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This post is a follow-up to the first interview, in a series in which we profile some of the more creative ways of earning a location independent income.

The posts in this series are not intended as “How To…” guides but are mainly to show how creative you could be when it comes to thinking about ways to earn a location independent income.

Whilst some of the examples may be completely unsuited to you and your skills, perhaps they’ll get your creative juices flowing and open up unexplored avenues and lines of thinking when it comes to your own personal and professional ventures.

The person featured today is clearly a phenomenally successful entrepreneur, what does he do? Here’s the interview…

LI: Can you explain what you do for a living and how you earn the income to live wherever you want?

My name is Thales Panagides and I sell high fashion Brazilian bikinis online at http://www.brazilian-bikinis.net

I specifically promote the Mar Egeu brand and give aspiring entrepreneurs the opportunity to private label and custom design their own bikini collection. Being internet-based means that I’m not tied to one geographic location.

I can conduct business from any place in the world provided there’s an internet connection. This business model has enabled me to become the largest independent distributor of authentic Brazilian bikinis.

LI: How did you get started doing this?

I remember taking note of the things I wanted to accomplish professionally based on my strengths and interests. The short list boiled down to a few key points:

• Being self employed
• Working from home with a view of the Ocean
• Combining my passion for international trade
• Harnessing my internet marketing skills
• Somehow taking advantage of my presence in Brazil

This “pen on paper” exercise helped bring into focus my professional purpose and path. I then needed to identify a product that was in demand but not difficult to export meaning it had to be compact and light.

I thought of shoes, purses and dozens of other products but the one that stood out were Brazilian bikinis. They’re known worldwide and one of the few things people associate Brazil with other than coffee, soccer, and Carnival.

And this is where the story gets interesting…

I began researching possible bikini suppliers and the first manufacturer I encountered expressed a strong interest in exporting – the bikinis were of high quality and the catalog images eye catching which was important since they would be posted online. It turns out that the owner’s parents had emigrated from Greece to Brazil. This was a huge coincidence since I also spoke Greek.

Driving home I thought about the coincidence and the unlikely probability of finding someone in the heart of Sao Paulo (population 11 million) who spoke Greek but also supplied Brazilian bikinis with the standards I sought.

If it wasn’t a miracle it was definitely a positive sign…

I purchased some samples and the next step was to probe their demand and launch them on eBay. I listed 10 bikinis and anxiously waited to see if there would be any buyers. I never felt so energized about anything in a long time and that’s probably why that same night I had a dream that was so real and memorable as if it had happened today. I dreamt that most of the bikinis I launched on eBay had bids and therefore proved that the product and concept of selling bikinis online was viable.

I woke up the next day hoping the dream would prove to be true…

I rushed breakfast while scanning the news on CNN. Amazingly, a reporter was interviewing a lady who owned a farm in the south of England whose income suffered drastically after being hit by the “Mad Cow Disease.”

It was a fascinating story about how she used the Internet to supplement her lost income by selling plus size lingerie at an average price of $80 to women all over the world. She converted her barn into an office complete with computers and a place to store inventory. I thought if she could sell lingerie from a farm in the UK targeting plus size women, certainly I’d do well selling Brazilian bikinis from Brazil.

On my way to work I thought how the story on CNN turned out to be another incredible coincidence…

I felt an adrenaline rush. My dream along with the CNN report were “aligning stars” and to top things off, seven of the ten bikinis I had posted online had active bidders. It was then that I knew I had hit a home run.

LI: Where have you lived & worked in since running your business? Any favourite places?

I’ve lived or conducted business on four continents, Africa, South America, Europe and the United States. Each location has its pros and cons but Fortaleza, Brazil stands out as one of my favorite places for the following reasons I explained in this post.

LI: You mentioned you have had 2 children whilst living a location independent lifestyle – what impacts do you think this kind of lifestyle has on them?

Living a location independent lifestyle has definitely had a positive impact on my two girls, Marianna (4) and Stephanie (2).

Children adapt wherever there’s love and toys. While millions of people spend countless hours commuting to work and engaging in endless meetings, I use that time to bond with my girls. The internet has also made living a location independent lifestyle easier on the family. For instance, they watch local cartoons on YouTube and use Skype to chat with family and friends.

LI: What top tips do you have for anyone wanting to replicate your success?

• Passion. Do what you love – if work feels like work you’re probably in the wrong field. Life’s way too short to be spending time doing things you don’t enjoy.
• Focus. Focus. Focus. Be recognized for just one thing and be the best at it.
• Business plans and goal setting are essential.
• Business is dealing with people. Social IQ is just as important, if not more so, than business acumen.
• Differentiate. Stand out! Good is not good enough; very good is average. You really have to stand out from the crowd by offering an outstanding product or service and back it up with fanatical support.
• Customer relations trumps price when closing a sale.
• List things that you excel at and enjoy doing and see what businesses you could launch based on those intersecting interests. In my case it was internet marketing, import/export, international sales, beach lifestyle and taking advantage of being in Brazil.

Above all, persevere. Don’t give up. And be patient.

If you or anyone you know would like to be featured in this series, please get in touch with me by email.

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