4 ms·
Out in the developing world you’ll see all kinds of things that make no sense commercially, because they were really just a way to park a few million dollars in
by K0balt 1y ago
Out in the developing world you’ll see all kinds of things that make no sense commercially, because they were really just a way to park a few million dollars in a way that slowly trickles out under the guise of legitimacy. Buildings with rent ROI> 100 years. A motorcycle dealership with 3000 motorcycles in stock, slowly selling them off , many > 10 years old and zero miles…. Etc.
- dboreham 1y agoLaser tag.
- K0balt 1y agoCar wash
- reactordev 1y agoNail Salon
- sunrunner 1y agoBasically every desert parlour in the UK, particular Treatz and Creams.
- HPsquared 1y agoI wonder if anyone keeps stats on "number of obvious fronts on the high street over time". Between those and betting shops etc. it'd be interesting to see what proportion of businesses on the high street are truly "legitimate regular businesses for normal people" like cafés, shops etc.
- catsma21 1y agoFast-food restaurant chain
- hackable_sand 1y agoBanana stand
- v5v3 1y agoBananas can't stand.
- DonHopkins 1y agoYou just can't stand bananas.
- jones89176 1y agoTime flies like the wind. Fruit flies like banana.
- DonHopkins 1y agoI'd like a banana hammock!
- K0balt 1y agoTo be fair, there’s always money in the banana stand.
- runjake 1y agoIn the US, the feds pay close attention to businesses like car washes, coffee stands, and taco trucks because these are often used for laundering. There was a period where it seemed like they were doing some data crunching of IRS data and taking down domestic drug trafficking orgs (DTOs) this way, and a bunch of businesses were raided and shut down across the region I was in at the time. Personally, I wouldn't do any of those and would launder through art and collectibles where the values are somewhat arbitrary. And "consulting".
- hosteur 1y agoIn Europe, we have: Phone repair shop. Pizzeria. Gambling cafe.
- selfmodruntime 1y agoThe seventh mid Döner Kebab on the block right in the middle of the city
- jerrysievert 1y agoI've always wondered if Baskin Robbins is a front, I used to see them everywhere in Oregon, where they were always empty even during the summer made me wonder how they stayed in business. as a kid I always thought it was a mob front.
- jasonwatkinspdx 1y agoHeya Jerry! Hope you're well! I think Baskin Robbins was just increasingly bad. Growing up in Wichita it was definitely around and I remember going to it a lot when young. But then we started going to Braun's more, and I think it was a combo of location, liking the ice cream better, and getting burgers if we wanted. I think they just didn't adapt over the decades and sort of coast as a zombie now. I can't think of why I'd go to one vs so many other options now. Even supermarket stuff is gonna be better.
- mjevans 1y agoI remember as a kid they were really good. Like some of the best ice cream I ever ate. Wide selection too. Can't help but feel like they got the private-equity squeeze deal to turn them into a zombie. Some MBA comes in and cuts all the corners, all the costs that made them a first class market leader. Turning them from the best out there into just another ice cream shop with nothing distinctive that Washington and Lincolns everyone for all their money. (We're long past nickles and dimes these days)
- deleted 1y ago[deleted]
- salomonk_mur 1y agoHere in Colombia it's almost a staple to find perpetually-empty restaurants that never go broke. We call them "lavaderos" - kinda like "laundering-stations".
- fzeindl 1y agoHave that here in Austria from time to time as well. Funniest case I visited was a Chinese restaurant where the waitress always wore a winter jacket, because they couldn’t be bothered heating the place.
- philwelch 1y agoThis is interesting to me and I see why it would work in a place with lower state capacity but in more developed countries it’s not a great strategy. You want your money laundering to operate through high volume cash businesses. When I lived in Seattle I used to sometimes go to a sketchy cash-only teriyaki joint. The food was great and they were always filled with paying customers. Sadly, they were later caught and shut down.
- cruffle_duffle 1y agoThe scaryaki joint on 3rd? Weren’t those guys also fencing stolen iPads or something? That place had super good food though!
- philwelch 1y agoThey were fencing stolen iPads! I assume they were also laundering the stolen iPad money through their teriyaki cash flow, but it’s easier to get away with that if you actually have teriyaki cash flow.