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We've
loaded the Suburban and trailer with Luis and Letti's piņatas. |
I've been away from my desk and my internet businesses while working on their house over the last sevearl weeks. Out of concern for my being away from my
work, Luis and Letti have been praying for my business. Working
through their love for my family and the power of praying for blessings
on others, God has blessed their business.
Recently Luis took the mountain bus to Chapala with samples of his piņatas,
where he showed them to the owner of a new candy and party goods store.
The owner liked his work and began making orders for his piņatas. Luis
and Letti have no vehicle and had been dependant on relatives for
delivery of their piņatas. The relatives charged them for gasoline, plus
a fee for use of the truck. After buying materials to create the piņatas,
and their relative making a large profit for the delivery service, Luis
made very little profit for his many hours of work. I've begun timing my
trips to and from Mezcala to allow delivering their piņatas to the
store in Chapala, at zero cost to Luis, of course.
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Luis
looking over his second delivery of piņatas. We'd placed them
on the walkway in front of the candy store awaiting the owners
approval and purchase. She liked them very much, bought the
entire order, and ordered 33 more piņatas in a variety of sizes
and character themes. Luis beamed from ear to ear when she told
him she'd already sold most of his piņatas that we'd brought
in only three days before. The children in Mexico love the
Disney theme characters for their party piņatas.
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Some
of Luis' piņatas on display in the candy store in
Chapala.
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Here's
a view of Luis' smaller piņatas in traditional donkey, horse,
cow, and parrot character themes. This size piņata is
popular with tourists due to their ease to pack, stow
in a car, or even carry onboard a plane.
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A
close up of one
of Luis' piņatas, this one is designed after the Disney
character, Sponge Bob... a real favorite with the Mexican children.
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Above,
Letti waits for the candy store owner to figure the payment for
purchasing their piņatas. Letti is a good business woman and
already knows to the peso what the payment should be. They sell
the piņatas to the store at wholesale for 36 pesos each. The
store will resell them at 55 pesos each.
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Piņata
Profits
Luis can create 20 piņatas in three days working about 10 hours per
day. He buys the colorful materials used to create the piņatas in bulk,
at a cost of roughly 10 pesos for each piņata. His profit is around 26
pesos per piņata. At 30 hours of labor for 20 piņatas, his hourly
income is about 17 pesos per hour for his work.
A
boost in income
Part of my plan for Luis' new house is to set up a street side display area on
his property in order for Luis to sell
his piņatas at retail to the people of Mezcala. The extra 19 pesos
profit per piņata will be a real boost to his income.
The
new house we're building is located directly on the main street of the village and only
one block from the village central square. Hundreds of people walk,
bicycle, and drive directly past the front of Luis' new house each day
on their way to and from the central market area. Even the main bus line
that connects Mezcala to the surrounding villages passes in front of
Luis' house coming and going. I'll later design and install a colorful
sun awning between Luis' house and the city sidewalk so he can
display and sell his piņatas and beautiful creations of paper and silk flowers. I'll also
create colorful signage to be used as promotional advertising in
front of Luis' house.
Luis' old house was located on the far outskirts of
the village, well off the beaten path, and on a dead-end street, which offered
little walking or drive-by customer potential. As it is with business in
America, in Mexico too, it's all about location.
NEXT
PAGE: Page
Six - List of Items Needed
Other Links
to Information about Luis and Letti: How
we met Luis and Letti
Links to
previous pages in this project
Page
One - Luis and Letti lose their home due to family problems
Page
Two - Excavating Luis and Letti's new home
Page Three - Building
Foundations for Luis and Letti's New Home
Page
Four - Building the Bovida Ceilings
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