Thread: Starting my journey!

Went to the store tonight and my earlier searches were confirmed...it does not look like this product is available anywhere that I can find. Even better is that the item that my product will accessorize had many more options/brands than I thought it would. I think there is a great need in the market for my idea!

I'm going to push forward with this product and keep researching what I need to do to get it produced and on my doorstep. My goal right now is to have at least a test run of the product in hand by the new year. I will worry about $$ goals once ive confirmed that this is a viable business. Ill start releasing more details as I get things locked down.

Lots of work to do, but it will be worth it!

Welcome to the forum!! It seems like a lot of people here are trying to go this route to the fastlane. Good luck!

Wow... We have almost the same exact story... Ill definitely be following your progress...

Small update:

I'm still in the learning stage, not quite ready to start contacting manufacturers yet. I want to have a solid plan in place before I do.

My copy of Fastlane should be here any day, along with another book I picked up on recommendations on this forum. I've been reading online about manufacturing/importing...If anyone has any good reading recommendations in this area I'd be grateful to hear them. I'm just trying to cram every bit of useful information I can find into my head so that I have all bases covered when I'm ready to start developing my product.

As far as the actual product goes, i've been sketching up what I hope will be the first run of designs. I have 1000 ideas of how to expand this product line, but I think I need to start with one product for the first run, at least until I can get the process down and test the market. New designs will be no problem once I have the process down.

"Phase 1" of bringing the product to market will be selling online on my own site and on Amazon. If (when ) I start getting good sales I will look into expanding into other online marketplaces and maybe even retail stores.


For know I'm hitting the books and working on my gameplan. Ill try to keep yall updated!

-Swoop

I've figured it out. You're going to release the very first case for nails that attaches directly to a hammer, right?

Just think... you'll never be looking for your nails again!

Originally Posted by Swoop

1) clean my desk/office. A clean workspace is crucial to productivity and organization, at least for me.
2) go to big box store and scout out if this item really doesnt exist. Buy the existing similar item and do some experimenting at home to make sure the idea is feasible.
3) research, research, research!
4) start thinking about business name, logo, designs, etc..

No, no, no , no

Originally Posted by Swoop

Updated List:

1) clean my desk/office. (if this is an ABSOLUTE NECESSITY)
2) go to big box store and scout out if this item really doesnt exist. Buy the existing similar item and do some experimenting at home to make sure the idea is feasible.
3) Get at least 3 paying customers!
4) get more customers, and then start thinking about logo, designs, etc..

Don't put in a ton of work for an idea that you have not allowed the market to validate or not, test the water before you go diving in!

Welcome and good luck!

Find problem, draft solution, sell solution, get customer, build solution, repeat steps 3 and 4 till you make millions. Your desk isn't that big of a deal.

lol my room looks like a mess, I have barely enough space to move around and work on my desk. Lowest priority ever. Simply have no time.

Originally Posted by Swoop

This is a specific item that I could not find a single match for on Google, Amazon, eBay, or on big box store websites.

I think this is not necessarily a good thing, as its even harder to "create" a market than it is to dominate one. Better take an existing product in a big enough market, improve it, brand it and market the hell out of it. But maybe I'm wrong as you already mentioned that its confusing. Good luck!

Originally Posted by Gravytrain

I've figured it out. You're going to release the very first case for nails that attaches directly to a hammer, right?

Just think... you'll never be looking for your nails again!

Ha, not quite.

Originally Posted by Mike39

No, no, no , no



Don't put in a ton of work for an idea that you have not allowed the market to validate or not, test the water before you go diving in!

Welcome and good luck!

Thanks for the advice. I'm really clueless though to how I would test the market without having a product actually ready to sell. What do you think?

Originally Posted by theag

lol my room looks like a mess, I have barely enough space to move around and work on my desk. Lowest priority ever. Simply have no time.

Haha Cleaning up was just my way of getting serious about trying to make this happen. I just cleaned of all the trash, pulled out a notebook and got to work. Really just a mental kickstart and an easy way to get something going. I spent maybe 20 minutes on it. I do have a bad habit of over organizing/planning in place of actually getting real work done. I guess cleaning makes me feel like I am actually accomplishing something. I didnt let that happen here though and have actually made some solid progress.

Originally Posted by theag

I think this is not necessarily a good thing, as its even harder to "create" a market than it is to dominate one. Better take an existing product in a big enough market, improve it, brand it and market the hell out of it. But maybe I'm wrong as you already mentioned that its confusing. Good luck!

Yea it is hard to explain without telling the actual product, but it is an improvement on an existing product. Basically a more portable, lighter, cheaper alternative to something that already exists. I'm not exactly creating something new, but it is a new form of an existing product. This will be more clear when get to where I am comfortable announcing the product.



I've spent some time sketching out my product and working on the dimensions and the packaging strategy. I feel like I will have a good first draft design in the next couple of days...been busy with work lately and havnt gotten to work on this as much as I would like.

Does anybody have any advice about what stage I need to be at before contacting a manufacturer? Should I have my business legally set up, licenses, etc before I try to get a test product made? Going back to what Mike said, I wouldnt want to spend the time and money setting up a business before I even know if my product will sell, would I? Do I need to have a business set up to sell a test run of the product? Any input from someone with experience in this field about the order to do things would be greatly appreciated.

Honestly, I'm a little nervous about contacting suppliers, since Ive never done anything like this before. I worry that I will get to that point and have missed something important or do something stupid and look too much like an amateur to be taken seriously. At some point though I guess I'm just going to have to nut up and go for it...the worst that could happen is they tell me "no". I'm definitely out of my comfort zone here, but that's how you learn new things...


Other than this project, i'm still waiting on my copy of Fastlane...should have it by Monday.


-Swoop

Quick update:

I've built a prototype of my product and I really think this is something that could sell really well. I've even come up with ideas for a complete product line to go with the base product. I need to do start testing materials and quality from manufacturers, also start testing pricing.

I am a little worried about protecting my idea. I dont think that it is patentable (I think it is too similar to other products), and I'm worried that if I call a manufacturer they could just make and sell them without me. Is this a legitimate concern? I think for now I am going to ask for samples using "blank" art, since the whole idea is based on the designs. This should prevent anyone from knowing what my idea is before I am ready to sell.

I have been approaching this whole idea with the thought that I would have it made overseas, but I am becoming more open to having it produced in the US. The price shouldnt be much different after shipping. My main concern is that I feel like the idea is more likely to be stolen if I go to a US manufacturer, as bad as that sounds. Again, what is the best way to protect my (probably) non-patentable idea? NDA's?

I'm also starting to think about packaging. Do these manufacturers usually have the capacity to custom package a product? Do they outsource the packaging materials and pack themselves or even send my product to a packager? The packaging is extremely simple for this product, but it is different from the stock packaging that comes on an item like this typically.


And finally, I received my copy of Fastlane! I'm halfway through it in a little over a day...man, there's some good stuff in there. I'm going to make my girlfriend read it when I'm done .


As always, any advice is greatly appreciated!

-Swoop

Just contacted my first manufacturer...not really a big deal but for some reason I was nervous to do it haha. Now that I've broken through that "barrier" it's off to the races!

Oh, and I also decided to use the LLC I had already formed for a previous project that never was. I just filed for my state tax ID and my Sales and Use ID.

Baby steps...

-Swoop

Another small update:

I've decided to go with a US manufacturer for now to simplify things. The product will still be extremely cheap to manufacture and I wont have to deal with the hassle/costs of importing. The margins will still be plenty big enough. There are actually several companies in my area that appear to be capable of producing what I want; by "in my area" i mean within 20 minutes drive. If one of these manufacturers works out then I will be able to maintain in person communication throughout the testing and designing process, which could be a huge benefit over going with China. Also, I could pick up the product myself in person instead of having to wait/pay for deliveries. I have started email contact with a few of these manufacturers and have some samples coming in the mail.

The material used is going to be the key to this product. I have also ordered some samples of different materials to do some testing with and to possibly bring up to the manufacturers.

I have a graphic design friend working on a first draft of my design. Still need to come up with a product name/logo, but that's really my last concern right now.

And finally, Im still working on getting through the Fastlane book. I have a roadtrip coming up this weekend and I plan to knock out the last half in the car.

-Swoop

I havnt had an update in a while, well, because I havnt had much progress in the last week or so, unfortunately.

Been a rough last 2 weeks or so...been slammed at work, working late, i've been sick, my dog has been sick, i've had to travel the last couple of weekends.....blah blah, escuses, excuses. I did receive some samples from a couple of manufacturers that I am testing out, and I am almost finished with the fastlane book. Other than that, I havnt gotten much done, BUT, I have not given up or quit. The last few weeks of being a slave at work have re-energized me to get out of the slowlane.

Thankfully, ive got 4 days off next week and Im going to use my free time to finalize my city business licenses and such, and put in some phone calls to some of the local manufacturers i've been looking at. Im going to look into hiring an artist online to get me some proofs too.

So, if anyone is actually following this, I hope to have some REAL progress to report next week. Feel free to call me bad names if I dont

-Swoop

Would love to keep up with your progress, keep posting. Have you talked to others to gauge interest in this product at all or are you going on blind faith?

How did you find the manufacturers you contacted?

Originally Posted by Bugsey34

Would love to keep up with your progress, keep posting. Have you talked to others to gauge interest in this product at all or are you going on blind faith?

How did you find the manufacturers you contacted?

Thanks Bugsey.

I have talked about my idea with a few people who all agree that it's a really good idea. More importantly, I see this as an unmet "need" in the market...an improvement if you will.

I found manufacturers simply by Googling "X manufacturer in Y city". I have contacted several but after more communications with some of them, Im not sure if they will be able to do what Im asking. Still looking for the right manufacturer, which is my biggest hangup at this point.

In other news, I've got my licensing and tax paperwork now. Going to consult with my dad's business' tax guy just to double check, but I think i'm all set in that regard.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!


-Swoop

I look forward to seeing more from you! This is a really interesting post, I think you are doing the right thing by taking it slow and not just using whatever material is cheap. I am curious, what are the licenses and tax forms you are talking about? Is that only for a registered business, or do all sellers need one?

Thanks Flint. I'm trying not to rush things too much, as I am completely new at this and don't really have a ton of money to throw around at failed attempts, but at the same time I'm really just learning as I go and am not really afraid to fail...I look at this as a big learning experience that will hopefully have the added bonus of making some money.

The paperwork I am referring to are Fed, state, and local tax certificates/business licenses and LLC papers, which vary by state and city I guess. my understanding is that the tax ids are required to buy wholesale. I may be wrong, but I figure it can't hurt to have them haha.

-swoop