sanjohnny

Hi there I'm John, looking at finding some info about Nerja... I have a business partner that lives down there and has asked me to join him in a business venture. The nature of the business is aimed at expats so I'd like to get a bit of a picture about how many expats, if any at all live in the Nerja area? I appreciate your feedback!

susanita 2809

If you can navigate to the local Town Hall, Ayuntamiento, website, you will probably find that they publish statistics of those on the Empadron, electoral roll. This can however be very inaccurate as many ex-pats don't bother to register as they move between Spain and the UK.
Remember, most expat businesses go bump very quickly. At first you are a novelty, but people are fickle and move on to someone else. If you are legal and register and pay all your taxes, national insurance etc. it is very difficult to make a living. Whatever you charge for your services/product, you will be competing with Spanish businesses where the prices will generally be cheaper. Your only advantage being that you speak English. When expats become more confident they, too, start to use Spanish businesses.
You won't believe me thought! No-one ever does, but after 16 years, I could count on one hand the number of expat businesses that are successful.
If you are determined to have a go, get on a flight and come and do some market research. Don't just ask people if they would like a, for example, chip shop or English mechanic....they will say 'yes' but how do you translate that in to custom?
My best tip would be...have enough money to pay all your business expenses for 12 months without the need to take anything out of the business. Without this working capital life will be very difficult. You have to think long-term, there are no longer fortunes to be made. Remember the downfall in the UK and US economies are having a huge impact here in Spain too.

sanjohnny

Hi susanita thank you very much for your reply. I am fully aware of the consequences of the current global economic climate. I also know that setting up shop abroad can be a tough, thus I am trying to do as much research as possible before jumping into anything. My main worry is that I am not sure Nerja has a substantial expat population at all...

susanita 2809

My knowledge of Nerja is limited, you need someone from the Malaga area to give you their impressions.
Nerja is a seaside town, heaving in the Summer with both British and Spanish holiday makers. Like many other seaside towns, it tends to empty rapidly once the heat has died down.
My impression of towns such as Nerja, is that the ex-pats that do exist, tend to be retired and living on a fixed income. If they are working it is often tourism based, bars, catering etc. Many of the needs of the ex-pats are catered for in the large resorts and in Malaga and or Granada. Although I know Granada fairly well, having another house in the Lecrin Valley, and I see lots of tourists but few Brits actually living in the city.
On both of the main routes to the coast from Granada, the road to Malaga and the road to Motril, there are lots of small towns and villages where there are groups of ex-pats...but not in great number. Many only live there 6-8 weeks a year.
So I think you need to consider the type of ex-pats you are looking to provide a service for i.e. not just in terms of numbers but do they have money to spend.
I am sure someone on here will take this as an insult to older ex-pats but it is not intended that way. The socio-economic profile of your prospective clients is really important.

country boy

I don't live in Nerja, but I know it quite well. There is a very large British Comunity in Nerja, there is even a Spanish speaking British Lady on the council .
I wouldn't however class it as a prosperous town, and it is a bit off the tourist route ( which I suspect is why a lot of people choose to live there). I don't know what type of business you are in but it wouldn't be my first choice for a base to set up in business.

Beachcomber

Nerja has become a bit of a backwater since the construction of the motorway that skirts it. There is a huge urbanisation called El Capistrano which was massively overpopulated with properties compared to its original plans and has become something of an ex-pat ghetto.

Not my cup of tea but, then, it takes all sorts.

anis

I've been quite a few times to Nerja and every time it's been heaving with tourists - many nationalities, but most of my trips have been summer ones, trudging visitors around, usually to the caves - groan ! Nice once but it can become monotonous.
It would be difficult to tell you how many were local expats.
There seem to be a lot of expat businesses there, from greasy Brit spoons, bars to a crazy Mexican restaurant which fascinated me, with its collages on every wall space. Very busy night scene. Close by is the busy Torre del Mar but I would say Nerja has more visitors.

chewy

I live in Granada area and i go down to Nerja quite a bit,there is a big ex-pat community there.There is a good car-boot sale on every sunday and it`s mostly Brits and Germans.It`s got the usual brit bars etc but no-where near as many as Torriemoinos or Fuengi.........

ChrisNerja

I can´t remember exactly the last official figures, but there are approx.25,000 official residents of Nerja with approx. 25% of theese being British, there is also a fairly large Irish community who should not be ignored.
The figures do not take into account a large proportion of unofficial residents and also expats who regulary go back and forth between the U.K. and other countries.
There are also large expat communities in the surrounding towns of Frigiliana and Torrox.
I think Susanita's comments are valid and you should research your business well and take into account all the costs before start up.
I would not agree with Beachcomber´s comments that we are a "bit of a backwater", the motorway access has improved the area and we are the top tourist location in the Eastern Costa del Sol.
I think John needs to come here to appreciate it!