Where’s the Ritz When You Need It?
Issue #2230
- WEALTHY: The common denominator between oil, the Wii, and Russian hotels (Andrew Gordon)
- HEALTHY: A fishy way to maintain your brain (Kelley Herring)
- WISE: Mark Twain on opportunity
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:
- Specific, actionable, FREE answers to your biggest questions (Suzanne Richardson)
- 10 little things Wendy loves about the holidays
- It’s Fun to Know… how to track Santa’s journey
- Add "dotage" to your vocabulary
15 Minutes A Day To Personal Freedom in 2008…
Just think, reaching your goals this year could make the difference…
Between retiring with just enough to get by… or with a millionaire’s portfolio…
Between having a job you dread going to every day…. or the job you’ve always dreamed about…
- Charlie Byrne
"I was seldom able to see an opportunity until it had ceased to be one."
Mark Twain
Where’s the Ritz When You Need It?
Freakin’ Russia. It was one thing after another the morning we flew into Sheremetyevo Airport. We had barely stretched our legs when a burly airport cop tackled my colleague, Mike, for taking a picture of the baggage carousel.
Then we hopped into a taxi - and were soon praying for our lives as our driver repeatedly swerved into the middle lane to get ahead of the slow-moving traffic. Trouble was, cars going in the opposite direction were also using the middle lane for passing, and our driver refused to get out of the way. Every two minutes, we were seconds away from a head-on crash. Finally, much to our relief, we arrived at our hotel.
But relief turned to dismay as the bellboy turned on the lights in the tiny vestibule… then the bathroom lights… and the lights on the two bedside tables. I could barely see a thing. Jeesh! This fleabag hotel was sadly the best we could find in Moscow.
I started to curse in Russian, but stopped when I eyed the bellboy waiting for his tip in the semi-darkness. I slipped him a fiver and he disappeared - no doubt alerting the babushka they had stationed on every floor (to keep track of our comings and goings) that I was settling in.
I was disappointed, but not surprised. I had stayed in a dozen hotels in Russia. They were all like that. This was a few years ago, but from what I’ve heard the situation in Moscow has barely improved. But one thing has changed. The same dingy hotels are charging a lot more now.
It’s different in Asia. Take Singapore. They have about two dozen five-star hotels, another two dozen four-stars, and one amazing six-star. The service is efficient and friendly. And they take the hotel business in this sparkling city-state very seriously. So much so that a bitter debate broke out a couple of years ago over room rates.
The five-stars in Singapore were charging about 20 percent less than the five-stars in Europe, and they weren’t sure why. Occupancy was robust, and Singapore also has first-class restaurants and shopping. The business community didn’t want Singapore to be a magnet for bargain hunters. It was an expensive city. People spent a lot and the hotel and shop owners cleaned up. They wanted to keep it that way.
When I was running an international business, I was a frequent customer of this sector. I’ve stayed at about 15 of Jakarta’s three dozen five-stars, at about 10 of Singapore’s two dozen, and at a half-dozen of Shanghai’s two dozen hotels. That includes the amazing Grand Hyatt Shanghai in Pudong, which occupies the 53rd to 87th floors of the Jin Mao Tower - one of the tallest buildings in the world.
Now I’m naturally curious about what makes businesses tick. So every time I stay at one of these hotels, I ask about their occupancy and break-even rates (and why they’re charging me so much). Except for a 6-12 month period beginning in 1998 when economic crises rolled over one Asian country after another (China, with its closed monetary system, was the notable exception) and caused occupancy rates to plunge into the teens, these hotels have enjoyed occupancy rates way above their break-even levels. Even in Singapore, the debate was more about respect and image and implications for the long-term future and less about losing money.
So let’s go back to the land of vodka and caviar. Russia has had its ups and downs economically, but it’s also a country where privatization has unlocked untold wealth and has helped the stock market reach dizzying heights. There’s no going back now to the old command economy. Russia is an economic power in the making, and Moscow is its epicenter.
So this is what we know about Moscow. Its hotel scene is disgraceful. The city is the political and financial center of the country. And Russia’s no-longer-red star is soaring.
My brother - who works for a major hedge fund - was there recently checking out investment opportunities. I told him the biggest opportunity may be where he rests his head. And, sure enough, when he returned he told me they’re going to be making big investments in hotel development.
Hedge funds may be into derivative investing in a big way, but they’re not above employing the most basic investing rule of them all: Invest in shortages.
The world is plagued with shortages. From Harley-Davidsons to Wiis to wheat and water, shortages are all around us. And they have one thing in common: They make great investments.
The best shortages are the ones that are going to get worse before they get better - like hotels in Moscow. You can’t build hotels overnight… or mines… or oil fields. When supply in these sectors falls behind rising demand, it takes a while for supply to catch up. (That’s why I prefer these sectors to, say, wheat, where you can make a leap in supply in a single growing season.)
It’s easier to invest in some shortages than others. Investing in the shortage of classy hotels in Moscow is challenging. If you have a million, you could invest in a hedge fund like my brother’s. But if you don’t, here’s another way to do it.
Invest in Templeton Russia and East European Fund (TRF), a closed-end mutual fund. It recently acquired Open Investments, a Moscow-based real estate development and management company that specializes in large projects, including hotels. Admittedly, that’s just a small fraction of TRF’s overall portfolio, although two out of three of its biggest sectors are metals & mining and energy. Clearly, this is a fund that believes in the advantages of investing in shortages. And it doesn’t hurt that its dividend yield is 18.5 percent.
Apart from decent hotels in Russia, other big shortages are copper, nickel, uranium, water, and oil & gas (prompting a surge in the alternative-energy sector)… plus affordable cars in some of the biggest and fastest-growing markets in the world. I’m a big believer in investing in shortages - and, as a result, the recommendations I’ve been making to my subscribers have been paying off in a big way.
Strong companies in weak sectors can break your heart and strip you of your savings. The best thing about shortages? Even mediocre companies with a penchant for keeping costs down can make big bucks off them. And all you have to do is look for sectors where structural shortages are in play.
[Ed. Note: ETR’s Investment Director, Andrew Gordon, is the editor of INCOME, a monthly financial advisory service that uncovers income-generating stocks that promise safety (first and foremost), along with much-higher-than-average profit potential.]
"If You Knew Which Companies Were About to Be Taken Over, How Rich Would YOU Be?"
The life of a “Merger-Mercenary” is simple: they’re given information (by me), then they can make a single phone call and receive monthly checks for doing nothing while they’re waiting for the big fat payout from a corporate takeover.
These lucky few just enjoyed gains of 101%… 81%… 54%… and a host of other double digit winners this year alone.
And that’s on top of the 3-8% yields they’re getting from each of these companies!
Read this special report to find out how YOU can become a “Merger-Mercenary.”
ETR Insider Report: More Experts at Your Service
By Suzanne Richardson
"Dear Michael, would real estate be the quickest way for me to get out of debt?"
"Dear Michael, what are my chances of making a go of it as a copywriter?"
"Hey Mike, is it wiser to buy a used car or lease a new one?"
Over the past seven years, ETR readers have asked Michael Masterson hundreds of questions about business building, marketing, copywriting, investing… just about anything. From those hundreds of questions, Michael picks a few to answer in ETR - those that he thinks will benefit a large portion of our readers.
Till now, Michael has been answering these questions himself. But a few weeks ago, he and MaryEllen came up with a new idea. They figured that since we have so many experts here at ETR, we should start taking advantage of their knowledge.
You see, Michael and MaryEllen have been working hard to bring in top-notch talent. They’ve been mentoring ETR’s staff members, helping them broaden their reach and increase their skills. In doing so, ETR has grown from an $8 million business in 2006 to a $25 million business in 2007. Now, we want to bring the same brainpower that’s growing our business to help you accomplish your own goals.
In the coming weeks and months, you’ll be reading articles about…
Strategies for getting more traffic to your website from Alexis Siemon, our resident Search Engine Marketing Specialist…
Internet marketing from Wendy Montes de Oca, ETR’s VP of Marketing & Business Development…
Relationship-building from Sharika Kellogg, our Customer Service Manager…
Investing and personal finance from Andrew Gordon, Rick Pendergraft, and Charles Delvalle…
List-building from Patrick Coffey, our Internet Marketing Director…
Copywriting from Charlie Byrne, ETR’s Editorial Director…
Powerful ways to build your business from MaryEllen Tribby, ETR’s CEO and Publisher…
And much more.
But we’re going to help you benefit from these experts in another way, too. Because our "Dear Michael Masterson" column is being expanded to become our new "Dear ETR" column.
You can still write to Michael Masterson. But now you can also direct your question to any of ETR’s experts. If you don’t know who’s the best person to answer your question, don’t worry. We’ll consult the whole team. If we think the answer to your question will benefit other readers, we’ll print it in an issue of Early to Rise.
Now, you’ll not only have the benefit of Michael’s three decades as a marketer and businessman, you’ll get the full scope of ETR’s expertise, directed at YOUR problems. Specific, actionable, FREE advice from a group of Internet marketing/business-building/copywriting specialists? What more could you ask?
[Ed. Note: Send your questions to AskETR@ETRFeedback.com. Include your full name, your hometown and state, and the team may answer you in an upcoming issue of ETR.]
Deep-Sea Protection for Your Mental Muscle
We’ve long lauded the benefits of omega-3-rich fish to protect the heart and reduce inflammation. And new research shows it might help maintain memory, too.
A study published in the journal Archives of Neurology followed 815 healthy people for nearly four years. In that time, 131 of them developed Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers found that those who consumed fish once or more per week had 60 percent less risk of Alzheimer’s compared with those who never ate fish.
As the researchers looked further, they found that total omega-3 fatty acid concentration and the concentration of one omega-3 fat in particular, DHA, were responsible for the protection from Alzheimer’s.
To get the benefits, include wild salmon in your diet a few times each week. You can also boost your DHA by taking a good fish oil supplement like Carlson’s.
[Ed. Note: Kelley Herring is the founder and CEO of Healing Gourmet and the author of the new e-book, Guilt-Free Desserts: 20 All-Natural, Fail-Proof, Low-Glycemic Desserts Just in Time for the Holidays. Learn more about how simple lifestyle choices can improve your health by reading ETR’s free natural health e-letter.]
10 Little Things I Love About the Holidays
By Wendy Montes de Oca, ETR’s Vice President of Marketing & Business Development
1. Spending time with friends and family in New York/New Jersey. It’s great to get a chance to leave the Sunshine State and "temporarily" experience a white Christmas up north. Best of all, when our visit is over we get to go back home and enjoy the palm trees and warm weather again.
2. Wrapped gifts under the Christmas tree.
3. Stocking stuffers. Just when you think you’ve opened all your presents, there are always those few small gifts.
4. That feeling in the air that only comes this time of year.
5. Those corny Christmas songs by Johnny Mathis, Brenda Lee, and The Chipmunks.
6. The parties and indulgences. You can enjoy carbs and desserts without feeling guilty… for the moment.
7. Christmas lights at night. I love driving around and looking at all the decorated homes in my neighborhood.
8. Getting to put those cute stuffed reindeer antlers on my pet Chihuahua.
9. Those great old holiday movies, like March of the Wooden Soldiers and A Year Without a Santa Claus. (Remember Mr. Heat Miser!)
10. Looking forward to a New Year. Fresh start, new goals (including working off those Christmas carbs!).
It’s Fun to Know: How to Track Santa’s Journey
The same technology used to track nuclear missiles can help your child follow Santa’s journey around the world. For the past 50 years, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) has tracked Santa by radar, starting when he leaves the North Pole. NORAD provides updates in real time on its website and by phone. They also give Santa a fighter jet escort.
The program started in 1958 and went online in 1998. Visit noradsanta.org before the big night to make sure you catch a glimpse of Santa Claus this year.
Take Charge of Your Future
You don’t have much spare time… you’re not exactly rolling in the bucks… and you’re no Bill Gates when it comes to technology.
We’ve heard you… and that’s why we asked Marc Charles to be our “advance scout” for profit opportunities that you can run from a kitchen table, your desktop, or out on the road.
They’ve got to be inexpensive and easy to start, without a lot of red tape or technical know-how, and still have great income potential.
There’s a reason they call this guy “The King of Business Opportunities”…why not take a look at what he’s got for you?
- Patrick Coffey
Word to the Wise: Dotage
"Dotage" (DOH-tij) is a deterioration of mental faculties, especially in old age. The word is from the verb "to dote" (to be foolishly or excessively affectionate - something that often happens in senility).
Example (as used by Rex Reed in a New York Times review of Dark Victory by Ed Sikov): "The last time I saw Bette Davis, she was in her dotage, the painful ravages of cancer and a paralyzing stroke cruelly evident."
[Ed. Note: Become a more persuasive writer and speaker … build your self-confidence and intellect … increase your attractiveness to others … just by spending 10 VERY enjoyable minutes a day with ETR’s new Words to the Wise CD Library.]
Michael Masterson
Copyright ETR, LLC, 2007