Finding A Wholesaler
If you’re serious about starting an online business then Ebay is your fastest route to achieving this. This is most online businesses first step into the world of online trading. And for good reason. You can get up on running on ebay within an hour. What you need to distinguish though is between selling the odd item on ebay and selling a range of products constantly on a daily basis.
The difference is one is a hobby and the other is a business. A lot of people buy some stock from an auction or other supplier, place it on ebay, sell it then come to a dead stop. Wondering what to sell next. They then spend a few months soucing something else to sell. This is a nice way to earn a little extra cash but it’s not a business. If you want to create a serious business on ebay you need to establish your supply line so you can restock as soon as you see you stock selling. You need a supplier who will be able to resupply you within days.This step comes after you have done all your research and decided what you are selling.
Once you’ve decided what to sell your next goal is to find a supplier who sells the products at a price that enables you to make a profit. Ideally you want to buy direct from the manufacturer as this will guarntee that you get the product at the cheapest prices. Realistically though, as a small trader buying from the manufacturer is not practical. Manufacturers want you to buy in large bulk quantities and will not sell small quantities of items.
As a small trader you need to find a genuine wholesaler. I say genuine because there are a lot of people out there claiming to be wholesalers who are retailers: Type in a search for the products you are interested in in google putting “supplies” or “wholesalers” after the products and see what comes up.
You will get pages of companies claiming to be wholesalers. The question is are they genuine wholesalers or companies buying from the wholesalers and selling the products on at just under retail prices? Your research, if you have done it right, will have come up with the average selling price of the products you want to sell. If the prices from the sites claiming to be wholesalers are too close to the selling prices your research has uncovered then you can safely conclude that they are retailers and not wholesalers.
Most of the companies advertising themselves as wholesalers on the net are really retailers. You need to make sure you get to the genuine wholesaler so you can get the products you want at the cheapest prices possible. The less people between you and the manufacturer the cheaper you will get the products for.
Most genuine wholesalers usually only have a small presence on the web. They don’t usually have online catalogues, some do but many don’t. They usually have hard copy paper catalogues that they send you when you sign up with them. So what’s the best way to ensure you get a genuine wholesaler for your products?
It took me a while to discover the best way to locate genuine wholesalers. Once I did discover the best way it was so simple I can’t believe I didn’t think of it straight away. All you need to do is look at the packaging the product you want to sell is in and get the manufacturer’s name off it. Search for the manufacturer on the net. The manufacturer’s website will have a customer service section or sales department. Simply send them an email explaining you would like to stock their products and can they supply you with details of the wholesalers who stock their products.
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This works every time. The manufacturer will send you a list of the wholesalers who stock their products. You can be assured that these are genuine wholesalers. All you need to do then is contact the wholesaler and apply for an account. Once you are accepted they will send you one of their catalogues. The catalogue will contain lots of other products which you can add to your inventory./p>
Establishing a good secure supply line is one of the major building blocks you need to put in place before launching your business. Spend some time doing this. Ensure you can get the products you want at the price you want. make sure you can get resupplied fast. This is crucial for a genuine business. Without a supply line you can never be a genuine professional business.,/p>
Finding A Genuine Wholesaler
If you’re serious about starting an online business then Ebay is your fastest route to achieving this. This is most online businesses first step into the world of online trading. And for good reason. You can get up on running on ebay within an hour. What you need to distinguish though is between selling the odd item on ebay and selling a range of products constantly on a daily basis.
The difference is one is a hobby and the other is a business. A lot of people buy some stock from an auction or other supplier, place it on ebay, sell it then come to a dead stop. Wondering what to sell next. They then spend a few months soucing something else to sell. This is a nice way to earn a little extra cash but it’s not a business. If you want to create a serious business on ebay you need to establish your supply line so you can restock as soon as you see you stock selling. You need a supplier who will be able to resupply you within days.This step comes after you have done all your research and decided what you are selling.
Once you’ve decided what to sell your next goal is to find a supplier who sells the products at a price that enables you to make a profit. Ideally you want to buy direct from the manufacturer as this will guarntee that you get the product at the cheapest prices. Realistically though, as a small trader buying from the manufacturer is not practical. Manufacturers want you to buy in large bulk quantities and will not sell small quantities of items.
As a small trader you need to find a genuine wholesaler. I say genuine because there are a lot of people out there claiming to be wholesalers who are retailers: Type in a search for the products you are interested in in google putting “supplies” or “wholesalers” after the products and see what comes up.
You will get pages of companies claiming to be wholesalers. The question is are they genuine wholesalers or companies buying from the wholesalers and selling the products on at just under retail prices? Your research, if you have done it right, will have come up with the average selling price of the products you want to sell. If the prices from the sites claiming to be wholesalers are too close to the selling prices your research has uncovered then you can safely conclude that they are retailers and not wholesalers.
Most of the companies advertising themselves as wholesalers on the net are really retailers. You need to make sure you get to the genuine wholesaler so you can get the products you want at the cheapest prices possible. The less people between you and the manufacturer the cheaper you will get the products for.
Most genuine wholesalers usually only have a small presence on the web. They don’t usually have online catalogues, some do but many don’t. They usually have hard copy paper catalogues that they send you when you sign up with them. So what’s the best way to ensure you get a genuine wholesaler for your products?
It took me a while to discover the best way to locate genuine wholesalers. Once I did discover the best way it was so simple I can’t believe I didn’t think of it straight away. All you need to do is look at the packaging the product you want to sell is in and get the manufacturer’s name off it. Search for the manufacturer on the net. The manufacturer’s website will have a customer service section or sales department. Simply send them an email explaining you would like to stock their products and can they supply you with details of the wholesalers who stock their products.
,/br>
This works every time. The manufacturer will send you a list of the wholesalers who stock their products. You can be assured that these are genuine wholesalers. All you need to do then is contact the wholesaler and apply for an account. Once you are accepted they will send you one of their catalogues. The catalogue will contain lots of other products which you can add to your inventory./p>
Establishing a good secure supply line is one of the major building blocks you need to put in place before launching your business. Spend some time doing this. Ensure you can get the products you want at the price you want. make sure you can get resupplied fast. This is crucial for a genuine business. Without a supply line you can never be a genuine professional business.,/p>
Finding Wholesalers
Finding a genuine wholesaler is one of the hardest parts about starting a business. You can easily start selling on Ebay straight away by getting rid of old items you no longer want. If you are looking to start a long-term business however, then you need to find a wholesaler. A supplier who you can rely on to deliver orders to you fast and consistently. This is not as easy as it seems.
When I first started out this was one of the biggest problems I had to overcome. I eventually succeeded but only after a number of false starts. By giving you my experience, it may save you some time researching this aspect of business.
Wholesalers Online
The truth is that the majority of companies online advertising themselves as wholesalers are not. They are retailers pretending to be wholesalers. If you wanted to buy something for your personal use, you may get a bargain. If you want to buy stock to resell however, then you will be disappointed. The prices these companies charge will not enable you to have a decent mark-up for yourself on reselling. By decent profit margin, I’m talking a minimum of 35%.
So how can you tell a real wholesaler from a retailer in wholesaler’s clothing? It’s not difficult. The genuine wholesaler will have a “trade only” section to their site, which is only accessible with a password. To get the password you have to contact the wholesaler who will send you out some forms to fill in. They will ask you some questions about your business.
Once you have filled out the required forms they will then give you access to their trade only section. Real wholesalers will have a minimum order, this can be anything from £50.00 plus. The sure way to check if you are dealing with a real wholesaler is to look at the prices and compare them to retail prices on the net. Look on Ebay and on the websites of companies selling the same products. If the retail price is close to the wholesale price then you are not been given real wholesale prices.
You want to be getting at least 40% plus discount for buying wholesale. The wholesalers I use don’t have ecommerce sites, they send out catalogues to their customers who choose the products they want then order, usually by fax.
Wholesale Clubs
There are a number of businesses online where for a monthly fee you get access to their wholesale lists. These companies specialize in getting together all the wholesalers in every market and putting them on their member’s only websites. Members can then access the website and find wholesalers.
I was a member of one of these sites for a while and to be honest was disappointed. I didn’t find a single wholesaler that I could use. Many of the wholesalers on the list were just selling cheap toys, which were no use to me. Others were in china, which I didn’t trust. After a while, I discovered that nearly all the wholesalers on the site were easily found by spending a little time on the net.
I cancelled my membership without any problems but I have heard that some of these sites make it very difficult for you to cancel once you sign up. So if you are thinking of joining one of these sites then before you commit yourself check that you can easily cancel at any time. Ask what the cancelling procedure is.
After a lot of wasted time searching out wholesalers and a few false starts I eventually found what I was looking for and have established good relationships with my suppliers. I didn’t find any of my wholesalers on the net because most of them are not there. They don’t need to be. They sell to regular customers who search them out and find them. So what’s the best way to find them?
As many genuine wholesalers have a poor web, presence you will have to research through the business pages. You can do this through the internet or through your local library. If you research on the net, you will eventually find some contacts. They will probably not have a website but a phone number and Email address are all you need.
Once you get a phone number then make contact with them. Don’t be afraid. Wholesalers want to sell to you, that’s their business. They’re not interested in selling you single items but they are interested in supplying you multiple items. Don’t be put off if they require proof of trading. If you are a start-up then you’ don’t have any proof.
When I contacted my first wholesaler by the phone, they asked for proof of trading. I explained that I was just starting up and didn’t have any evidence of trading. They asked me to fax them a letter header with my trading name on. Unfortunately, at that time I didn’t have a fax machine. Feeling very unprofessional, I explained this to the sales manager. He said ok email him a header. I did. My account was set-up and I began ordering and opened my business.
Many wholesalers are dropping their minimum order in the recession. Some will require you to make a purchase with an initial minimum order then allow you to buy small quantities the wholesaler you contact requires you to buy large minimum orders say £300.00 plus then don’t use them. Look around until you find the right one. Remember you are the customer, don’t go cap in hand, go confidently into wholesale negotiations.
If you persist, you will eventually find the wholesaler for you. You will probably have some false starts. One of the first wholesalers I contacted interviewed me over the phone and said he would send a catalogue out straight away. I was happy that I’d found a good source and waited eagerly for the catalogue to arrive. When it did, I was disappointed to discover that the prices were so high I could buy much of the stock from retailers on the net cheaper.
I didn’t place any orders despite receiving numerous follow up phone calls. When looking for wholesalers you will need to persevere to find the one you want. When you eventually find one who looks suitable read their terms and conditions to ensure they are suitable for you. If the minimum order is too high then don’t use them. Move on. You will eventually succeed.
