From: "L.C.Borsboom" <leen@correo.cop.es>
Subject: Cartel de Castilla


About two years ago I bought my first, and until now my only, computer.
A pentium II with 2 Giga's and 32 Mb Ram a Zip as extra memory and an
Epson 500 printer.
As many who start, I did not have an idea how to start and what to do.
Without any books or any teacher I started to work every day about 8
hours to get dominated my computer and the programs I had.
After one year I bought myself a Agfa Snap scan 310 Scanner because I
needed to use Images in my work. People started to ask me to develop
some advertise work, so I did but always I told them that I didn't had
any printing capacity. I send them to a professional printing company
with my 3 1/2 floppy disk with their advertisement in it.
The printing company paid me a 3% commission for each client I brought
to them.
But I couldn't make my own profit margin for the work I did.
quickly I learned that it is important to have the lines of distribution
in my own hand.

Meanwhile I was working to develop Internet pages. First I started with
a page for our Local Culture club "Extramuros" and soon I learned to
write in HTML.
Now I have developed my own Internet site where small business and small
companies can announce with a banner or a small page at first view. I
offer to make the banner or the site free If they sign a one year
contract. (90 Euros for a banner and 120 Euros for a small page)
Also I offer for those companies who don't have any internet connection
(very often in Spain) an E-Mail - Fax service, so I can connect their
banner or small page to my service E-Mail direction.

Four months ago a friend of my, who has a publicity company, told me
that he was looking for new products for local companies because "the
paperwork is what everybody does and little original".
Now four months later I am making publicity disks (floppy 3 1/2) which
those little companies can give to their clients and cheaper then any
paper-publicitywork.
Advantage: The paper publicity ended always in a garbage can, the floppy
not. They can use it, wipe-out the information if they want, for their
own computer. It is environment friendly which is very important here in
Europe, and they are giving a present to their clients.
If somebody doesn't has a computer they will be curious about the
content of the disk. They will look at somebody who has a computer. If
the find somebody, TWO people will see the announcement .
Meanwhile I bought myself a floppy disk copy machine.
Now, beside the Internet work, I am developing flopy-announcement in
cooperation with my friend from the publicity company.
He has got a new product to offer for his clients and I do have more
work without loosing the distribution line out of my hand.

With the same friend of my from the publicity company, we are looking at
the moment for a colour-laserprinter able to do for us printing work.
I will go on with my Internet pages and flopy-announcement but also I
will develop small paper announcement with a 25000 wide circulation or
bigger.
So we will be independed from any offset or printing company and
calculate our own profit margin about the work that we will do.

What started two years ago without any idea at all, is nowadays a small
computer announcement company.
I was unemployed at those days, but now I have enough work to contract
my first employee.
I learned to look around and to take those things which aren't far away
but needed. My computer as my company and my imagination as my limit.
Perhaps this is one of those little succes-stories which happen to
people. But when I came five years ago to live here in Spain (I am dutch
but moved to Spain because my wife is Spanish) I had a lot to do.
I didn't had work, I didn't spoke any spanish at all, I left my friends
and my family behind me in Holland.
But I had made myself a deadline: In five years I like to speak good
spanish and to have my own company.
Now five years later and after hard work I will go on with my newborn
company which name is "Cartel de Castilla". Translated "Castle Banner"
and which can be founded for those people who are interested on
http://www.angelfire.com/biz/NEBECO.

With a friendly greet
Leen Borsboom.
Spain.