Very interesting report! So, you can import stuff through the internet nowadays, but it's expensive? How does that differ from the past in Cuba? Was the country completely shut and the Government controlled everything?
Another question... I imagine the country has been changing to a more open economy, right? Is there any chance they'll adopt free-market in the future? What do you think is needed for someone to open a business there, for example a bike shop to sell new bikes, parts and offer service?
In my imagination Cuba would grow immensely if the Government relaxed a bit and let people innovate.
It is expensive, yes. Here we have several ways, I recently used aeronvio.com to buy my action cam on Amazon. You look for the link to the product you are going to buy on Amazon, Shein and other sites, where you have located it and they allow it, and you paste it there in Aeronvío. You pay for the product with the fees included and they buy it and deliver it to your home. The cheapest way, which is by ship, takes about a month. The most expensive way, by plane, takes a week, but it costs 10 USD per pound and there is a minimum of pounds that you have to use. If you don't use them, you pay the same.
The government started allowing self-employment a few years ago, and now allows the creation of small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).
Such a shop can be done I suppose as a MSME or as a local development project, but I think the latter would have to have a community project included. Something that benefits the community. I don't know what those things are like because I have never considered doing one. I need an investor. 😅
Well, if you decide to do it in the other half of my house that is not finished, you can set up the shop 🤣.
I'm seriously thinking about flying over there with a bag full of stuff to sell over there. Fly back, fill the bag and in again hahaha rinse and repeat. Jokes aside, I'm really curious, and would visit Cuba if I had the money. Brazil also had a period where imported goods were basically not allowed (between the 70's and early 90's) -- you'd need to pay a lot more for someone to bring stuff into the country, more or less like in Cuba. Government excuse: incentivize national production. You can imagine it incentivized nothing but years of blocking innovation to Brazilian consumers, like computers and so on. We kinda fall back in terms of technology.
🤣 not bad idea.
Honestly, I wouldn't do anything here. There will be a lot of obstacles and people who will bother you and stress you out, looking to get something out of you, there will be a lot of them. The situation is precarious.
Hah! Not much different than in Brazil, just in a harder level