Lima Beach

     While the beach in Lima may have been chilly, there was no shortage of surfers in the water. There also was no shortage of guys lined up on the sidewalk offering surfing lessons. It seems that a popular pastime in Miraflores is to go surfing, and many locals have taken advantage of the tourists looking to learn. When we walked down the beach, every two feet was a guy trying to sell us surfing lessons. They all seemed to have the same pitch too. The prices were similar, all of them offered equipment and similar length lessons, and all of them had an Instagram to show us.

    I did not end up going surfing, but I was wondering how they differentiate themselves enough to find customers. It seems as though the demand is high enough that they simply just need to wait for people to come and they will find customers. In the United States, there would be more distance between rival instructors, as well as some variability in what they could offer. Here they almost seem to feed off each other. The fact that it was a popular surfing beach likely means there are enough surfers looking to learn that they do not need to compete. By grouping together they attract the attention of those who want to find lessons, and it becomes easier to know where the surfing instructors are.