EUROPEAN HOUSE SKOPJE

Search This Blog

9.03.2019

How to sell on Amazon, eBay, AliExpress and AliBaba

When you prepare for expansion onto foreign markets, you will face the choice whether to create your own online shop or use an available sales system. If you’re considering the second solution you will have four largest global platforms available to choose from: Amazon, eBay, AliExpress and AliBaba. Which platform should you choose and how to make your online sales through them?

How to sell online – brief information about sales platforms

Let’s start with a short characteristic of each of the four platforms. Amazon.com was established quite a long time ago, in 1994 in Seattle. The name itself refers to the Amazon River, which Jeff Bezos (Amazon founder) picked as the river presenting the scale of product flow in his online shop. Time has evidenced that he wasn’t wrong. Today, Amazon.com is the largest global online shop which generated over USD 118 billion in revenue, in 2018.
eBay’s history is slightly different. As compared to Amazon, the platform was initially assumed to be an auction site where users were had the possibility of completing a transaction based on the highest bid price. The service started its operations in 1995 and thanks to dynamic growth, it is currently the biggest platform of this type in the world. You can sell and buy in 37 countries, including Poland.

Chinese e-commerce platforms

AliExpress is an online sales system that offers products supplied primarily by Chinese manufacturers. The idea for this service was to offer local Chinese products on a global market. Currently, you cannot offer sales from Poland but most likely this will change and it’s just a matter of time. Especially because in 2019, AliExpress launched such a possibility to small and medium-sized companies from Italy, Russia, Spain and Turkey.
The situation is slightly different when looking at AliBaba. The company was established in 1999 and it is an equivalent of the Polish Allegro but it operates on a global scale. This is the key e-commerce platform in China and one of the largest platforms in the world. The above is evidenced by the value of this company, amounting to USD 486 billion. You can buy and sell products here, with access to manufacturers from all around the world.

How to sell on Amazon?

As we have already mentioned above, Amazon.com is the biggest online shop in the world. Its offer includes Amazon label products (such as the Amazon Kindle e-book reader). It is worth noting, however, that half of its sales is generated from products supplied by their partners, from entrepreneurs like you.

Types of accounts on Amazon

Each user has a choice of two accounts: standard and PRO. In the case of the first account, you will not need to pay any subscription fees. You will only pay commission from sales, which is usually approximately GBP 1.00 per item (but it depends on the category). This account has some limitations. You can only sell up to 33 items per month.
PRO account users will have significantly bigger possibilities. When you decide upon this solution, you will not face any quantity-related limitations. You will have to pay GBP 25.00 in monthly subscription, however. Amazon may not charge commission in the case of insignificant sales of single items. With a bigger turnover, commission will apply, which is usually between 10-15%.

Logistics on Amazon are a huge advantage

The possibility of reaching customers worldwide is not the only advantage of using Amazon. The logistic system is a huge convenience for sellers. When you decide to cooperate with Amazon, you will not have to worry about storing your products. Amazon features distribution centres. There are 5 such centres in Poland, with the 6th one being under construction.

How do Amazon distribution centres work?

Thanks to such a solution, you have the possibility of sending your products directly from an Amazon warehouse. From there, they will be shipped to your customers globally. The warehouse employees will also package and secure your shipments for a small fee. The cost of such a service depends on the size of the package but it is usually not more than EUR 5.00.
Besides benefits provided through logistics, when you decide to sell on Amazon, you won’t need to set up your own online shop. This way, you won’t need to worry about costs related to its management, server maintenance and other expenses. You are also benefiting from the recognised Amazon brand which is known globally.

Amazon sales tools

The commerce giant improves tools for sellers continuously. You have the possibility of setting special deals instantly as well as configuring price management automatically. Specifically the second option is worth your attention. After defining the appropriate principles, the system will reduce prices itself, when a cheaper competitor appears. Unfortunately, the additional options are mostly available to PRO account users.

How to start your adventure with the platform?

The first step after setting up an account is to make a decision: what do you actually want to sell on Amazon? A lot depends on the adopted business model but JungleScout is a tool that will be very useful. It will help you follow sales trends on Amazon as well as find new market niches. It offers numerous features that will help you optimise your business in this biggest online shop in the world.

Sales methods

You can also take a completely different approach to selling on Amazon. Generally, there are 5 methods that will help you acquire products:
  1. Arbitrage transactions – in this method, you will use a price scanner that is connected to the transaction system. If you find a product that you think can be resold with a profit, you can scan the price and compare products that are already available on Amazon. If an analysis shows that you can make money on such a transaction, you can purchase products in a retail shop and sell them with profit online.
  2. Wholesale – the most typical method that involves large quantities of products in order to apply a profit margin and sell them on Amazon to make money. This solution has some disadvantages – you have to be in possession of starting capital to make the purchases. Secondly, you may end up investing too much. If it turns out that you will not buy the right products to match market trends, you will not generate sales to cover your costs.
  3. Selling under a private label – this method also applies in traditional commerce. It assumes that you will create your own brand, buy products, place your own labels and resell them. This makes it possible to create an image of a private label, which is a huge advantage. Due to the above, you can become independent of Amazon with time, and you can start selling in your own e-shop. However, you will not have a big impact on the quality of products offered – if the manufacturer releases a defective batch, you will be responsible for it in the eyes of customers.
  4. Handicraft – uniqueness of the offer is a huge advantage. Especially when you sell your own projects. Before you start selling on Amazon, see how well other similar items are sold. This solution has a certain disadvantage: if interest in your offer is huge, you will have to act fast to manufacture a sufficient number of products.
  5. Dropshipping – this method is becoming more and more popular. According to the assumptions of this method, you sell someone’s products under someone’s private label. You are only in charge of optimisation and promotion. You don’t need initial capital because according to this business model, sales is generated first and then the settlement is made with the manufacturer. The disadvantages of this solution is the fact that you have no impact on the quality of products as well as any other aspect such as logistics and shipping.

How to sell on eBay?

eBay offers slightly different selling possibilities. The differences include the fact that you will not depend on decisions made by a commerce giant. When you cooperate with Amazon, you have to be aware that this is an e-shop, which can change contractual conditions when they notice that it is more profitable for them to enrol in a certain niche. There’s no such risk on eBay.

How does eBay work?

The platform may be defined as something similar to the Polish Allegro, but eBay’s reach is European-wide. The principles of sales are similar: first, you have to register an account in the auction system, read the rules and post offers. Then, you can manage the offers to finalise transactions (if anyone makes a purchase). Let’s start with the basics

Setting up an eBay account.

You have to set up an account first. Before you do that, you have to register as a user and then your account has to be verified as a seller. You have several ways to verify your identity:
  1. By telephone.
  2. By mail.
  3. By credit card.
You have to be aware of the fact that most transactions will be settled in Euro. The same rule applies to all costs that are generated due to sales. For this purpose, it is better to configure your credit card so that payments are made simply and conveniently. You can set automated payment of fees made directly from your account so that you won’t forget about them. Transactions with customers will be settled through PayPal, so you will need to set up and verify a PayPal seller’s account.

Sales on eBay

To start sales, first you have to learn about product limitations. The list of products that are banned from sales is quite long. It includes police products, fireworks, weapons, products for adults and many more. Find out more on the dedicated page. It is a good idea to analyse prices of active and ended bids. Due to the above, you can find out how to manage prices of your products.
If you have ever made sales on Allegro, you should not have any problems with further steps. You have to post your products and ensure that they are properly described. Use a catchy phrase and set the price (including shipping costs), etc. When a customer buys something from you and pays for it, you will be notified. Remember that products should be shipped after you get a confirmation of payment being made.

Selling goods abroad

eBay is an international service so you can sell to different countries. To start such transactions, be sure to translate your product descriptions. You can set shipping costs yourself, depending on your contract with a carrier company. Before you post an offer, learn about the sales limitations applicable in the country to which you are shipping your products. It may turn out that your items are banned in Austria, for instance, due to the applicable laws. Find out more on the eBay website, at this link.

How to sell on AliExpress?

As we have already mentioned above, AliExpress.com does not make it possible to sell from Poland at this point. Nevertheless, it is worth keeping in mind that the service is starting to become available to other markets. Already today, companies from Italy, Spain, Russia and Turkey can trade on AliExpress. This is why it’s most likely just a matter of time when Polish entrepreneurs will be given this possibility.

Selling on AliExpress – the basics

To start selling on this platform, you have to meet the following conditions:
  1. You have to manage a business – to set up an e-shop profile, each user has to pass a verification process on AliExpress through the AliPay account.
  2. Optionally, you can create a brand on the platform. You can choose an official shop brand, function as a franchise or a specialised shop. If you do not intend to create a brand on AliExpress, you can skip this step.
  3. You have to pay an annual technical fee.
If you meet these conditions, you can move onto registering a seller’s account. First, go to https://sell.aliexpress.com/, and then click “Join AliExpress” in the top right corner. You will be redirected to a form that will make it possible to activate your account. This will take place as follows:
  1. The registration itself involves three stages. First, you need to specify your email address, set a password and enter the verification code received in the email. During the second stage, you need to pick the region in which you will sell your products. You will also have to specify your company’s business details. The third step will be to confirm the data you have entered.
  2. After registering the account, you will have to log into it. In the seller’s panel, first you will need to set the primary category. Then enter the list of products you want to sell and also register your trademark.
  3. Before you start selling on AliExpress, you have to choose the payment method. You will be redirected to a dedicated page with detailed information about sales costs in particular categories. You will also be informed about the annual fee for AliExpress services.
  4. After completing the above steps, you will be redirected to a website for managing the shop. If you have your own brand, you can verify it. 
  5. The last step is to add products to the shop and personalise its appearance. AliExpress offers numerous possibilities in this regard so that you can make your offer stand out. When you finish this step you can activate your shop and start sales.

How to sell on AliBaba?

As compared to AliExpress.com, AliBaba.com was created with B2B in mind. You will find sellers from all over the world here, including from India, Taiwan, China, USA and Poland. When you decide to post your sales offers in this system, you have the possibility of reaching business partners operating on global markets. How to sell on AliBaba?

Sell in wholesale amounts

The first step is to register a seller’s account on AliBaba. You have three choices: free account, GoldSupplier Basic (USD 699 per year) and GoldSupplier Standard (USD 2999 per year). When you use one of the premium options, your company will be verified by independent external experts. When you decide to choose the free account, you have no possibility of becoming a verified user.
After registering the account, you will be redirected to a virtual advisor. It will help you to configure your seller’s account in a few simple steps. First, you will have to define the type of your business, you will have several options to choose from: online shop, manufacturer, commercial company, wholesaler, distributor, sales office, individual seller or another type of activity that you will manage on AliBaba. Then, you have to choose the category of offered products. You will also determine what products you have in your offer.
The virtual advisor will guide you through other personalisation options as well. You will have to answer questions where you will specify your requirements regarding suppliers, the annual expenditure for shopping, etc. Due to the above, the AliBaba algorithm will be able to understand your business better, which will make it easier to use the portal.

Posting products and making sales effectively

Posting offers on AliBaba.com is very similar to Allegro or eBay. You will need to upload high-quality photos, prepare a detailed description of a product and create a catchy title. After posting your product, you will receive a text message with a verification code. All you need to do now is to benefit from the methods for making sales effective.
It is not a secret that shoppers buy with their eyes. So in order to improve your sales results good quality photos will help you as they present all the details of your products. If possible, include the product specification in the title, which is a frequent practice. A good description with details will also be key in the customer’s decision on choosing your offer. It is certainly worth being a verified seller. In order to do that, you have to switch to a premium plan and use the “Verified member” option.

Why is it worth getting your account verified?

Similarly to other sales services, you can come across fraud on AliBaba.com. Despite the fact that it is very difficult to sport fraud-related activity, it is possible. You should specifically pay attention to messages written badly in terms of the language or offers of making prepayments before shipping. There are cases where such a seller disappears with the money you paid and you won’t ever receive the purchased product. If you verified your business, you will let your customers feel safe and will prove it to them that you will not disappear after the transaction is completed. This will increase their willingness to cooperate with you.

Translation of product descriptions is the foundation for market expansion

Regardless of the platform you use, the key aspect of your presence on foreign markets is proper translation of product descriptions. You should ensure stylistic and content-related correctness but also adjust the language to the standards of your recipients. Your international customers live in different conditions than you do so they may have a different approach to shopping. This is why the work of a translator in this industry has a highly-creative nature, as the task of a person working on translation will be to adjust the advertisement slogans to the culture of the recipients’ country.

How to sell on the internet? It easier than ever before!


Availability and functionality of the biggest sales systems make selling online significantly easier. Especially when you want to acquire customers from international markets. Thanks to Amazon, AliExpress, eBay or AliBaba, expansion onto foreign market has never been this easy. If you don’t want to or have no funds to invest into your own shop, it is worthwhile to consider using one of the above options.

8.26.2019

Finland's presidency of the Council of the EU: 1 July - 31 December 2019

"Sustainable Europe - Sustainable Future". 
The presidency programme focuses on four main priorities: 
  • strengthen common values and the rule of law
  • make the EU more competitive and socially inclusive
  • strengthen the EU's position as a global leader in climate action
  • protect the security of citizens comprehensively
Finland will be the first presidency to integrate the new priorities of the Strategic Agenda 2019-2024 into the Council's work.

2.13.2019

The good European House

How can the EU be transformed into
"The good European House"?
- on the long term, mechanical, basic agenda of the EU-process for the period 1986 - 2030 and how to handle it

On the 29th of March two years ago, the IGC 96 was opened in Turin. The conference has now reviewed how the Maastricht Treaty on the European union (TEU) has functioned in relation to the goals set out in the articles A and B of the TEU and agreed on a new treaty; the Amsterdam Treaty.
The conference was prepared by different countries, by groups in the member-countries, by the "European Parliament" (EP), "The European Council", "The Commission" and a special "Reflection
Group", the last of which left its report to the European Council in December 1995.
The TEU, The European Council, the Commission, the EP and the Council stated, or had agreed on a number of specific areas to be reviewed during the conference, summarized in the report of the Commission on the conference.
But none of these reports deal with some important questions, that concern the development of EU in a longer perspective.

THE BUILDING OF "THE EUROPEAN HOUSE"
What is the EU?
It is, of course, on one level possible to argue for it as the expression of an effort to weave together the economies of Europe in such a way that it makes it impossible for "unreliable power hungry national politicians" to start wars against one another in the future.
The EC/EU works in that direction.
But the EC/EU also has deeper roots and levels.
The TEU has some of its roots in the Coal and Steel Community of 1951 and the Treaty of Rome from 1957. And like "Rome", the EU too is not built in only one day, or in one step.
After preparatory work for decades, the EU has been built in two steps since its dynamic new start during the mid 80-s, and the long-range, very conscious work by Mr Jacques Delors and others.
During the first phase; from 1986 to 1992, the "Single Market" was built, by first transforming the "European Economical Communities" to the "European Communities" and finally to "The European Community". Thereby, what later - with the TEU - explicitly came to be called the "first pillar", was brought to a preliminary end.
Facing the second 6-year-phase, that took its start in 1992, the ground was laid also for that which normally constitutes the "state functions" as such of normal states, with the efforts - formulated with TEU in Maastricht - to realize a "Common Foreign and Security Policy" and a cooperation in the fields of justice and home affairs, termed the "second" and the "third pillar" of the "European house" .
This second phase is meant to come to an end in 1998, with the completion of the "first pillar" in the form of an Economical and Monetary Union (EMU), a single currency and a completely autonomous European Central Bank (ECB), with the minimal inflation and the stable currency as the central goals.
This intensification of the work to develop the cooperation in Europe has evoked enthusiasm in a number of people, while it has evoked apprehension in other people, who feel ever more pressed and awkward in the face of the dreams of Europe as a "Great Power" they feel thereby come to expression.

THE GENERAL "HOUSE BUILDING PROCESS"
Is it possible to understand what this process is the expression of, from an anthroposophical perspective?
Yes. With the realization of the basis for the "first pillar" - the "Single Market" during the first 6-year period after 1986, and the effort to realize the "second" and the "third pillar" in their present form as expressions for the "state functions" as such during the second 6-year period after 1986 with EU - a process has been started, that implicates five more phases, not yet described, but implicit in the "building-process".
These stages it is possible to describe, as the seven stages constitute the classical stages of the basic building of "houses" into living, functioning "bodies", filled with life, soul and spirit.
During the first stage of the "EU-process" a legal "body" has been built for "economical life" in all its aspects proper of the social organism in the form of the Single market.
During the second stage of EU, a "body" has now also been built for the social and legal life between humans as a basic legal order, in the form of the European Union.
During the third stage in the building of social "houses" a "body" is built for the soul, for cultural life for the future of the house, of the organism.
And during the fourth stage in the building of social "houses", a "body" is built in some form for the "spirit" - for the "I" - of the house, of the organism.
This "I" that lives in this "egobody" of the organism then penetrates and transforms that which has been built during the first three stages.
During the fifth stage, this "I" penetrates and transforms that which has been built during the third stage as a "body" for the soul, and tries to develop it into something new as a free cultural life for the future.
During the sixth stage, this "I" penetrates the social order that has been built as a "body" for the social and legal life during the second stage as the "Old Law " and tries to democratize and christianize it into something new for the future as the "New Law".
And during the seventh stage finally, this "I" penetrates what has been built as a "body" for economy during the first stage and tries to transform it into something new for the future as an ever more "brotherly", altruistic economical life.
This is the general pattern of the building process for social houses, social organisms - described in very short and principal terms.

The Ur-drama of the first seven mythical Roman Kings
You find it described already by Livy in his picture of the first seven mythical Roman Kings, as the founders of the Roman Empire.
The first was Romulus, who was raised to heaven as the god "Quirinius" (not completely unlike Jacques Delors).
The second king; Numa Pompilius embodied social order, he brought laws for ordinary living.
The third king, Tullus Hostilius, represented the passions. Under him, the attacks against divine nature began, causing discord, struggle and war, through which Rome became great.
The fourth king, Ancus Martius, developed the arts.
The fifth Roman king however; Tarquinius Priscus, was not engendered out of the Roman organism, but was introduced into Roman culture from the Etruscan culture, as also the last two.
The sixth king; Servius Tullus, transformed the social order founded by the second king; Numa Pompilius, and represents the canon of the law.
The seventh king; Tarquinius Superbus, the "most exalted" one, however was overthrown, as he was not able to maintain the high level of the social system.
The seven mythical kings of the first phase of the Roman Empire represent the Ur-drama of the building of social "organisms", that also now comes to expression in the building of Europe into a "house" - during a special phase of its development - out of the economical sphere since 1985.

THE WAY FORWARD
The three "pillars" - seeds to a differentiated European development
Is it possible to come to a picture of a possible proper continuation of this house-building process?
How can the EU-process be transformed in a "proper" way into something good?
Many people already try to come to different conceptions of what a humanised Europe within the frame of EU should look like.
One possible starting point is the "three pillars" in the work of classical house building tradition, that constitutes the roots of "the system of three pillars" of EU.
In the EU-process they stand out in a form, strongly directed towards the development of Europe into a federal, unified superstate.
In their original form, they are described already by among other Pherekydes during the 6th century BC. He describes them as "Chronos" - as an expression of "moral strength" to do the good, "Zeus" - as an expression of "inner beauty", and "Chton" - as an expression of "wisdom".
In the human being, these qualities are connected with the possible goals for her will, her life of feelings and her thinking.
In society, they are connected with and an expression of the possible future goals for the economical life, the legal and social life and for cultural life.
One later finds them described again by Plato, but now in a reduced form, in his picture of the groups of the ideal society as he sees it and describes it in his work "The Republic". He there describes how these groups are - not three but - two main groups; "craftsmen" and "the guardians" - those who take care of the state functions proper.
This second main group; the "guardians", however - according to Plato - consists of two subgroups; "the warriors", who protect the state against hostile powers and "the philosophers", who are the real rulers in his ideal "state". These "philosophers" constitute the elite in his ideal state, and to the questions that Plato treats in "The Republic" belong how this elite is to be educated to fill its functions to rule society "in the best way" out of their insights.
Another starting point is the actual separation of the work of EU between the so far allembracing Commission in Brussels, and the work of a Parliament that has so far been reduced to a an instancy of remitment, in another city; Strasbourg; two organs in a clear imbalance with one another in a way that has euphemistically been termed the "democratic deficit" .
A third starting point is the so far "wandering cultural city of Europe" - the election by the Commission of a city in Europe to be "The cultural capital of Europe" for one year.

THE "FIRST PILLAR" AND THE EU-COMMISSION
With these starting points, one sees that one of the problems with the EU, the first and central, basic task, is to transform the Commission to what it is in its essence and bears in itself as a seed to become; an actual, factual organ of cooperation on a European level for the main parties of economy on an equal basis, concentrated on and limiting its work to the initiation and implementation of legislation in the field of economy.
At present, the Commission, with its construction and direction, its 24 General Directorats (26 as DG I is divided into I A, I B and I C) and its monopoly in initiating and implementing legistlation for the first pillar of EC/EU, is almost completely characterised by the perspectives and interests that flow from the leaders of the great industries and capital interests through ERT; "European Round Table of industrialists" and CEPS; "the Centre for European Policy Studies" .
ERT consists of 45 leaders for European industries with totally three million employees and a turnover of about 500 billion "Euros" per year. It constitutes one of the most influential lobby groups of the EU.
CEPS was founded in 1993 by about 40 transnational companies and banks in Western Europe in cooperation with different foundations. Later, American and Japanese interests have also joined CEPS. CEPS is a part of the political establishment of Europe through its history, through being economically independent and through having strong personal bonds with the top level of the Commission, of NATO and of WEU.
If one looks at the Commission, it is clear that it contains many wefts of a "Round Table" -character and dialogues with representatives of many more or less transnational groups in Europe, before different propositions for legistlation are put forth in different areas.
But its work is also based on "the four freedoms" for a producer-oriented economy. These are what the builders of EU - from their perspective - view as the proper expression for the "tools" , with which one in the classical house-building tradition builds the "first pillar" of "houses" .
This "Mars"-character of the economy still corresponds to and is an expression of the development of the human being up to the present time.
But if you look forward, you also see that this one-sided and strong orientation towards the interests of the producers and bankers belongs to the past. In the future we have to develop much more of the "Mercurial" cooperation in the field of economy, "brotherly" directed as much, if not more towards the interests and needs of not ourself, but of all our fellows.
For this the EU stands before the long term task to step by step deconstruct the remaining "hierarchical" character of the Commission, still dominated by the interests of banking, industry and business through ERT, CEPS and other well financed and powerful lobby groups, and develop it in its essence into an ever more "brotherly" "Round table"-organisation that in an institutionalised way and on an equal, "brotherly" basis comprises all parties that in different ways take part in the production and circulation of goods.
Is this possible?
Yes, if you take your start in an understanding of the essence of all "economy"; the circulation of goods. If you look at it, you see that the circulation of goods in human society comprises four stages.

THE FOUR MAIN STAGES OF THE CIRCULATION OF GOODS
The first stage is the "production" of goods out of matter taken from the earth. The counterpole to this production of goods is the "consumption" of them. To the consumer some of the main interests are the quality, the availability and the price of the goods.
Between these two interests the different "business"-actors mediate, from the wholesale dealers to the shop at the corner, who transport the goods from producers to consumers, helping the producers to find markets and the consumers to find the right goods and getting them at a reasonable, fair price.
But there is also a fourth stage of the circulation. It consists of the way of the used rests of the goods, the residues, back to and through a new stage of "nature". The feeling of the responsibility for not taking out more from the Earth than it can give and not to poison it in such a way that it will die "before its time has come" also has its main representatives who can be found in the enviromental movements and the green parties around the world.
Together, the producers, the traders, the consumers and the green movements and parties represent the responsibilities for the four basic stages of the process of circulation of goods;

to make things out of nature that we need to build our lives on Earth,
to distribute them,
to build our culture through and by using and and consuming goods, and
not to take out too much of the Earth or poison it with the left-overs of our culture.

Different representatives for groups representing all these parties, that are responsible for different parts of the circulation of goods, can be found in the work of the Commission, but some mainly in a subordinated role.
Here one finds among other ETUC; the European Trade Union Confederation, an association of the 50 greatest main labor unions within EU, except for the French CGT, and representing 47 million members. ETUC is consulted when the Commission formulates its suggestions for legislation.
Another organ is BEUC; European Bureau of Consumer´s Unions, an umbrella-association for 23 national European consumer organisations that represent the consumer interests in some 20 committees participating in the legislative process of EU and in the Committee of Consumers of the EU-Commission; CCC.
According to a decision in the Council of Ministers in 1990, a European Enviromental Agency was to be erected with its seat in Copenhagen and the task of making studies and summarizing information that can constitute the basis for decisions in the environmental field. This has also been done.
It was however not meant to get and also has not - as little as the European Environmental Bureau in Brussels, behind which stands non-governmental environmental organisations - got any controlling authority, which the EU-Parliament demanded.
Of the 24 General Directorats only one (DG V) is directly dealing with questions of employment (and unemployment), one with consumer questions (DG XXIV) and one directly with "Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection" (DG XI) (two other Directorats however also support it in questions of research on enviromental technique and energy; DG XII and XVII).

TRANSFORM AND DEVELOP THE COMMISSION!
To the most important questions and tasks in the work to reform the EU in a longer perspective belongs the task to rebalance the work of the Commission.
If the EU shall be able to develop in a proper, timely, human, socially and ecologically responsible way, the EU faces as the main, central task to decide on an enlargment of the Commission, in pace with the East- and South-enlargement of EU.
To meet the needs of the near future, the Commission will have to institutionalise new General Directorats, except for those that exist for questions of economy, production, transport and trade, for also workers, consumers and "environmental interests" on an equal, brotherly level with the economy-production and transport-trade parties.
The 10-15 new necessary General Directorats that should in time be instituted to deal more actively with the problems of unemployment, for small scale business on a cooperative basis, for consumer-, and not least the many important environmental problems, correspond well to the number of expected new member-countries of Eastern and Southern Europe, and could also be institutionalised in a natural way one at a time with a new Commissioner from every new country that becomes a member.
At present, the "Commission" is slowly, but steadily developing into ever more of an also formal "Government" for the whole of the EU.
This development is understandable and has deep roots, but is - today - completely wrong and untimely. It would be totally wrong finally to institutionalise the Commission as a sort of also formal government for the whole of EU, with the Council of Ministers as a sort of "senate" and "first chamber", superior to the the EU-Parliament as a sort of "second chamber" for the populase.
The Commission should be rebalanced to include General Directorats for all the four stages of the circulation of goods on an equal and brotherly basis in its structure - including coworkers, consumers and environmental interests - and thereafter stick to and cultivate its task as a legislating-initiating and -implementing organ in the field of the the "first pillar"; the economy. Doing such an objective thing would make it into something really good in the face of the future development of Europe and a source of inspiration for also other parts of the world.
To the tasks for the Commission also belongs the further development of the "brotherly" relation to Eastern Europe, that strong forces are already trying to realize. An important measure in this direction would also be to fuse DG IV ("Competition") with the mixed DG XXIII to a new Directorate dealing as much with questions of cooperation and of Cooperatives as with competition into the near future in the field of economy.

"1998", EMU AND A "EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK"
In this context, the forced work to establish a single currency for the whole of Europe in 1998 and the establishment of a European Central Bank as an independant instrument for the steering of the economy of all of Europe feels very troubling.
In its present planned form the bank is meant to be essentially totally separated from, independant of and retracted from all and every external influence and regulation from organs like the EU-Commission, the EU-Parliament and the Council of Ministers, even though its in the beginning of May 1998 appointed Dutch chief Wim Duisenberg has promised to keep up a regular dialogue with the European Parliament. It is also meant to have as its primal goal the minimal inflation and the stable currency, a goal to be put before every other consideration and problem, like the enviromental, human or social concerns, or the comprehensive unemployment.
Developed in this way, the economical life will not only get a to a certain extent necessary independence, but will also finally be given the absolute superiority over every other social process in a potentially disastrous way in the face of the further development of Europe.
How important different quarters consider this central steering organ to be for the total further development of Europe, is shown by the fact that it, facing its third and last "fixation stage" - like the "Federal Reserve Act" when it was taken by only three senators on the Christmas Eve in 1913 and signed by President Wilson the same night, and like the TEU when it was formed in 1991 - was "protected" from the "danger" of having to be discussed during the IGC 96 and thereby included and subordinated under a somewhat more democratically steered part of the EU.
The pushing through of the third stage of the EMU before the "Sacred" date of "the 1st of January 1999", that is "1998", is the last "necessary" to necessitate the transformation of The Commission into an also formal, but improper "Government" over all of EU. As such, it is the "eye of the needle" for the possibility to either steer the development towards the by some wished for, powerful "(American-)European Empire", or away from this Dinosauric/Tyrannosauric dream, towards the necessary differentiation that the "pillar system" has laid the foundation for.

THE ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE TWO SIDES PROPER OF THE "SECOND PILLAR"
- "FOREIGN POLICY" AND "HOME POLICY"
To the second main task in the reformation of EU belongs the decision to strongly limit the tasks for the Directorat on "External Political Relations" (DG IA).
The work under the present "second pillar" for questions of Foreign and Security policy should be strictly limited to the "Petersberg tasks" and completely transferred to a very much strengtened and developed OSCE; the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, as its proper forum. "The work under the "second pillar" proper of EU should instead be reduced to the work that has so far been carried out under the "third pillar" and be kept on an "inter-national"; confederative level, suggestibly in the following direction.
The European Parliament and the Council of ministers should develop an ever more intimate cooperation with the corresponding organs of the Council of Europe.
The present right for the Commission to initiate legistlation in other fields than those that directly concern economy and the circulation of goods should be liquidated and transferred out of the work of the Commission.
The right to initiate legistlation in some fields should be transferred over to the EU-Parliament, the national Parliaments and the Council of Ministers and the corresponding organs of The Council of Europe, for which procedures will have to be developed - and the implementation of the legistlation should be transferred to the Council of Ministers and the national Governments.
To the questions the joint organs of EU and The Council of Europe should cooperate around on a confederative level belong especially all questions that have to do with the purely social life between humans and the coordination and cooperation on questions concerning home policy (like part of DG V: "Social Affairs" ).
The Council of Ministers and the EU-Parliament must also, as more democratically chosen organs, retain respectively get the possibility to review and reformulate the frames for the work of the Commission and the European Central Bank, and have as the main task to defend and secure the right of every human to live a humanly dignified life in peace with his or her fellow humans, regardless of his or her nationality, gender or possibility to contribute to the production and distribution of goods and services. Here the parliamentarian democracy still stands out as a model for the work.
The present system of jurisdiction, with the forms of decision reduced to the planned three for legistlation under the "first pillar" of EU also stands out as something good for the time being.
With time, the Commission and the EU-Parliament/Council of Ministers could also be more clearly separated from one another, by moving the EU-Parliament clearly more into Central Europe.

THE BUILDING OF THE "THIRD PILLAR" PROPER FROM 1998; THE "CULTURAL PILLAR"
At present, the picture of the three pillars of the European house depicts the "third pillar" as the pillar for questions of Home Policy.
This picture corresponds to the "reduced" and "ruler-oriented" picture of society described by Plato in his "Republic". But it also depicts the reduced picture of man that was "decided" to be the "proper" one at the Ecumenical Council of Constantinopel in 869.
Before this meeting, in Christianity one had viewed man as composed of "body", "soul" and "spirit". At this church meeting it was however decided to view the spiritual in man, not as something independent and existing in itself, but only as a quality of the soul. Thereby, man was reduced to a "body", and a "soul" even if with some spiritual qualities.
This reduced picture of man reflects Plato´s reduced picture of the "ideal state" and today appears again in the present picture of the "three pillars of EU".
The "Ur-picture" for all good building work of the Temple tradition is the building of the Temple of Solomon, according to the legend built as a three part drama between Hiram, Solomon and Balkis, the queen of Sheeba. Viewed as a "social house construction" in this perspective, the EEA-phase between 1986 and 1992 stands out as the phase of Hiram, the Master of the Craft. The second; EU-phase between 1992 and 1998 stands out as the phase of Solomon, the Architect.
Against this background, the third phase in the building proper of Europe as a "house" between 1998 and 2005 stands out as the phase of Balkis proper, "the woman of star wisdom".
A mirror of this picture can also be found in the symbol of EU with its 12 stars, with its roots in the picture of the "heavenly woman", dressed in the sun, with the moon under her feet and her head surrounded by twelve star, ready to bear her child, mediated by the Apocalypse (12:1-3). This will undoubtedly constitute the basis for some drama around the turn of the Millennium.
As a counterweight to these dramas and the third main task for the EU - and in the longer perspective - one can see the choice and institutionalisation of a more permanent European cultural Capital in the Western Slavic area - Prague is a very good one - except the wandering and free one, as a seed and forum for the development of a free, spiritualised European cultural life for the future and as an important bridge to Russia and the Eastern Slavic area.
Here belongs also the transfer of all questions concerning the multicultural life of Europe out of the EU and over to a from EU totally independent, European cultural organ, with its centre in Prague (like the present DG X for "Information, Communication, Culture and Audiovisual" and DG XXII for "Education, Training and Youth" ).
This has been meant only as some short indications. But they stand out as some of the things that have to take place and will take place sooner or later, and our only possibility to do them peacefully is to do them consciously now, if they shall not in 15-20 years begin forcing their way by more uncontrolled, violent means, as the disastrous 100 years war between England and France of the 14th century, the long and many European wars of the 17th century and the two World wars during this 20th century, resulting from immature - if understandable - ways of handling other, related problems.

A "counter-threefoldment"
One counter form to this necessary differentiation of Europe is however also already developing (Brzezinski, Int Herald Tribune 2.5.94, Kolankiewicz, Int Affairs 3.7.94). It consists in the formation of an axis, comprised of the three states of France, Germany and Poland, with France and Poland as wings holding a strong and central Germany in place and fixed in the function as the economic "motor" of the development of Europe into the future, as a "mechanical heart", instead of as part of the "spiritual heart" of Europe that it bears as a task to be.
This development in every way misses the central points in the task of Central Europe, but will undoubtedly be more or less carried through.
With the Single European Act, the Maastricht Treaty and the Amsterdam Treaty, a constitution for EU is now developing, that will put its mark on the whole future of the present "European/West-European" cultural epoch, starting with the Renaissance, in its development of a free, spiritualised cultural life as an expression of the conscious and responsible human being, and for which the central European idealistic tradition and the cultural impulses and life of Eastern Europe are crucial and absolutely necessary.
We are now heading for the next crucial act/treaty of the EC/EU-process around 2004/5, concerned with the questions of the fourth phase of the process, its turning point.

TURNING POINT ...
The time between about 2005 and 2011 during the EU-process that is being developed between 1986 and 2030, will probably display the culmination of the forces and strivings that want to make Europe into a federation, with the strife to finally institutionalise the "Presidency" of the Union on top of the pyramid.
This "Precidency" will then constitute a form of "Ego-organisation" for Europe. For what "I" for Europe do those, that are now developing it in stages, build it as a "body" to incarnate in?
The "I" of Europe can not be materialised as authority for power for a "president" in one human being. It lives and weaves in the social life between the peoples of Europe, in the conscious warm interest we show our fellow humans, independently of who they are and where they come from.
The attempt to build an external symbol as a social and legal "body" in the form of the "Presidency" for EU is a potentially bad omen, if it is not being handled in the proper way.
The forth basic problem of the EU-process consists in handling this problem, having to do with the relation between the "economic" life of Europe and its organ (the Ecosoc, the Commission and its "President" ), the common "legal" life of the countries of Europe and its organs (the national parliaments, EU-Parliament and the Council of Ministers and the corresponding organs of the Council of Europe) and the "cultural" life of Europe and its organs (with their center in the future European cultural capital of Prague).
The problem is dealt with among other already in the story by Goethe of "The green snake and the lily". An elementary model for the solution of this problem will possibly be the presidency of Bosnia, with three "presidents", the President of the Commission, the President of the Parliament and the President of the Council of Europe working together as a council.

... AND TRANSFORMATION
Between about 2011 and 2030 we will then - viewed from the "mechanical" historical perspective of the leading Western groups described in the beginning - be facing three difficult tasks, as a possibility, "fighting" against or supported by the new constitution for EU.

The first of these tasks; the cultural task
"2011 - 2018"
will be to transform the not yet visible "humanistic power impulse" for Europe - in the spirit of Lyndon LaRouche, and Sorat, the second monster of the Apocalypse as one inspirational and challenging quality also behind the EMU - as well as the "spiritual power impulse" for Europe - in the spirit of the "Catholic Church" - that one can intuit will come to expression during the coming years, into further possibilites for a free, timely cultural life, that trancends both that which is "technically necessary" as well as that which is "spiritually necessary" into that which is truly humanly freedom creating.

The second task; the democratic task
"2018 - 2024"
to transform the external "Presidency" of EU, "lift out" the remains of "governmental power" in other fields than economy from the Commission, and transform the "European State" that has been impulsated as a "Union" into a true, democratic, equal legal life, built on social justice and human compassion.

And the third task, the economic task
"2024 - 2030"
the most difficult one; will be to transform that which has been impulsated as a "Single market", built on competition between strong producers, into an ever more altruistic economy, built on brotherhood, in all our common responsibility for the future of the Earth.

THE LONG TERM TASK FOR EUROPE
The different "Architects" and constructors of EU are now building a "legal body" as a "house" for the future Europe out of the perspective of economy, in a way that they think is right.
Above, I have tried to show how this process looks in a somewhat wider perspective.
The house is very consciously built. But it must not remain the tool for power of the benevolent elite, that it has very much been, even if understandable, so far.
It must be transformed out of that element which is good in it, so that it becomes a house for all the peoples of Europe, also those that today, mostly in Eastern Europe and Russia, have been put on the street as a result of "economical necessities" .
The role of Europe in world history has been central since the Renaissance - for better and worse - and it will surely continue to be important far into the future. But it must into this future consist in dissolving all striving for external power and all external power instruments, as also many have expressed in their struggle against the nuclear tests, that one member of EU has considered necessary to be able to develop nuclear arms further into the future.
Europe should instead cultivate its task as a mediating factor and a bridge between "East" and "West" and as a possible cultural inspirator "with a heart" - with not only the culture of Western Europe but also of Eastern Europe, and into the future ever more also of Russia, as a great inspirational well, but with a great respect for the role of all cultural groups of humanity.
In that work we are all responsible to form and build the "European house" to an inspiration for a humanly dignified life, as a part of all our common responsibility for the future of mankind and for the earth.
Only such a "good house" can also be generous and open to those that do not live in it, to visit freely and take part in.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

BAIGENT M, LEIGH R, LINCOLN H: The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail. London: Corgi Books 1982
- The Messianic Legacy. London: Corgi Books 1987
- The Temple and The Lodge. London: Corgi 1996
BOWLE J: A history of Europe. London: Pan Books 1982
BORCKARDT K-D: European integration. The origins and growth of the European Union. Luxembourg: Office for the European Communities 1995
BOULANGER J-L, MARTIN D: ''Resolution on how the Treaty on European Union is functioning - implementation and development of the Union''. Luxembourg: European Parliament (A4-0102/95) 1995
BRZEZINSKI Z: Between Two Ages: America´s Role In The Technetronic Era. New York: Viking Press 1970
ECKHOFF H (ed): Europa und sein Genius (Europe and its spirit). Dornach: Verlag am Goetheanum 1984
ERNST J W: Das Schicksal unserer Zivilisation und die kommende Kultur des 21. Jahrhunderts (The destiny of our civilisation and the coming culture of the next century). Freiburg: Die Kommenden 1977
HALL M P: America´s Assignment With Destiny. The Adepts In The Western Esoteric Tradition, Part Five. Los Angeles: The Philosophical Research Society 1979
HARTVEIT K M: De skjulte brödre (The hidden brothers). Oslo: Ex Libris 1994
HEISTERKAMP J: Weltgeschichte als Menschenkunde (World history as knowledge of Man). Dornach: Gideon Spicker 1989
HEYER K: Geschichtsimpulse des Rosenkreutzertums (Historical impulses of Rocicrucianism). Kressbronn (Bodensee): Private printing by the author in 1959
ICKE D: ... and the truth shall set you free. Cambridge: Pendragon Press 1995
ISSACSON W, T E: The Wise Men: Six Friends And The World They Made. New York: Simon and Schuster 1986
LIEVEGOED B: Mysterienströmungen in Europa und die Neuen Mysterien (Mystery streams in Europe and the new mysteries). Stuttgart: Freies Geistesleben c. 1978
MORIZOT P: The Templars. London: Anthroposophical Company 1960
Preparing Europe for the 21th Century. Report by the Commission of the European Union on the functioning of the Treaty on European Union. Brussels/Luxembourg: ECSC -EC-EAEC 1995
QUIGLEY C: The Anglo-American Establishment. NewYork: Books in Focus 1981
Report on the functioning of the Treaty on European Union. Brussels: Council of the European Union, General Secretariat 14 March 1995 (SN 1821/95)
RIEMECK R: Mitteleuropa. Bilanz einer Jahrhunderts (Central Europe. Summing up a century). Freiburg: Die Kommenden 1977?
SCHMUNDT W: Der soziale Organismus in seiner Freiheitsgestalt (The social organism in its freedomform). Dornach: Phil-Anthr Verlag am Goetheanum 1977
SOLOVIEV V: The Antichrist. Edinburgh: Floris Books 1982
STEGMAN C: Das andere Amerika (The other America). Dornach: Verlag am Goetheanum 1991
STEINER R: Die Tempellegende und die Goldene Legende als symbolischer Ausdruck vergangener und zukünftiger Entwickelungsgeheimnisse des Menschen (The Temple Legend and the Golden Legend as symbolic expressions of past and future evolutionary secrets of man). GA 93. 1904-14.
- Die Apokalypse des Johannes (The apocalypse of St John). GA 104. 1908.
- Lecture held on the 7th of March 1914 in Stuttgart on the Temple impulse in relation to every Millenienum.
- Towards Social Renewal. London: Rudolf Steiner Press 1977
- The inner aspect of the social question (Lectures held the 4th and the 11th of February and the 9th of March in Zürich 1919. In: GA 193). London: Rudolf Steiner Press 1974
STUMCKE I, KLOCKENBRING G: Der Impuls von Lérins. Spuren eines johanneisschen Christentum im 4. Jahrhunderts (The impulse of Lérins. Traces of a Johannite Christianity in the 4th century). Stuttgart: Freies Geistesleben 1977
WESTENDORP C: Progress report by the reflection group on the 1996 InterGovernmental Conference 1996, BC-TEXT-IGC-REPORT August 24, 1995
VIERECK G S: The Strangest Friendship In History: Woodrow Wilson And Colonel House. New York: Liveright 1932
YATES F A: The Rosicrucian Enlightenment. London: Paladin 1975

11.02.2010

Macedonia – a forgotten country?

 

IVAN TOROV

That’s how it is. Life isn’t fair, and reality demands a compromise. These are the words that Erwen Fouréré, the long-standing EU ambassador to Skopje, a witness and occasional actor in Macedonia’s troubles, addressed to his hosts, warning them that the time to reach a deal with Greece over Macedonia’s name was fast running out.

A month from now the EU will decide whether Macedonia, after five years of candidate status, will be given the date for starting negotiations on finally joining the EU. In Macedonia itself, however, there is a gloomy atmosphere of unfulfilled expectations. It is as if the Macedonian government and public have come to accept that Macedonia will draw the short straw in the ‘wrestling match’ at the EU summit in June.

It is most likely, indeed, that the setting of the date will again be postponed, hopefully until the end of the year, less optimistically for an indeterminate period. The formal explanation will be the slowing down, indeed end of reforms; but in reality it is the failure to reach an agreement with Greece over the country’s name. The conflict with which Greece has burdened Macedonia, and which until quite recently was merely a ‘technical problem’ that did not affect Macedonia’s progress towards EU and NATO membership, has in the meantime grown into an ‘unavoidable obstacle’. Or rather, into Brussels’s political ultimatum. It is true that the issue of the name does not appear as a formal condition; but when it comes to choosing between a state that already is a member (Greece) and a state that wishes to become one (Macedonia), there will be no dilemma. Despite sympathy for Macedonia and irritation with the Greek economic assault on EU stability, Macedonia will get short shrift. The offence will be chalked up against the weaker side, although everyone knows full well that the stronger one, which sets the rules, has been playing a highly destructive game.

Though Brussels officials hope for some turnaround by mid-June, its chances are nil. The Macedonian-Greek negotiations on Macedonia’s name reached a dead end several months ago, so that a change in the coming weeks would be truly miraculous. The long-standing American UN mediator in this conflict, Matthew Nimetz, does not believe in a sudden change either, and has been postponing the restart of negotiations. For sure, at the beginning of the this year there was a hope that ‘Republic of Northern Macedonia’ might, under certain conditions, be acceptable to both sides. But it vanished the moment the Greeks ‘explained’ that the change of name from Macedonia to Northern Macedonia would oblige the country to change also its national identity, its language, its constitution, its national anthem and its state emblem and flag – a recasting in fact of the whole of its history and culture.

The Macedonians interpreted this Greek ‘shopping-list’ in the only possible way – as the introduction of a Greek protectorate. The idea consequently, and logically, died even before it had been officially endorsed. A section of Macedonian public opinion, and certain political circles in Skopje, were initially positively inclined towards the name ‘Northern Macedonia’. But when the Greeks upped their demands, the Macedonians responded by reviving the old idea of a referendum on the name, the negative outcome of which is beyond doubt.

Greece responded to the idea of ‘letting the people decide’ by accusing Macedonia of blocking its ‘cooperation’ and ‘good will’ in the search for a ‘mutually acceptable compromise’. In fact, Greece is in no hurry (though one might think differently, given the seriousness of its crisis), all the more so because it has finally and without much effort won the support of EU leaders for its irrational national campaign, despite the fact that its economic and financial policy has brought into question the very survival of the euro and of the European Union. Athens can allow itself the luxury of simultaneously relaxing its chronic inter-state tensions with Turkey, thus winning the sympathy of Brussels and Washington, and assuaging European frustrations with the consequences of the Greek economic collapse. Turkey is more important to the international community than Macedonia, and the Greek prime minister can therefore afford to risk the wrath of Greek nationalists at his dialogue with Turkey. The tightening of the screw on its ‘unreasonable’ Macedonian neighbour comes as a recompense to the nationalists, at a time of real danger that the domestic crisis might unite the social and nationalist revolts into a powerful anti-government and anti-EU movement. This is why the so-called red line of Greek national interests is being maintained against the small and weak Macedonia, a line that Prime Minister Papandreas will not dare to cross.

But whereas Greece, therefore, may be in no hurry to reach a settlement with Skopje (not least because the very maintenance of mutual tensions causes serious internal trouble for Macedonia), one would expect Macedonia itself to be keen to arrive at a settlement that would unfreeze its current status as a forgotten country, and put it on the path to membership of the EU and NATO. This, however, does not appear to be the case.

The long and exhausting ‘war’ with Greece has created a situation of near-complete lethargy, with elements of indifference. The economic crisis is deepening, investors are avoiding the country as too risky, the social situation is increasingly hopeless, reforms have practically ceased, the prospects for Euro-Atlantic integration are receding – all this is creating anew a deep political crisis characterised by growing tensions between the country’s Macedonian majority and Albanian minority.

Instead of intensifying diplomatic activity, the government headed by Nikola Gruevski (VMRO- DPMNE) seems to have opted instead for a tactic of silence combined with anticipation, guided by a strange logic that time is in fact on Macedonia’s side. The idea being, it seems, that Europe will in time tire of Greek nationalist belligerence and arrogance, if not because of the Greek tactic of systematically undermining Macedonia, then because of the catastrophic effect of Greek economic mismanagement on European stability. Pursuing a tactic of ‘mutual attrition’, Macedonian nationalism in the form of a ‘return to antiquity’ has been offered as a response to Greek nationalism (though the intensity of the search for a new ancient Macedonian identity has somewhat diminished). Convinced that truth and justice is on its side, the government appears no longer interested in finding friends and allies abroad, and it is here that the main reason for the current near-total marginalisation of the country’s international position should be sought.

An ideological war is instead being waged against internal critics, with the government using its media to indict ‘traitors’, those who ‘favour selling the national spirit and dignity’ (i.e. argue for continuation of dialogue with Greece), and this is turning the Macedonian political scene into an arena of permanent confrontation. There is a real danger that, in the absence of a speedy internal political agreement, Macedonia could easily revert to the situation that pertained on the eve of the armed conflict between the authorities and mutinous Albanians in 2001.

Prime Minister Gruevski is no longer preoccupied with Athens, Brussels and Washington, but with the fanning of domestic conflict in order to hold off the Macedonian and Albanian political opposition and to create a suitably nationalist atmosphere for winning a new mandate at the increasingly likely early elections. With this in mind, the critics of the Macedonian government agree that it is, in fact, not in its interest to reach a compromise with Greece. Gruevski’s coalition government, involving the leader of the Albanian national community Ali Ahmeti, is on the point of collapse, as both sides contest the Ohrid Agreement that ended the war in 2001, the ruling party arguing that it gave too much to the Albanians while the Albanians believe that federalisation of the state offers the only way out of the crisis. The situation has become so confused that no one in Skopje can confidently predict what will come first: early elections with a new political configuration, or a new conflict between Macedonian and Albanian nationalists.

Macedonia, which back in the 1990s was a bright spot in the sea of Balkan troubles, appears today to be losing a sense of orientation, having been left to itself through its own but primarily through international fault.

In a situation of growing external pressure on Macedonia to capitulate on the name issue, with Greece sticking to its maximalist demands, and with Brussels irresponsibly willing to sacrifice Macedonia by letting it drown in internal troubles and using it as small change in Balkan trade-offs, few in Skopje can argue with any degree of confidence that the European idea retains its earlier dominant appeal. The growing impression is rather that the Euro-Atlantic enthusiasm is being slowly and steadily exhausted.

 
Translated from Peščanik website by Bosnian Institute,

3.11.2008

Republic of Macedonia - Accession partnership

The Council adopted a regulation amending regulation 533/2004 on the establishment of
partnerships in the framework of the stabilisation and association process for the Western Balkans
(6686/08).
The regulation is amended following the decision of the European Council in December 2005 to
grant the status of candidate country to the Republic of Macedonia.
Consequently, the name of the partnership with Republic of Macedonia will be changed from "European partnership" to "accession partnership".

12.21.2007

The Republic of Macedonia must accelerate the pace of reform

Internal political tensions in 2007 have diverted the Republic of Macedonia's political institutions away from the priorities of European integration and delayed reform, according to EU foreign affairs ministers at their December 10 General Affairs and External Relations Council. The Council encouraged all political parties to deepen political dialogue and cooperation, especially on interethnic relations, so as to be able to move ahead in the EU accession process.
Reforms should be speeded up in judicial and public administration and in the fight against corruption, and police reform should be implemented faster. Unemployment and the general business environment also needed attention, said EU ministers. The Council also issued an appeal to the Government to "make renewed efforts, with a constructive approach, to find a negotiated and mutually acceptable solution on the name issue with Greece, under the auspices of the UN, thereby contributing to regional cooperation and good neighbourly relations."
The EU-the Republic of Macedonia Joint Parliamentary Committee, meeting in Brussels on 26-27 November called for accession negotiations to start as soon as possible, and encouraged the government, the opposition and all the stakeholders in the Republic of Macedonia to do their utmost to carry out the necessary reforms to fulfil the necessary criteria. Among its other conclusions, it noted "the difficulties faced by citizens of the Macedonia due to the non-recognition by Greece of its passports, and the situation linked with the name issue; calls on both parties to honour commitments as outlined in the Joint Declaration annexed to the text of the EC-the Macedonia Visa Facilitation Agreement to re-assess the issue, as a matter of priority".
The EU is to abolish as from 1 January 2008 a double-checking system on imports of steel products from the Republic of Macedonia.

11.07.2007

Тhe Report of the European Commission оn the progress of Macedonia Published


Today in Brussels, the European Commission published the Report on the Progress of the Republic of Macedonia achieved in 2007. In addition to the report two more documents have been published, as well - Accession Partnership (previously – European Partnership) and Enlargement Strategy 2007.
Through the Report, the European Commission monitors and assesses the progress made by the Republic of Macedonia in the previous year. In the Accession Partnership, the European Commission gives recommendations for the upcoming reforms. The Enlargement Strategy is a document which EU enlargement policy is explained.
On the following links you can find the declared documents:
European Commission Progress report on the Republic of Macedonia 2007
Council decision on the principles, priorities and conditions contained in the Accession Partnership with the Republic of Macedonia and repealing Decision 2006/57/EC
Enlargement Strategy and Main Challenges 2007-2008

10.16.2007

Eastern Europe risks never catching up with western states

Central and Eastern Europe states are in danger of never catching up with Western Europe, as the long term economic growth potential in the region is undermined by a widening human capital gap with the west of the continent, a report has warned.

The report – called the European Human Capital Index – ranked eastern EU members and candidates on their ability to develop and sustain their human capital, and was released by the Brussels-based Lisbon Council think tank on Monday (15 October).
Since the collapse of communism, economic growth in the former communist states is far above growth seen elsewhere on the continent, narrowing the difference in economic wealth between the two halves of the continent.

But researchers now fear that a continuation of this performance is unlikely, unless certain problems are urgently addressed.

"The entire study shows a closing of the gap in the last 15 years, but now it could widen again," Peer Ederer, the lead author of the study warned during the report's presentation.

"An economy does no longer only have to be efficiency-driven. If you want to be able to compete with Western Europe and Asia, you have to become an innovation-driven economy," he said later on.

In particular, the report highlights the region's shrinking population, continuous brain-drain, chronically high unemployment and inadequate investment in education and skills - especially in workers aged 45 or more – as the main problems.

"Stop early retirement schemes, reduce unemployment, stimulate part-time employment. Keep them in the job, get them in the job, in every way possible," Dr Ederer said.

"The demographic outlook is [also] not good," he added. "In Eastern Europe, you can find the lowest birth rates, basically in each of these countries. (...) Combine the demographic data with the brain-drain that continues to happen, and you have a very bleak picture."

The report also criticises Eastern European policy makers for failing to invest in people older than 45 years – about one-thirds of the population, thereby creating a "lost generation".

Examining the school systems, the report praised central and eastern European countries, but warned that they are still far away from the best.

"Secondary schooling systems are more or less on par with Western Europe, but when compared to [South] Korea and Finland, most Western European countries should also perform better."

Still a chance
The EU members that are doing well – Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Estonia and Lithuania – still have a small chance of achieving Western standards of living within the next two decades, according to the report.

Slovenia is roughly on a par with Greece, Italy and Portugal, which were measured in a similar report last year.

But the members that trail the index' ranking – Slovakia, Bulgaria and Poland – are likely to remain stuck in relative poverty for a very long time when compared to the EU average.

Turkey, a candidate member, is the only country with a young and growing population, something which could, according to the authors, play a key role in addressing Europe's human capital needs.

They mentioned that by 2050, an estimated 19% of the European active workforce would be Turkish, almost equal to the working population of all other Mediterranean countries taken together.

Croatia, another candidate member, trails the list, just behind Bulgaria and Poland.

Human capital is considered an important factor in determining whether the EU will become a knowledge-based economy, an economic goal it has set itself.

10.12.2007

Small Business Ideas

Small Business Ideas You Can Run From Home
If you have a desire to start a home-based business, you’re part of a growing trend. As a matter of fact, one commonly cited statistic is that a home-based business is started every 11 seconds. As of the year 2000, there were 28.3 million home based businesses in the United States, up 2.1 million over 1999. Home-based businesses tend to have a higher than average survival rate as well, and of course, nothing beats the convenience of working from home.
You’re convinced—so where do you start?
What is the best home-based business?
The answer, of course, is that it depends. What are your particular talents and strengths? Many home-based small business owners got their start by leveraging an existing hobby into a business.
This is probably the best approach, so you would do well at the start to take stock of your talents, abilities and resources, and ask if there some way you can profit from these. With a slew of “home-based business ideas”, you will find that most of them generally break down into three categories: craft, professional and service.

Do you like working with your hands?
If so, you might like craft type businesses where you can create products or services that people can use. Some examples would be chimney sweeps or upholstery services, both of which are easily operated from home.

Janitorial services can be run from home as well, and a few corporate clients can get you enough monthly business to net you a decent income. Another lucrative line of work would be a home inspection service. You would need to study to obtain credentials as a home inspector, but you could earn a lot of money, and the overhead is fairly minimal.
Professional businesses run the gamut from computer programmer, desktop publisher, graphic designer, video service, etc. In short, anything that demands the use of a computer to deliver an informational product or service to the end user.
This would certainly include income tax preparation, resume writing and public relations as well. If you’re more of the intellectual and creative type, and you have good computer skills, this might be up your alley. You might even want to pursue one popular business nowadays—set up your own online Ebay store. You could, for example, set up an export business in this manner.
By having a presence on Ebay, you’ll have truckloads of eager buyers who will be willing to bid on your goods. You won’t need to worry about how to attract “traffic” to your online shop—as you would if you had your own separate web site. With Ebay, the traffic is there, from all over the world! It’s just a matter of having the right goods to sell.
Do you like working with people, and helping them out any way that you can? You might want to consider service businesses. These would include popular staples in this variety like a food catering service, which you could easily begin and advertise by word of mouth. You might also consider childcare services if you enjoy taking care of children.
To do so, you should first contact state and local governments to find out the requirements in your area. Another good source to consult is the National Association for Family Childcare. If you fancy yourself good at sales, you might want to consider becoming a sales representative. Selling is not for everyone, but sales reps are one of the most popular home-based businesses in the United States.
You will be working to sell on behalf of a manufacturer or wholesaler. Begin by examining your current list of contacts. If you know professionals in a certain industry, you can find out what products or services they need and then help them obtain them. Again, selling is not for everyone, but if you’re serious, begin by reading some good books on sales.
For further information on becoming a sales representative, contact the Manufacturers Agents National Association.
Do what you love, and the money will follow. This adage is as true as ever when it comes to a home-based business. Technology has made starting your own home-based businesses more convenient and lucrative than ever. Honestly appraise your strengths and personal qualities, and you will be sure to find your perfect niche.
Small Business Ideas For Cash
Most budding entrepreneurs who want to start their own business find it hard if not impossible to get a government grant (United Kingdom) or (Small business loan (USA), however, if you live in Moscow chances are you'll be paid for your small business ideas.
Apparently Moscow's ageing small business entrepreneurs is a concern to City Hall and to address the problem they have approved a program to give 20,000 young entrepreneurs the opportunity to start their own businesses. This will be supported by sponsorship events.
Moscow's City Hall has set aside $4.7 million over three years to fund the small business ideas initiative.
If your have a business idea and you happen to live in Moscow consider yourself lucky to be in a position to be paid to start your own business – this opportunity is rare in the UK and USA.
See this small business idea article for more information.
UK Entrepreneurs With Flair Are USA Bound To Develop Their Business Ideas
tudents that exhibit entrepreneurial flair are to be sent to the USA to make the most of their business ideas at the expense of British taxpayers.
Under the plan that was announced by the Chancellor Gordon Brown, the government wants to add summer schools for budding entrepreneurs to the requirement that children should receive five days a year of education that promotes entrepreneurialism.
Enterprise teaching in schools, which is backed with £60m of funding from the department of Education, was introduced to encourage young people to act on their business ideas. However, head teachers are concerned because they cannot see how they can fit the subject of entrepreneurialism into an already busy curriculum. They are also concerned about the lack entrepreneurial skills among teachers to adequately teach the subject.
How Do You Teach Students To Be Entrepreneurs?
Teaching students to be entrepreneurs in a traditional school setting that is more concerned about teaching to pass exams and working for an organization instead of working for yourself poses many challenges.
Heads, Teachers and Industry, an organization that builds business links with education, said many schools lacked the skills and knowledge to put the plan into action. HTI is launching a scheme for business people to be seconded for five days to help with enterprise programmers in schools.
Anne Evans, chief executive of HTI, said: "young people can be put off by business as they see it as boring but at the same time they think IPods are exciting. We need to demonstrate to young people that business is not just about figures but also the products and services they use everyday. It's about motivation rather than teaching them about profit and loss."
It is crystal clear that neither the government nor teachers have the slightest notion about what it takes to be an entrepreneur. For a start, let's forget the term entrepreneurialism because it's meaning is not helpful to the nuts and bolts of starting a business and successfully steering that business through the ups and downs of real life challenges where you learn to survive on a daily basis.
Learning to be an entrepreneur by reading books written by academics who have never been in business, who have never sold anything "door-to-door, nose-to-nose and toes-to-toes" is completely useless; a complete waste of time and good taxpayer's money.
So How Can You Teach Students To Be Take Risks And Be Entrepreneurs?
Learning from books written by entrepreneurs who have been successful at starting and running their own business can help as well being mentored by these same entrepreneurs. Encouraging and assisting entrepreneurs with their ideas can also help as this puts the onus of success on the budding entrepreneur. This is where the seeds of business ideas can germinate and with some watering, can develop into viable businesses.
Networking with other entrepreneurs is a MUST if you want to leverage your time and resource. This is an area that entrepreneurs cannot learn is the classroom. Yet, this area alone can make a massive difference to anyone in business, particularly small businesses.
Finally, we get down to the heart of what drives entrepreneurs and individuals wanting to be in business for themselves rather that opting for the safer less stressful option of working for a company in a paid job. What motivates some people to take risk and start their own business is a question that has different answers, depending on the entrepreneur you pose the question to.
If the government and schools want to really encourage young people to be entrepreneurs then they should first seek out entrepreneurs of all colours and backgrounds and get then to set the curriculum and provide the framework. That's what I would do if I wanted to foster entrepreneurialism among young British students.
What do you think?

Stress Management As A Small Business Idea
Stress management or stress relief is a highly searched keyword and therefore presents opportunities for small business entrepreneurs who are looking for small business ideas.
Search any of the major search engines and you'll find many searches around the keyword "stress management", "stress relief" and hundreds of other keywords, all related to people who are searching for information and ultimately solutions that are stress related.
Also consider this article on "Fear of stress discourages would-be entrepreneurs" . Based on a survey carried out in London, the majority of young Londoners would rather work at a paid job than start a business because of their fear of stress.
Imagine, if stress is such a major concern, it also offers opportunities for small business entrepreneurs who are savvy enough to spot an opportunity. Instead of reinventing the wheel in coming up with products and services that have not been tried and tested, here we have a ready market with tons of potential customers who are already looking for information on stress management and stress relief, plus going by the survey carried out by YouGov of young Londoners, the market can be segmented into different niches.
All it takes is to carry out research into the causes of stress, how to relieve and prevent the causes stress and to develop products (home study courses, videos, CDs, stress relieving music and audio, etc) that solves the needs of an already hungry market.

I hope this brief article will act as a stimulus and that you can see the possibilities of starting a business with this one small business idea.
Small Business Ideas For The Future
Two small business ideas based on new trends that small business entrepreneurs can profit from.

Small Business Idea #1
I was interested to read a survey by the research company DBM who were asked to look at which professional jobs or small businesses ideas are likely to be in greatest demand in the next ten years.
The survey appeared in Fortune magazine in March 2005 and here are the conclusions:
1. The greatest increase in demand by far will be for people who know how to clean up 'spaceship earth'. This is because an increasingly healthy-conscious public is eager to find environmental engineers who can prevent problems rather than simply control those that already exist. Indeed, it is anticipated that over the demand for environmental engineers will grow by at least 50%.
2. The next key area of growth is anticipated to be network systems and data com analysts followed by personal financial advisors.
3. Number eight on the list was PR Specialists.
If you are trying to decide what small business to start, it might well be worth your while to have a look at this survey. If there's going to be a demand for environmental engineers, there is also going to be demand for the businesses that employ them.

Small Business Idea #2
Starting A Business Based On New Trends
Speaking of new trends, when you get a moment why not check out a company called NatureWorks based in Nebraska?
The company runs a factory that can produce 300 million pounds of a polymer called Gylatic acid, derived from bacteria that feed on corn kernels. What is so big about this? Poly-lactic acid is basically a biodegradable corn plastic that degrades, within weeks, into water and carbon dioxide in the humid, 140 degrees heat of a compressed landfill site.
With escalating oil prices, corn plastic is much cheaper alternative. Also, with growing concern about the damage being caused to the environment, biodegradable corn plastic is better for the environment.
Corn plastic is going to be a giant thing in the years ahead. Furthermore, it is clearly going to offer eco-entrepreneurs some extremely exciting opportunities.
Looking for a Good Business Idea?
For an almost-can't lose chance for success, combine two fundamental rules for making a small business work:
1. Discover something you can do better than anyone else.
2. Figure out how to sell your product or service cheaper than anyone else.
Start by asking yourself, "What product or service am I unhappy with?"
If something is bothering you, chances are others feel the same way. If the feeling is widespread enough - and you have a way to solve your own problem - you may have a multi-million-dollar business idea.
Then ask yourself, "How can I provide my better product or service for less than the competition?"
That's what the founder of Save-A-Lot supermarkets did. He noticed that stores like Wal-Mart and Kroger had no interest in going into blighted (see Word to the Wise, below) urban neighborhoods. So, by taking on a market that the bigger chains ignore, The Wall Street Journal says, Save-A-Lot has "quietly become one of the nation's most successful grocery chains."
Save-A-Lot is part of a boom in low-frills supermarkets known as "hard discounters" that are undercutting the Wal-Marts and Krogers by stocking mostly their own brands and focusing on high-inventory items. (A typical Wal-Mart, for example, might stock 30,000 items, while a Save-A-Lot might stock 3,000.) The stores are sold as franchises. (75% of them are run by licensees.) Already, Save-A-Lot has 1,229 stores in 39 states and is adding more than 65 stores this year alone.
Over the weekend, see if you can come up with an small business idea for your million-dollar business. Start by thinking about all the products and services you regularly use. Have you ever said something like, "If only that widget had a _____, it would be so much easier to use"? Or "If only that company would _____ instead of _____, it would make my life so much easier"? That could be your breakthrough idea. And if you can figure out how to provide your better product or service at a better price than the competition, you're ready to leap into the wonderful world of entrepreneurship.

Could Copywriting Be the Business Idea of Your Dreams?
Have you ever dreamed of owning a lucrative small business that lets you work anywhere you want - anytime you want - and gives you plenty of time off to travel, spend time with family and friends, or to pursue your hobbies?
If so, direct-response copywriting could very well be the business of your dreams.
Why does copywriting pay so well? It's simple supply and demand.
Thousands of direct-response marketers across America and around the world are desperate for strong advertising copy. But there are so few writers to meet that demand that the good ones can pretty much write their own tickets.
If you can read, write, use a computer, and dial a telephone, you can learn this lucrative skill and make a very healthy living at it.
I'm living proof that it's true.
In the 1970's, I was a 20-something high-school dropout. I had a wife, a two-year-old daughter, and a baby on the way. My 12-hour-a-day job paid minimum wage, and we were struggling to pay the bills and put groceries on the table.
One day, as I was scouring the local paper for better job opportunities, I spied a tiny "help wanted" ad that intrigued me. A small-business owner needed someone to write ads for him.
"What do I have to lose?" I asked myself. "I can write. How hard can this be?"
My prospective employer wasn't exactly blown away by my experience and credentials. In fact, I expected the guy to have me thrown out of his office. Instead, he gave me an opportunity to prove my skills by writing a short sales letter. I poured my heart and soul into it, and a week later I had a new job - as a copywriter.
That's when everything changed for me. In the months and years that followed, my income soared to $100,000, then to $250,000, to $500,000, to $1 million ... and ultimately to nearly $3 million in a single year.
I'm not telling you this to brag - only to show you that if a high-school dropout like me can do it, you can too.
Even if you believe you have no natural talent for writing, you can still do very well. Good copywriting sounds like natural conversation - so if you can talk, you already have all the innate knowledge needed to be a successful copywriter.
Here's how you can get started on a profitable copywriting career:
1. Purchase a good home-study program. Really study it. Complete all of the exercises and become fully immersed in the skill of copywriting. This is how you learn the basics of what is considered good direct-response copy - the simple techniques that move people to action.
2. Get a deeper understanding of the basics of direct-response marketing by reading books such as Bob Bly's The Complete Idiot's Guide to Direct Marketing. Learn the industry lingo and understand the nuts and bolts of the direct-marketing business. You must understand the inner workings of the business so you fully understand how your copy fits into the equation. And it doesn't hurt to speak the language.
3. Study the masters. Study sales copy written by pros like Gary Bencivenga, Dan Kennedy, Gary Halbert, John Carlton, and others. Sign up for and read their e-newsletters, visit and read the archives on their websites. Learn from the best.
And after you have done all of the above and are ready for your first assignments (and for the cash to start rolling in) ...
4. Pick a niche in which you have some interest and knowledge and start looking for clients. My niche has always been health and financial publications. Your niche might be business opportunities or real estate.
Whatever your interests, I'll bet there is a product or publication just waiting for your newfound copywriting skill to sell it.
Narrowing your focus on a niche market will insure that you meet your goals faster. It's a huge direct-marketing world out there; don't waste your time running around trying to be everything to everyone. Write what you know.
There's one more thing you must do to make your sales copy successful.
Good ad writers simply explain all the benefits a product will bring to the customer's life - and they make a great living by doing that.
But great ad writers know that the vast majority of purchases are made for emotional reasons. So they identify the strongest emotions the customer already has concerning the benefits the product offers - or the lack of them ... and then they speak directly to those emotions.
If you can do this one thing, you can be one of the great ones - and a life of high-paying assignments and amazing freedom will be yours!
By Clayton Makepeace
NB: Clayton Makepeace is a copywriter and direct-marketing consultant with over 33 years of experience and more than $1 billion in sales generated for his clients.
Small Business Ideas To Generate More Good Ideas
Small business Innovation and the generation of ideas is currently all the rave. But this is not confined to small US businesses. In the UK the government and big companies are also searching for ways to establish a corporate 'ideas culture'.
Small business innovation conjures up images of entrepreneurs taking existing products and tweaking them for a ready market of customers who are looking for just that solution not currently being met.
Contrast this image with corporate innovation that conjures up images of white-coated boffins in laboratories and driven young things in the creative media industries. But some large companies, together with the government, are keen to sell a different image. Innovation they argue is about piecemeal improvements to processes and work organization, a culture of democratic tweaks.
While small business ideas and innovation is entrepreneurial driven and tend not to reinvent the wheel but instead address gaps in established and proven customer demand, large corporate innovation depends on how creative is the workforce.
New research commissioned by Vodafone, the telecommunications company, paints a mix picture. There's good news and bad news. The good news is of 2,000 employees interviewed, 28% say they generate an idea every week. That translates to 27m productive ideas into circulation for companies; based on just three serviceable in any year. More than two-thirds of respondents believe their managers are likely to listen to new business ideas.
Another striking finding is that micro or small businesses (companies with up to five employees) workers are three times more likely to originate an idea every day than in companies with more than 250 staff. Sectors such as media and marketing are much better at generating ideas than others such as transport, manufacturing and utilities.
The bad news is that employers' attitude for creativity is low. More than half of employees say they are not encouraged to come up with new business ideas, while 49% believe they work for organizations that are just no good with new business ideas.
It does appear that the traditional techniques of managing innovation - notable suggestion schemes, brainstorming and away days are regarded with suspicion. Consequently employees keep business ideas locked up in their heads. Furthermore, 79% are offered no financial incentives to generate business ideas, and 60% are given no time.
So while the government and big companies struggle with encouraging innovation and ideas from within, smaller companies are thriving in these areas. The Internet has created a treasure chest of information and successful prototypes to model, copy and enhance. Small Business ideas can be tested on the cheap. If one does not work, move on the the next one at speed. No committee or board decision is required.
There are successful small companies that have built products on the 'coat tail of success' of large companies by researching markets and developing in demand solutions. Why reinvent the wheel and spend vast sums in creating a market when a large company with fat budgets has done all the hard work for you?
So the advice to large companies when it comes to generating business ideas include:
1. It is vital to offer incentives for generating ideas
2. It is important to have a way of capturing and implementing good business ideas
3. It is necessary to realize that creativity cannot b e planned
May 19, 2005

UK Small Business Ideas are all Around You
UK small business ideas form as a result of many different life experiences. Some individuals were born with the entrepreneurial spirit and their drive towards self-employment began at a very young age. Some people come up with UK small business ideas because they’re tired of working for others. Sometimes, owning their own businesses makes sense for those who have specialized talents. And there is a growing group who make this type of move after being laid off from their jobs or as a result of not being able to find suitable employment.
The explosion of the Internet is making it possible for UK small business ideas to take root right from home. With more and more global business being transacted on the Internet every day, more and more people are trying to get their own piece of this action.
Perhaps even you are considering this type of move towards self independence. Striking out on your own is both exciting and stressful. It’s definitely not something for the faint of heart. You’ve got to be willing to invest double the amount of time and effort into your business to get it off the ground and to keep your UK small business ideas generating income. If you’re working on your own, especially in the beginning, you’ll have to play all roles: sales and marketing manager, negotiator, bookkeeper, administrative assistant and any other position required by your business.
Oftentimes, your ideas will actually result in a UK small business where you’ll need to hire others. That’s a major accomplishment but one that doesn’t necessarily mean your life will get easier. Employees expect to be paid on a regular basis. It’s up to you to ensure they do or they will move on. It may make sense for you to hire contractors whom you can pay by the hour or the project.
If you know you want to be your own boss, and you’re ready to explore UK small business ideas, there are several sources available to help with your search. The press lists business opportunities currently for sale in a particular area. To look at businesses for sale throughout the UK visit Daltons weekly . Here you’ll find pubs, guest houses, catering companies, shops and many other business opportunities.
If you feel you need a bit of assistance when starting out on your own, other viable UK small business ideas are franchises. Take a look around you – there are some 600 different businesses in the UK that actually are franchised. The costs of owning a franchise and the services you get from the franchise in return for those costs does vary between franchises, so you need to do your research. To begin your search for a franchise opportunity in the UK visit www.british-franchise.org.
Hopefully this information has got you thinking of ways you can turn your ideas into a successful UK small business venture. When you’re ready to turn your ideas into reality, you’ll find plenty of companies and branches of government ready to assist you in your pursuit!

Small Business Ideas You Can Start Today
Many visitors to Small Business Resource web site are looking for small business ideas. I know that because of the number of searches with the words "small business idea". Also the tracking software tells me key information. It’s no coincidence that we currently rank very highly in www.google.com for the keyword "small business ideas".
So, here are some business ideas you can start and run from home:

1.Backyard / Garden Ponds/ Water Gardens
These are increasing in demand. Homeowners love the sound of splashing and cascading water and having fishes in the garden. These ponds are very easy to build. There are kits that can help with easy construction. Pumps keep the water going and lights are available to keep them looking their best at night. Water gardens are very much in demand.

2.Market Your Arts And Crafts
If you have jewellery, art, photography, distress furniture, make baskets, etc, there are several books available that can help you learn how to market your art and crafts. Sell them at fairs, or sell them directly to stores or even to catalogue-owners.

3.Handyman
Are you handy around the house? Wouldn’t be nice to get paid for it? There are probably plenty of people in your neighbourhood or own town that would love to pay for your handyman services. You might think it’s simple to install a light socket, put up moulding, change a doorknob, patch a screen, repair a broken door hinge or put up some bookshelves, but most people do not. Promote your small business via word of mouth, fliers or a small advertisement in your local newspaper.

4.Special Events Video
Do you enjoy making videos of special gatherings for your family and friends? Why not get paid for it? Take your video camera and start a small business recording special events around town for your neighbours and business associates. Your jobs could range from a corporate retirement dinner, a school picnic, a wedding, a special town club event, a marathon, a local band’s gig, and you name-it. You might need to pick up a tripod or some special light to start this business, so save the receipts. These supplies are tax deductible.

5.Resume Service
If you have a good computer and a laser printer, consider your own resume service, there are lots of people who don’t know how to prepare a resume. You can prepare nice-looking resumes to land a new job. If you already have a computer, you can start straight away. Place ads and post fliers on your new service. Go to your local bookstore and check out the books and software on resume preparation. Contact businesses in your area that might be making people redundant. Ask if you can work with the personnel department to provide resumes to these individuals.

Next week I’ll briefly cover other small business ideas you can easily start from home like, teach your craft, newsletter, knife sharpening, birdhouse building and hometown guide.
So, here are some business ideas you can start and run from home:

European House Skopje is an NGO in Macedonia that promotes European values, democracy, human rights, and regional cooperation. Its...