Found My Multimillion Fastlane business!!! Seeking Advice

[Ola726]

Hello, Good day, Everybody. I'm new to this forum. I have read TMFL. Thanks to @MJ DeMarco for this masterpiece and the OGs for the steady knowledge they have been sharing and helping the upcoming fasteners.

Background
My name is Ola (27M). I'm an African currently based in China, and I work as a sales representative. I moved here to China about 6 years ago. I have always known I have an entrepreneurial spirit since I was a teen, and I think differently from my peers. I'm street smart because my upbringing was rough and also book smart, top of my classes in most schools or training I attend. In high school, when phones and computers were getting popular with touchscreens being introduced in the market, I discovered I also have a tech-savvy brain, so then, in high school, I helped friends and teachers configure their phones. I'm not kidding, I was very popular in school, if you remember Java and Symbian phones. So, I'm tech-savvy and an entrepreneur combined.

First official Business Attempt (failed)
So fast forward, I got admission into the university for a biological science course, I started my first semester, and I was looking for something to sell and make extra money and live the big boy lifestyle in school, so I saved up my pocket money and started researching goods to buy and sell, found the perfect product a "Car Scanner," this small car scanner that can scan car fault. I found it on Aliexpress, the retail version of Alibaba, and chatted up with the seller. I ordered 100 pieces, paid, and they shipped. I was happy and eagerly waiting. I was so stupid that I did not make any marketing plans. When the goods arrived, I used some money to do Facebook ads, a very cheap copy, and learned Facebook ads on YouTube, so the ads ran for one week, I got the shocker of my life: I didn't sell one piece, only two inquiries. I thought Ecommerce was that easy. I don't have a good page, no good pictures, and no review, it just looks like a scam ad. Looking back, I won't even click on the ads if I come across them. I gave up. During the holiday, I took the products home, and after I left home, my family started giving them out to visitors, and to date, there are still some left. My mum gave out some last year, and we always laugh about it.

Second official Business Attempt (failed)
After my first year in school, I realized that this course was not for me; it was dulling my technical and creative capacity. So, I decided to switch to Engineering. That was how I researched and concluded China is the best place, a manufacturing and business hub that is perfect for me. I looked for admission into an engineering course and processed my journey. Living in China was a great new experience, with opportunities everywhere. The Covid hit us badly, though, but we survived it. A year before my graduation, it hit me hard. I'm about to graduate, but the reason I came to this country is to make money, but I'm still broke; I lost focus and got comfortable with the new life, parties, and all kinds of social stuff. Then I panicked and gave myself a one-year goal to graduate with a certain amount, so I started researching; the plan was to go into Ecommerce, find a beauty product from a supplier in my city, get the sample, profit margin good, target country USA. Now I'm older and experienced, I went on YouTube to learn how to design a website using wordpress. Design the website, went to learn content creation and writing. I created an Instagram page to learn how to design posts and pictures on Canvas. The plan was to fulfill the goods myself; Amazon FBA was a hassle, so I decided to use Ship Bob, Everything sets, goods arrived, ads running, stripe gateway set, now let the sales and money start rolling in, but instead I got another shocker of my life, no sales and my ads cost burn out, I was devastated. Apparently, my marketing is still not great as I thought, gave up and counted my losses, ShipBob does message me from time to time asking for updates on my goods, and sometimes I log in to check warehousing costs; the amount was F*cking huge I had to close the tab quickly and run!

The breakthrough(To present)
I graduated with a Bsc in Engineering, moved to a graduate school, and don't know what to do with my life. I opened an Upwork account, fiverr, and LinkedIn and started looking for small copywriting or wordpress gigs; my second business failed but gave me these two experiences, which was the architect in my breakthrough, so in the cause of doing a small gig here and there, I got a gig from a B2B local company to specialize in global market, need a functional website for their company, did a perfectly good job for them, after the gig, randomly the company asked if i'm interested in a job offer, but as a sales rep, that they like me and at this point, my Chinese is good, ability to speak Chinese and english with skills is an asset here in China. Never really done sales before, but I took the offer. I started the job, and honestly, it's not bad, I remember when I closed my first deal, it was huge. I kept checking the PI, nervous as hell, the first time I was involved in such a large amount, and when the payment dropped, I was nearly jumping in my room at night. There again, I discovered I was natural at sales. My journey continues on the entrepreneur path, my salary is good, and the commission is good, but I want more, I don't want to live pay check to pay check. I need another side income that will be easy to manage with my job, I got one huge commission on a deal, and I decide to start a financial blog, creating the blog and everything was easy and professional, my skills acquired as years past came in handy, hired a freelancer from Upwork, posting two to three times weekly, after work at night i'm busy with my blog, I was deceived on Reddit, blogging is not as passive as people think, for a blog that makes serious money, its hard work, but if you are playing around with it, you can say it's easy. The blog is going great. I plan on monetizing soon, getting tons of visits, but not massive yet. After a while, I couldn't keep up with the freelancer because I was paying from my salary, and for months with low commissions, my pay suffered. So, I decided to hire two local writers from my country for a monthly salary. I trained them, and they are working now, so I just need to edit posts and other works on the blog. This is sustainable for me.

The Fastlane Journey
I have read many books. My first financial book was Rich Dad Poor Dad, but I couldn't finish it. The book opened my eyes to some things, but at some point, I got tired. I read Think and Grow Rich and Psychology of Money, but I needed more. I love reddit so much, so I went on reddit and searched for good financial books; TMFL is coming up everywhere, so I was curious why everybody is recommending this book. I went to my online store, got a seller selling the hard book, bought it, and got it in 2 days. In the first chapter I was hooked, I was restless till I finished that book, the things @MJ DeMarco revealed to me were magnificent, the book was too packed with information, and I love the no BS talks. So there my journey continues, searching for a Fastlane because I want to be very wealthy and be financially free, giving my family a good life. I passed through alot in this life, and my children will not pass through that, and i'm ready to work for it.
So I tried my financial blog on the CENTS, and honestly, I can't say it passed or failed, but I'll keep working on it if it can be giving some chunks of cash per month after I pay my workers and if it blows up I'll sell the blog for good money. I have tried many business ideas on the scale, but I discovered that the problem is that i'm looking for a business to make money instead of a business to solve people's needs and get money for solving it. Reading this forum has helped me alot.

The First Fastlane idea
Thanks to @NeoDialectic @fastlane_dad, their thread on idea execution, I got my potential Fastlane idea, with the potential of scaling to millions, but after I passed it through the CENTS scale, its cons were too much. The control is the biggest problem. There is a need for these products, and they will solve many people's problems, even myself, but I'll not be in total control. First, i need a manufacturer to produce this product. I go for a manufacturer in my city. But I'll need a mold, trademark, and patent to get this out. This costs alot, and that's for that.
The second problem is the risk of getting a clone of the products. Manufacturers here are notorious for that; once you get a winning product and making cool money, best believe they will clone it, and even your manufacturer can cut you out. The game is tough here before you know it, the clone is on AMazon selling cheaper, you can't beat manufacturer's price, and they have the resources to sweep you out. The only advantage you have is most don't have good marketing skills, but it's still a battle to keep up. Some of you might be thinking maybe my idea is not unique but no matter how unique your idea is, once they get hold of that product, they can do it, it's just a matter of time, even iPhone has perfect clones here. The only solution is to get parts from different manufacturers and have another factory couple it, but this will cost more. The third problem I have is that I plan on selling this product in American and European markets because of the purchasing power, but I lack control over sales channels, payment, one policy or strike of things going wrong. That's why I suspend this idea, way too many upfront costs, from production to marketing, and the lack of control is not worth the risk. But the idea is not dead, In the future, when I have more resources, I'll look for a partner in America that will handle the warehousing, payments, and distribution channel while I handle the production and perfecting of the product, and we make millions together.



The Multi-million Idea
I'm from a country where the population is huge, and we have alot of universities, and in this area, there is a need for student accommodation because there is a shortage of good hostels, there is no adequate water supply, electricity and a lack of security. So I'm looking to build an ultra-modern hostel housing 45 rooms, a two-story building. This building will be equipt with the following；

• Good water supply and reserve
• Mini Reading center ( Equipt with Tables and Chair like a library)
• Mini Entertainment center (Small showroom with TV and a cable TV, students can watch soccer matches, TV shows or anything in their free time)
• Mini Sports centre ( Table Tennis and pool table)
• Mini Gym (Monthly or Yearly card will be available; this will be a supplementary income)
• CCTV security, 24-hour security personnels, and key cards.
• Mini Supermarket （Rent out)
• Solar Powered (Just the Reading Centre, library, gym, mini-mart, and the environments, this will not power individual student rooms)
• House management app ( where students can lay complaints or need something fixed, buy electricity, visitation code number for guests coming to visit them)

To my friends from developed countries, you are thinking this is basic, but from where i'm from, this is not anywhere basic, this is ultra-modern and innovative., this is innovative and techy, Why do I think this is a good idea? My target is cities with three to four higher institutions, and I was once a student in my country, I Know the problems students face in terms of accommodation, and I have done my research with family and friends, These problems are still there, and nobody has fixed them, don't get me wrong, there are good hostels, but there are lacking many things, this kind of ultra-modern hostels is one of a kind, and there is a massive demand for it, if I build this, I can rent all out in a week, and there will still be people waiting for a vacancy. Compared to developed countries, getting land and building this is low costs. Each room only needs a kitchen with a sink and cupboard, and bathroom with a good shower, and a medium-sized room infused together, students only care more about amenities. And the space for building this kind of accommodation is not as big as you might think. Why I like this student accommodation is that students don't stay long, every year new sets are coming and it's very easy to deal with students, you can evict them and keep them in check to some extent compared to if you rent out to families. Impacting many student's lives, creating a comfortable living environment and making millions in the process is a great joy for me. Now let's pass this through CENTS

• Control- I'm in full control of the project I can build at my pace, and I can do whatever I want to be successful, I'm not relying on anybody, the bricklayer does a bad job, fire him and get another one, or the electrician is too slow, fire him and get a capable one, materials are expensive here, find another seller or ship from abroad. Nobody can control this business for me
• Entry- The barrier of entry is high, no regular Joe can try it, though there are many people who have the money in the country to do this same thing, but they cannot do it like me because of the tech and innovation I plan on doing are only known by me, what if after building this and people with money want to build the same, it's not a problem the sky is big enough to fit us all, there a thousand of students that needs accommodation, everybody will take their own piece of cake and make money, that's the advantage, competition does not exist, students will go to where they like and afford. But I'll make sure to standard out and keep innovating to create a comfortable environment for students.
• Need- The need and demand are very high, and alot of students and parents will pay for this because it's worth it, it's a alot in one package, and solves all student pain points.
• Time- I plan on building this with an experienced contractor, after building it, I'll employ a property manager, a cleaner, and two security personnel( take shift), after my presence is not needed there, I can be anywhere in the world, and my business will not stop
• Scale- The plan is to make it global and create a brand. All accommodation will be branded with only one name, all our buildings will have a signature design. Build in 5 to 10 student cities in my country, plan for building more outside my country, and continue scaling till I reach my goal, the scale is limitless. Took Inspiration from @Envision Thanks very much, sir

Preparation before Execution

• Buy courses on Project management, construction, real estate, and property management
• Order and Read Unscripted ( Ship from overseas, hardcopy not available here, need 4 to 5 weeks to arrive)
• Monetised my blog. Currently have two writers, training the best one to be my editor and posting content, reducing my workload, focusing promotion and earnings (need this income for cash flow for daily expenses)
• Quit my job
• Start a B2B Supplying company (To gather funds and keep busy)
• Buy the Lands for the project
• Get an architect and design the project
• Look for Investors
• Execute

How to Execute

I'm a very likable and easygoing friend, Over the years, I have built a strong network of very wealthy people, no kidding, we wine and dine on special occasions. My close friend told me something a while back, he said there are millionaires and billionaires in this country with alot of money and don't know what to do with it because they have invested in all good and popular opportunities they come across and they are willing to help entrepreneurs if your plan is solid and you have the drive, but people don't know because not everybody has access to them, only close network enjoy this. My network keeps telling me that someday, if i'm thinking of starting my own business, they will support me with their resources and network; I have kept that in mind, and that someday is here. I want to get investors in on this project. Why do I need investors? I can buy the land from my savings and build something with funds I gather from my blog and supply business, but It will take time, and I don't know how long it will take me on my own, and I don't think I'll be able to build that standard on my own. So I need investors, depending on how much I can pull will depend on how many I can build. I plan on buying land in three separate locations in a city, it's a city where I schooled, I know my way around the city, and there are 7 higher institutions. if I pull enough funds, I can build the three, if not, I build one and use that one to get a loan or investors for the others. You might ask, why not get a loan? I don't have collateral or any track record, I'm young, and to get that kind of loan will be a hassle, and I can't ask my parents to get it for me, I want to handle it myself; that's why i'm thinking of the investors route. Now, to my questions

• What is the best way to approach potential investors on this project?
• What kind of term will attract and benefit investors while still not potentially ruining me?
• What is the best business registration option for this kind of company
• What are the skills I need to learn or books that I can read that can help me with this kind of project
• For building this project, what is the best approach in terms of hiring

Any advice or suggestions are welcome. Help me out!

Thanks

Disclaimer: I'm not soliciting a partner or looking for investors. I have my pool of potential investors already, just need advice, and i'm open to mentorship, too.

 

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