded with the | | | | and realises he was in a rut. He was making |
| deafening music that these bar complexes seem | | | | enough money to live but he couldn't save |
| to think is a good drinking ambience. For a | | | | anything. His life revolved around going to |
| good part of the evening, you may not have | | | | his bar every night so he was just not doing |
| any customers, but still you need to be there | | | | the things that drew him to Thailand in the |
| just in case. You can watch the TV but you | | | | first place. He would never return to the bar |
| can't hear it. Your only company is the bar | | | | business in Patong. |
| girls who are probably nagging for time off | | | | |
| or free drink. | | | | So to recap. If you are thinking about |
| | | | becoming a bar owner in Patong, what can you |
| And when the customers do arrive, they want | | | | expect? Well you will spend most nights |
| to get drunk and they want you to get drunk | | | | sitting at your bar waiting for customers and |
| with them. Of course, it is okay for the | | | | listening to dreadful, loud music. You will |
| customers. If they are on holiday, they are | | | | struggle to make a worthwhile profit. You |
| only doing it for two weeks before they | | | | will have to deal with the antics of your bar |
| return to their regular lives. The bar owner | | | | girls. You can decide to either spend your |
| is doing it night-after-night, | | | | evenings sober and bored or drunk and happy. |
| year-after-year. | | | | |
| | | | Assuming you go for the drunk and happy |
| They offer to buy you drinks and it is bad | | | | option (most bar owners do) you will |
| business not to accept. If you do keep your | | | | eventually pay for it. I don't know a single |
| discipline and stay sober then the evening is | | | | bar owner who looks like a picture of health. |
| insufferable. Drunks are very entertaining | | | | It is a demanding life and if you do it long |
| when you are drunk with them. When you are | | | | term you are probably taking a few years off |
| sober, there is nothing worse than trying to | | | | your life expectancy. |
| laugh at their inane ramblings. | | | | |
| | | | You could take the attitude that work is |
| So despite the doctor's warnings, my friend | | | | always crap. It is crap in your my home |
| was soon drinking again. It just goes with | | | | country so you might as well have crap work |
| the territory of owning a bar; you are going | | | | in Phuket. Well fair enough, as long as you |
| to drink a lot. | | | | go into the bar business with your eyes open |
| | | | and not with some rose-tinted vision of days |
| It all caught up with my friend. He had a bad | | | | by the beach and nights partying. |