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Wholesale Secrets Revealed: The Holy Grail Of Wholesale! By Robert Potter |
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Like the legendary search for the Holy Grail, the cup that Jesus drank from at the Last Supper, the same "holy crusade" goes on today by veteran and newly anointed business owners for the perfect wholesale, surplus, and drop-shipping resource. They believe that divine intervention will lead them to suppliers that can defeat the economic laws of "supply and demand." There are more than a few people who try to build an enterprise based on the weak premise that they will able to "score" in demand retail items for their new business, or auction, at either below wholesale prices, or "pennies on the wholesale dollar."
Trying to ride the wave of popular retail products brings out the greed monster in all of us. Pursuing the "deal of the century" has lead some aspiring business owners to risk their startup capital on fraudulent deals and offers. In this article I want to discuss three of the more sought after sources of product supply, and the "Pros & Cons" of each. I also want to shed a little light on some of the misconceptions people might have about buying products for resale. The reality is that not every product will be available through wholesale, surplus, and drop-shipping venues. Wholesalers: Typically, one of the better places to purchase products for your new found venture. Most true wholesalers will require that you have a "Certificate Of Resale" before you can purchase from them. A Certificate Of Resale, or "Tax & Use Certificate," is not hard to obtain, and costs anywhere from five to twenty dollars depending on the state you live in. Some states do not require that you even have one. You can obtain the certificate from your State Department of Revenue. To see if your state requires you to obtain such a certificate, and for a complete listing of the Departments Of Revenue in all fifty states go to this website: http://www.roisyn.com/certificates.html
Depending on your states procedure, once you fill out the paperwork you can get your "Certificate Of Resale" number the same day. You do not have to incorporate in order to obtain a certificate. You need to be a Sole Proprietor (at the very least) and have an address where you plan to conduct business. Once you have your number you will be able to open a business checking account at most local banks. Most do not require more than a few hundred dollars to get started. Wholesalers will require a minimum purchase price that can range anywhere from 100 to 1000 dollars. Some do not have any minimum. A true wholesaler is usually one step away from the original source of the product. For instance, a manufacturer produces blue widgets and wants to get their product into the marketplace. They will then employ a sales representative to get the product into the market, or they will assign a wholesale distributor the exclusive rights to carry and sell their product line. Some companies are import wholesalers. While they do not necessarily manufacture a product, they will import products from manufacturers in the United States, and from countries like China. A great example of such an importer/wholesaler is the Bnfusa.com: http://www.bnfusa.com/ There are a few ways to find wholesale products. Just about every product that is in the distribution chain will usually have a dedicated trade association, organization, or trade publication attached to it. You can find such trade information with the help of the following directory information: National Association Of Wholesale Distributors http://www.naw.org/Content/NavigationMenu/About_NAW/Associa tions/About_Associations.htm The above website address will lead your toward associations, ranging from Advertising to Woodworking. You should be able to solicit them for wholesalers within a particular industry. If you want to purchase their membership list (separate from the association listings), you will have to get in touch with them to check their current prices. Other good sources are: Encyclopedia Of Associations By: The Gale Group The Encyclopedia Of Associations lists over 100,000 different nonprofit American organizations. If you cannot find what you are looking for from the National Association Of Wholesale Distributors in terms of trade associations, then this is the directory for you. However, you will have to go to your library to find this research gem. You can usually find it in the reference section of any large University, or Public Library.
http://www.publist.com/ In addition to trade associations, trade magazines are another good source. Publist.com allows you to: "Search our database of over 150,000 magazines, journals, newsletters, & other periodicals. Find FREE in-depth information on familiar and hard-to-find publications from around the world, representing thousands of topics." http://www.tradepub.com/ Tradepub.com allows you to subscribe to trade periodicals from their web site for FREE! No hidden trial offers to qualify. http://www.thomasregional.com/ If you are looking for industrial product manufacturers, then this is the directory for you. The Thomas Regional directory will give you access to services from over "550,000 industrial distributors, manufacturers, and service companies." The Thomas Regional will help you find suppliers in your own state or region. Registration is required, but you can use the directory for FREE! Other free online sources of wholesale information and offers are: Wholesale411.com, Wholesalecentral.com, Wholesalegopher.com, Bizbb.com, Wholesalegopher.com. EVERYTHING CAN BE HAD FOR A PRICE-BUT THERE IS A PRICE TO PAY FOR EVERYTHING! There are products that can be obtained through a few of featured supply chains, and then there are products that will never make it to the surplus, wholesale, or drop-shipping market. Example: To get Louis Vuitton handbags through a surplus dealer is almost impossible. Surplus dealers that are promoting LV Handbags are misleading you. Same is true for people who are selling designer handbags on Ebay in mass quantities. The likely scenario is that they are Chinese knockoffs. Over 80 percent of popular retail products here in the United States are copied in the People's Republic Of China. Those products include Nike, Reebok, Puma, Adidas, Louis Vuitton, Calloway (Big Bertha) golf clubs, and just about any product that enjoys popular merchandising status. There is no plan by the Chinese government to stop "knockoff" activity because it is a thriving industry that provides employment for the masses. Despite the pleas from American companies to "cease & desist," there is a tepid response from Chinese officials to address the issue. When raids are conducted, they are "ceremonial" public relations stunts to appear as if they are actually taking action against the counterfeiters. Another indicator of authenticity is price. You will not find any authentic Louis Vuitton handbags for 30, or even 100 dollars. Most are 500.00 and up. To illustrate this point even further, just think about the popular celebrities of today who are clothes and handbag aficionados. Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Jennifer Aniston, Angelina Jolie, all sport around town with "Louies" that can fetch up to 10,000 dollars for an exclusive style of handbag. Do you think you will ever have access to these items in the wholesale, surplus, or drop-shipping market? Forget it! You might not even get these in some upscale boutiques! There are people so well connected that they buy up "hot items" like LV Handbags before they even hit the stores. They know who wants these items, and they will purchase whatever is available just so they can have an exclusive for their celebrity clients. Don't get me wrong. It's not that you can't get "designer duds" or handbags at wholesale prices. You will not get high end clothes and accessories that are featured in the latest issue of Vogue, Cosmo, as a "product for resale," in any wholesale environment, unless you spend thousands for the right to distribute such a product. Even if some of these items made their way beyond the connected channels of purchasing, exclusive clothing and handbag items like Louis Vuitton will have limited distribution in "hand picked' boutiques, and well connected purchasing agents. In addition, there are people in the fashion industry, as well as other branded industries that would rather have their merchandise burned, or buried before it would reach the wholesale, surplus, or drop-shipping market! For more information on designer clothing, and to learn about designer "fakes," please refer to the following websites: http://fashion.about.com/cs/tipsadvice/a/fakingit.htm http://www.handbag.com/fashion/howtolookgood/spottingfakes/ For a healthy does of honesty, and an eye opening perspective concerning the realities of purchasing designer clothes for resale, the Clothing Broker will definitely explode some popular myths about obtaining such items: The Clothing Broker http://theclothingbroker.com/ THERE IS GOLD UP IN THEM THERE HILLS! Now lets address the Surplus & Salvage Industry. When people first encounter some of the offers from Surplus dealers, or brokers, they tend to suffer from what I call the "I just found Gold" syndrome. A feverish excitement permeates their brain cells, and reduces them to a quivering pile of jelly, leaving their reasoning skills inoperable! A few thousand dollars later, and after coming to the conclusion that their "Golden Opportunity" turned out to be bars of lead, elation, then turns to anger. It is a cliche, and I hate using it, but it is more than appropriate when it comes to surplus and salvage products. "If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is!" Some Surplus dealers will hone in one at least one of seven deadly sins--greed! As with wholesale, you will never get certain products for "pennies" on the dollar. One type of surplus product category that has some people loosing their minds is surplus and salvage electronics. Finding surplus dealers with working, undamaged, electronic products can be a daunting task. Most salvage electronics can be in pretty rough shape. See Techliquidators.com: http://techliquidators.com What you are getting from most Surplus Dealers, or companies who specialize in electronic salvage is someone's customer returns, i.e., "junk!" Unless you are a electronics technician, or recycler, then I would stay away from "salvage" electronics. Even product that is not damaged, and still in the box or retail blister pack, can have a pretty high surplus price. If you find that someone is offering you a electronics item, be it a DVD Player, or Xbox, for eight dollars a unit, then "buyer beware." Robert C. Potter is a wholesale and retail surplus products specialist. He is the author of “The Ultimate Guide To Products For Resale!” Over 300 Wholesale & Surplus Supply Sources For Ebay Auction Sellers, E-Commerce Websites, Flea Market Vendors, and Retail Store Owners! You can find his 160 page ebook at: http://www.productsforresale.com |
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While all attempts have been made to verify the information provided in this website/ebook(s), neither the Author nor the Publisher assumes any responsibility for errors, omissions, or contrary interpretation of the subject matter herein. Any perceived slights of specific persons, peoples, or organizations is unintentional.This website/ebook is an information product, and is not intended for use as a source of legal, accounting, or tax advice. Information contained herein may be subject to varying national, state, and/or local laws or regulations. All users are advised to retain the services of competent professionals for legal, accounting, or tax advice.The purchaser or reader of this website/ebook(s) assumes responsibility for the use of these materials and information, including adherence to all applicable laws and regulations, federal, state, and local, governing professional licensing, business practices, advertising, and all other aspects of doing business in Canada and the United States or any other jurisdiction in theworld.No guarantees of income are made. The Publisher reserves the right to make changes. The Author and Publisher assume no responsibility or liability whatsoever on the behalf of any purchaser or reader of these materials. |
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Copyright 2005 Wholesale Electronics Info |
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