"Lost in Nicaragua" Pt 2

Along with the volunteer work we did in Nicaragua, we also fucked around a lot too. I put together another Armontage(get it, cuz my name is Armon). If you're ever going to Nicaragua, watch this video. We went to most of the popular tourist locations in Nicaragua including Serra Negra, Somoto Canyon, Leon, and San Juan Del Sur. This isn't the the most official tourist guide to Nicaragua but it unveils the social life of a somewhat dysfunctional group of students. Enjoy!

Marketing in Nicaragua

Marketing in Nicaragua

    This past week my friend and I worked with a foodstuff company called "Proleizam". Founded by a man named Erwin Antonio Leizam 3 years ago, Proleizam has been taking off in the city of Leon. When we arrived at the Proleizam cartoonish-looking warehouse, Erwin didn't hesitate to get straight to business by over-viewing his new products. He had a new type of ketchup, mustard, and vinegar, all of which had their own label. After 2 minutes of meeting him, I knew that he was on his A-game. He had all the basics; a warehouse, equipment, a logo, connections.. Erwin had everything together. He didn't even look like he wanted 2 young college students to tell him what to do. Not to mention he received a $20,000 reward to start his company  last year.

Proleizam headquarters

   So what did he want help with? Well, he had all these products ready, but with no traditional marketing strategy to guide his delivery. He had some ideas though, like driving a truck around town blasting commercials for his products through huge speakers (which is very common in Nicaragua).

   So, we put together a presentation and business card ideas to deliver to him. The presentation went over the 5 P's of marketing, and a specific example to follow each one:

Product: What?
Placement: Where?
People: To whom?
Price:  Maximum profitable price , prices you compete with ?
Promotion: How?

After Erwin was properly educated with western wisdom, we went into the "promotion" aspect specifically.

    I pulled up a picture of a business card I had spent hours preparing the day before only to find out  that he already had one! Once again, Erwin had it together. With a curve ball thrown at us, we had to go with plan B; pick at his marketing mistakes thus far.

The example business card I had created. A good business card is simple and to the point.  It has his basic contact info, his logo, and a Slogan to help convince his clients and customers that Proleizam is the right company to buy from.

   Labeled on his ketchup bottles were impressive but the Leizam logo wasn't nearly big enough to remind the customer who they were buying from. I pulled up a picture of a Heinz ketchup bottle just to show him that the logo was bigger than the word "ketchup". I told him that people should look at his bottle and already know that it is good ketchup just from the brand name. He nodded his head in agreement, finally giving me a look that made me feel relevant. Erwin is a smart entrepreneur who knows his business inside and out, he just needed some new approaches to marketing his products. I'm sure he will find success in his business. Good luck Erwin!
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11 Rules of Nicaragua

Whether you’re traveling through Central America for fun or volunteer work, you might want to consider these 11 rules. I developed this list based on my 1 month experience in Nicaragua. (Masaya, Granada, San Juan, Diriomba, etc.) .

1.   Don’t you dare leave your bag unattended!

Everyone knows that you’re a gringo (North American) with an iphone and other expensive stuff. Someone will take your goodies in a second… don’t give them the opportunity. I was in a café one time and I put my bag down to pay for my drink, when I turned back around I noticed 3 school boys surrounding my bag. They immediately ran out of the café once I saw them.  People get stuff swiped out their hands too. My friend and I were walking home one night and a man on a bicycle came from behind and knocked her wallet out her hands in an attempt to steal it. Be careful of your valuables!

2.   There’s always room for more

If you take public transportation in Nicaragua, don’t be surprised if a fat Nicaraguan ass is plowed into your face while you’re sitting down. There is no such thing as “no more space”. This one time I was in a public van that was built to seat 16 people… we somehow managed to fit 25… don’t ask how. Let’s just say that someone had to hang out the door for the duration of the trip.

3.   Nicaraguans fall in love quicker than they can speak.

If you show any interest in a Nicaraguan, they will throw the “L” word at you before you know their last name. I’ve heard of multiple instances where a man got proposed to by some chica they barely knew. CREEPY.

4.   Watch where you step!

The streets in most cities of Nicaragua are basically obstacle courses. Flustered with horse shit, random holes, and sleeping dogs… there is no telling what you could step in. My friend almost broke an ankle because she stepped in a hole while walking carelessly. Once again, be careful!

                                    

5.   LADIES: Be prepared to be sexually harassed

You know how when a pretty girl walks past some construction workers, the construction workers all holler something sleezy toward the poor woman? Imagine a country where there are sleezy construction workers on every street corner… except that they’re not working. All of my amigas get hollered at least 5 times a day. Comments range from “Where are you from baby?” to “I LOOOVE YOUR PUSSY”, all said in Spanish accents of course. One of my friends got her ass slapped by a man on a bike. If you think you're ugly, come to Nicaragua! Random men here will appreciate you <3

6.   Don’t eat street food

“Mmmm, those quesadillas look good, I think I’ll get one.” WRONG. THINK AGAIN! Most street food is prepared on a car grill by people who don’t wash their hands. You will most certainly get diarrhea if you eat street food. MARK MY WORDS!

7.   Make friends with locals, they know what’s good.

A local can tell you which streets are safe, how much you should pay for a taxi and other vital information that could save you a lot of hassle, money, and danger!

8.   Bargain!

Venders know that you are a gringo with a little extra cash. They will try to take advantage of you. When I buy something on the street, I cut the price in half and work from there. Initially, they might not want to sell it to you, but if you play with the price a little more you can still get a good deal. Also, keep in mind how much the product is actually worth and how badly the vender needs to sell it.

9.   DON’T EXCHANGE MONEY AT THE AIRPORT

The airport in Managua rips you off. I made the mistake of exchanging 250 USD at the airport. Big mistake. The exchange rate they gave me was 20 cordobas for every 1 dollar. FUCKING BULLSHIT. I found out later that you can exchange your dollars at a bank for 24.5 cordobas for every dollar. I lost 1000 cordobas ($40) from a $250 transaction. I suck.

10.               Order the National Beers

If you want to save money, order the Tona or Victoria. They are usually half the price of other beers. FYI :Foreign alcohol is more expensive than that in the US! 

                                                         

11.               FOLLOW THESE RULES

If you decide to come to Nicaragua, follow every rule here and you will be okay. If you don’t, you will die. Painfully.

The "Armontage"

Random experiences of my first month in Nicaragua. Its called "Lost in Nicaragua" Pt.1. Enjoy!

APAN Organic Vegetable Garden Project

    We have like a million projects with a million different clients going on right now in Nicaragua! One of our main clients, APAN (Asociacion Pro Ayuda a la Ninez Nicaraguense) located Diriamba, is trying to start a whole center of commerce in their headquarters.  APAN's headquarters consists of some small buildings, a playground, and a basketball court closed off by some walls. Right now they have a preschool, a beauty school, a baking school, and a coffin shop.

    Along with plans to expand their current endeavors, APAN  plans on starting their own vegetable garden. Ronaldo, an APAN leader is behind all the plans. He wants to grow organic vegetables ranging from carrots to beets. The reason? To start a mini farmer's market in the APAN headquarters.  Not only does Ronaldo want to sell vegetables grown by APAN, but he also wants to promote people in his community to grow vegetables in their own homes to bring to APAN to sell. The revenue from the market will fund the construction of a new preschool facility nearby.

    Ronaldo doesn't want to use any chemicals in the garden. Instead, he wants to use compost from recycled food, making this garden SUPER SUSTAINABLE! After conducting a SWOT analysis and developing a business plan for the garden, we needed a logo. With the help of my friend , Aneri Dalal, we made a logo for the garden. On it reads "Producto sano libre de quimicos", translating to a "Healthy product, free of chemicals". Now we're publicizing the garden by posting up flyers around the community. Hopefully we can help APAN reach their goals!

   Here's the logo:

Our team in action

Ronaldo outlining our objectives.

Recycling!

This is the area Ronaldo plans to grow the vegetable garden.

If you want to learn more about APAN, or even get involved, visit http://www.ayudanineznicaragua.org/ and click on "collaborate".

If you didn't know, I'm an electronic music producer. Lately I've been sucked into a new genre known as "Trap" music. Trap is a form of electronic music that utilizes 808 bass to deliver a deep punch to the listener's ears. Since I'm living in Granada, Nicaragua, I've been exposed to a lot of Reggae-tone music (the latino hip-hop genre where every song has the same beat). I wanted to combine the 2 genres, so I did. In my new song "Lost in Granada", Trap music meets Reggaetone. Trap+ Reggaetone = Reggae-Trap. Enjoy :D

Street dogs in Granada: Stray or Okay?

         There seems to be an abundance of stray dogs ruling the streets of Granada, Nicaragua. Many female dogs have milking breasts, and I haven’t seen a neutered male yet. You’ll see a dog prancing down the street like it owns it…very cute. But who owns these dogs? I asked my Spanish teacher, Sarai (who owns 4 dogs), about these “stray” dogs and she said that most of them aren’t stray. In Nicaragua it’s very common for a family to own a dog, but allow it to roam the streets during the day, kind of like how Americans treat their cats. For example, my host family’s dog, Zoro, isn’t collared and can freely enter and exit the house. I see him relaxing on a nearby street corner every day. The family is nice to Zoro, but they don’t pay much attention to him. I haven’t a seen a food bowl in the house and he is skinny, indicating that he mainly relies on food he finds on the street, or a small donation from a dinner plate.

        I see this as partial ownership over Zoro, since the family doesn’t take full responsibility over him and he has the option to leave. If conditions were bad enough, he could choose to stay at another household that offers him something better (which wouldn’t be hard considering how cute he is). Some people would call this animal abuse, but I think otherwise; a free dog is a happy dog. Sarai told me that if you collar the dogs and force them on walks, they lose the will to eat and play. I see the prosperity in the wide eyes and open mouths of many of the dogs here. Sure these animals don’t get the best dog food in the world but they’re not bound to one house, and leashed every time they go out. They are completely free. Many opportunities for good left overs and promiscuous sex await for them in Granada. Sure, dogs need some level of care, but many dogs in Granada get a good balance of control and freedom. If I was a dog, I would love Granada.