A Business is Born

[GuestUser202]

Well...I didn't want to do a progress thread, because frankly, I'd rather devote my time to other things, but MAN am I EXCITED!!! I think I found my niche...MY pain point!!! That being said, I don't know how much time I am willing to devote to this thread at this time.

A little background: My first thought of my own business was to fix and flip cars and I've wanted to this for a VERY long time. I've done it the past and been relatively successful at it. But at the time of this writing, I now have TWO vehicles just sitting, waiting for parts. SO it hit me...this may not be the best fastlane strategy. Inventory sitting and cannot be sold (for profit anyway), and plus one of my vehicles is a COMPLETE money pit! This specific vehicle, I was told it needs one part to get running right. Well, it did need that one part, but it needed SO much other work in addition to that "one part". $3500 later I think I can FINALLY sell the car (we have emissions testing here so if it cannot pass emissions, car is practically worthless...or a parts car). I will still make money, but not the profit I has hoped for. This all led me to believe fix-n-flip is just too risky. Plus I also found out that you need A LOT od capital to get dealer's license.

SO...I've been looking around on this forum and it seems there are a lot of people importing from China (www.alibaba.com and such) and selling through various means. This seems like a much more stable, more viable "fastlane" way to start a business. So I thought about it for a few minutes thinking to myself, "What am I interested in?" First thing to mind was LED light bars for off-roading...these things sell for $1,000+! I Thought I had it...until I checked alibaba and the cost/piece and shipping and the market. I cannot make money with that product, and in fact, I'd end up losing money.

So then, taking the advice of Eco Man and the advice in Mr. DeMarco's book, I started thinking about what do people need? What is an evergreen product people need? What is major pain point people have? I thought about things like dishes, glasses, cookware, silverware, 800 thread count Egyptian cotton sheets, but nothing really "stood out". Plus the market seems saturated with these products anyway (too much competition). I also thought "How can I add value to these already existing products?'

I spent like a week, maybe even 2 weeks looking around my house, my yard, my slowlane job...what do people need? LED lights for the house, sunscreen, car seat covers...I checked on Craigslist to see what people need, what they are getting rid of. Nothing. Nothing said to me, "I can add value to this and sell it!" Until it happened...One Friday when leaving work, my _______ (you really didn't think I'd tell you my product, did you?) broke...again. I was like #$%^! Now I need to buy this.

I went to my usual spot to buy said product and their main display had absolutely nothing I liked. I did manage to find more of what I needed in a different location, found something I liked and bought it. I stepped out of the store and said, "I don't like this." But I'll just deal with it. About 2 days later, it hit me...what if I started a business selling this product? Not only sell it, but offer a lifetime warranty? Offer a product that you buy once and once only? This particular product has been a HUGE pain point for me personally for DECADES! I thought to myself, what if I never had to buy this again? What if I buy one that is light, comfortable and fairly inexpensive and never had to buy it again? How wonderful of an idea!!

So I had my product! Now the research. I checked on ebay and amazon and even did a Google search for my product with a lifetime warranty and it was as I expected...only a few HUGE name brand players, but the warranties were very tightly written...so much so it almost made them pointless. I checked alibaba and through researching my product, I found the exact features I want for my product.

At this point, I am in contact with SEVERAL suppliers to see if they offer what I want. Pricing and shipping is right where I expected it to be, and my margin will be so great that offering a lifetime warranty is still VERY profitable. Funny, because when I checked the biggest, most well know supplier of my product, it seems they are doing the EXACT same thing!!! My warranty and material will be different, setting me apart. One pain point for me right now is the time difference...I am asleep when they are awake and emailing me. I lose SO much sleep right now because I am SO ANXIOUS!!

So now the REAL fun begins! Once I find a supplier that offers EXACTLY what I want, I'll order a sample. From there, if demand is there, I want to brand my product, copy write/trademark it, get an LLC, and make it a viable business. I even have a company name and slogan picked out, checked the web and the domain is expired, but I can do a .net or .biz. I want to compete with the BIG DOGS!

 

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[BostonHusky]

I fully respect everything you've done; and I greatly admire your efforts, enthusiasm, and continuous battle even though life is, apparently, given you the finger at this time.

Now, my friend, with all due respect, I will ask you to make a reality check, purely for your own good. I, in no way, am trying to be a dream-stealer, or anything else. Solely because we are in a forum where constructive criticism makes everything better.

Firstly, let me tell you that I've been exactly where you are in terms of launching your business.

1) Don't you think this has taken you a lot of time to start up? I believe you got your first shipment 7-8 months ago, and haven't sold a single product yet. You need to get to the point.

2) You said you were working on your website and it was "coming along nicely" 7 months ago. Now you're expecting to buy a domain name and file an LLC by MARCH (another 2 months wasted!).

Two points - buying a domain name and creating a more-than-adequate landing page/website for whatever you're trying to sell would take you 1 week tops w/ 6-7 hours/day if you're starting out. (Wordpress themes)

Here is something crucial that, I'm sure, almost EVERYONE in this messageboard was guilty of at one time or another: you're getting stuck in the start up process. You do not need an LLC to start.

Not at all. You're, as a US citizen/permanent resident, allowed to sell whatever you want as long as you file your sales as income yearly in your tax return form. Given that we just entered 2016, if you start selling now, you won't have to worry about this until 2017. An LLC will NOT help you right now. Why do you need an LLC for an idea you have not validated yet? Waste of money and precious time!

3) I greatly admire your level of commitment to this whole project. I admire how you're still trying and even had to get a broken mobilehome to get going. But - 7 months, man. You're getting stuck with trivial tasks that you don't need to do to sell your product.

You don't need warranty cards. You don't need pro photography from day 1. Sure, it's nice, but borrowing a friend's DSLR camera, or heck, Galaxy S6/iPhone 6S would be a much economical and barely differential substitute. I've taken pictures with my S6 that look like they're straight out of an EOS 6d.

I'm all fine with branding your product.

What you need, is to start selling. Be it on Amazon, on your own website, whatever. Get on adwords. Get on craigslist. Set your target market, and freaking sell your samples.

It hurts my heart to see people get stuck in the startup process every single time - and I'm guilty of it when I first started out. I think everyone is. Please don't take my words as condescending. This happens way too often in the entrepreneurial community - but stop wasting your time and get to the deal. You can be in position to sell 5 days from now.

Make that first sale.

 

[Walter Hay]

Thanks for the info, Walter. As I am just starting and I'm planning on moving to a far, far away country in the following 6-10 months, I didn't plan on digging in too much into this before settling down in my new place. But hey, the more I learn now the better for the future.

I've started reading the book and it got me pretty hooked. However, I'm reading too many books at a time and am quite busy as well with building my own small importing business and having a full time job (I know, I know, I have to start managing my time better. I also have a book about that, haha), so I haven't gotten to this point yet. 1 Could you explain a bit how to get to the manufacturer when you're dealing with a trader or wholesaler? I mean, I simply don't know where to start looking, how to find them.

2Also, when you find the manufacturers themselves, how do you arrange the shipping? Do they deal with this as easily as these traders/wholesalers do, or should I need to have a guy do this for me?

3 I'm assuming this is very much profitable for high volumes of sales, but what about low volumes of middle-priced products, such as ~$70 (selling price) products in orders of x100~x200?

I may have found a very promising product that I could even brand, and I'm going to try it out buying some samples through the guy I've found in 4 DHgate, who is probably a trader. If it works, though, getting this product straight from the manufacturer with lower prices would be an interesting increase in my benefits, which are already pretty high.

Any tips will be much appreciated. Cheers!

With so many replies, some covering similar ground, I will answer one by one to make sure I don't miss anything.

1. It is better to find the manufacturer to start with, but if you find a trader, PM the details to me and I will reply with the manufacturer's contact details. I can't do this for everyone, but I don't want to see you get started in the wrong direction.
2. It is best to ask the manufacturer to quote you a price including shipping. It is customary for all suppliers to quote FOB, but usually that is only appropriate for larger orders. You will probably need door to door air courier delivery for a small order. The cost will shock you, but if you are buying direct from a manufacturer at the right price the margin will more than cover it.
3. For orders in that range it is probably worth finding a freight forwarder in your area and getting a quote for door to door delivery after you get a quote FOB or EXW (Ex Works). Depending on size and weight it might travel by air courier, or air freight (there is a difference). All freight quotes must be all-inclusive, including Customs Clearance work.
4. If you find them on DHGate, they will almost certainly be a trader as is the case with most suppliers on Alibaba.

Walter

 

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[Walter Hay]

It's good to see not only your enthusiasm, but that you had the good sense to abandon a business that was not going to achieve what you want. Too many people are tempted to just hang on, hoping it will get better. That applies not only to start ups, but to established businesses that are going nowhere.

You mentioned Alibaba as the place you are looking for suppliers and I understand why. After all everyone says Alibaba is the place to go. All except me and a handful of other import specialists that is. (Oh, plus hundreds of people who have taken my advice on this subject including many Fastlaners.)

Now that you are getting started on what could be an extremely profitable enterprise that is scalable, I would hate to see you get stuck with buying from traders or wholesalers pretending to be manufacturers, which is the case with a high proportion of the suppliers on Alibaba.

May I suggest you have a look at my AMA thread and see what I have to say on the subject. One of my book users posted this on another forum: "I have contacted some manufacturers already (from links he supplies) and I am just shocked at the low prices they offer for products I am researching. Forget Alibaba, Global Resource, whatever. The Ebook shows you where to find manufacturers, how to verify their credibility etc."

It is worth remembering that profit begins with buying. If you buy from a trader or wholesaler you are immediately losing a big slice of the potential profit.

 

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[Brentnal]

I am beginning to like this thread, you don't seem like one of those people who quit after a week or two. Keep going, fail+learn+repeat=succeed

 

[GuestUser202]

Posting an update to let you know that I'm still alive and kicking. I'm still not in the motorhome yet as it's taking more time than expected to get it ready. I've put the running part on hold and I've been focusing on the living part. Needs a hot water heat and then I can live in it full time. Just trying to figure out the best option.

So today, I quit my J.O.B. I gave one days notice as I simply just cannot take it anymore. Tomorrow, Jan 8, 2016 will be my last day there. The next few weeks, and possibly months are going to be very interesting. I need to hold out until I get my 401k. Once I have that, I will put a few grand to my business.

 

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[BostonHusky]

Why not go try to sell your glasses, and why all the delay? Businesses aren't supposed to be money sinks where you keep putting in effort with no return for almost a year... They're supposed to make you money.

You need to accept all your mistakes so far and start on a clean slate.

It would have taken me 1 day, tops, to make a very good looking Wordpress site using themes. It would cost me around $15 to buy a domain and hosting.

The fact that you've been delaying this very simple process for months makes me feel like this is all mental masturbation, and just making yourself feel like you're actually doing something when you've accomplished pretty much nothing so far. Sorry, buddy.

ALSO...

WHY DROP THREE THOUSAND DOLLARS ON INVENTORY WHEN YOU HAVE NOT MADE A SINGLE SALE YET?

I don't get it! I DO NOT get it!

You consider THAT, but you don't consider investing $20 for a top of the line website/domain, let's say $40 extra for a really good premium wordpress theme, and $50 on Adwords (which should get you plenty of sales if you do your homework) TO TEST YOUR IDEA?

I'm sorry, man. I can't be PC anymore. This whole thing is just ridiculous. You need to get your shit together and ground yourself. This is the equivalent of masturbating to pornography and feeling accomplished for having sex with a woman.

I started making money on my most recent business the same day I finished my website. I didn't have to go around and do a gazillion different useless things that customers don't even care about when they buy from me.

...and you want to drop thirty effing benjamins on inventory with nothing to show for..?

 

[GuestUser202]

I think that your enthusiasm is catching! Even the suppliers have detected it. I hope they don't take advantage of it, so be a bit wary, regardless of how well negotiations appear to go.

As I mentioned in my PM you have done well in finding one definitely genuine manufacturer and one likely so far. Keep up the good work.

Thanks Walter! The 1st supplier is REALLY working with me! My product has 2 main materials, and I want the higher priced item. They said MOQ for that material is 1000 pieces. I said I cannot do 1,000 pieces. They instantly dropped it to 300. I said still a bit high for me right now, I offered MOQ of 50, but they will not go that low. So, we agreed to start with the less expensive material with NO MOQ! Again, another hour+ with both suppliers tonight with Skype video call with the 1st one for another demo.

Also actually ordered a sample and paid via PayPal from the 2nd supplier. On the note of PayPal, supplier number 1 said PayPal is accepted on orders up to $400. Anything higher and the fees are too high (which I translate into a negotiation item).

@Ecom man, you are correct! I learned SO much from Mr. DeMarco's books, SO much from this forum and SO much from Walter Hay! It's funny because this all started from something I learned from another supposed self made millionaire wanting to sell me his 67 steps to becoming rich. I didn't buy a thing from him, but I learned one thing which led me here....millionaires read!!

@elbambino, yes I am setting small goals for now and leading up to bigger and bigger goals. Ideas are flowing like HOTCAKES!! I've already accomplished a few goals...find a product, find a few reputable suppliers, start business relationships, order a sample. Next is to actually start selling! Then I can work up to that 300 MOQ and introduce a new technology to the U.S. (I hope new)!

 

[GuestUser202]

Samples from supplier #2 received today. SUPER quick shipping! Most of the samples (8 in total) seem to meet most of the needs I require. Pretty impressed with the finish!

I had a conversation with the supplier once inspecting the samples and she pointed out features I didn't see. Very personal attention so pretty confident #2 is also a manufacturer. The rep even said they could customize a particular product if I so desired (not branding...haven't had that conversation yet).

I did a quick, basic price list and looks like I'll be around 250-300% margin on average or possibly more. I still toying with the idea of a tiered price structure so this may be skewed some. I like the idea of tiered price structure as the higher prices would indicate more features, better materials, etc.

I contacted a local printer this week in regards to branding my product, but after receiving the product, I need to rethink it (text instead of a logo).

Also had a wonderful conversation last night with a friend that started her own business a few months ago and we talked A LOT about selling/marketing on Instagram. My friend also created a B2B group on Facebook and added me and people there too recommend Instagram. I don't want to do eBay or Amazon because of where I want my company to go (Amazon might be ok). I can certainly try those as well, but from what I saw, competition is fierce!

My next step is branding somehow. I will need to take my samples in and see what options I have. Once that is accomplished, I can add my warranty and REALLY be competitive and set my company and brand apart! Thinking through this, I will have to up the price but I should still be around 250-300% margin. I have a few set price points in my mind once everything is in place. Still need to get a website up and quick!

 

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[Brentnal]

Thanks a @Brentnal! I am SICK of working for someone else. I've wanted my own business for decades, just never knew how to make a reality..never knew what to do.

I tell people to be an enthrepeneur if they say they want to be rich. Then they say i don't know what to do, they keep doing the same stuff everyday because they don't know what to do.
But nothing changes if you keep doing the same stuff everyday. If people keep trying to understand what they need to do then they will understand.

Atleast you are one of those people who decides to do something, most people don't. Never go back to you're old life. Life is to explore and do new things. Not to do the same thing everyday without learning new things and going forward.

 

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[randomnumber314]

Show me where I can get $40 hosting.

THIS is what you're focusing on after all has been said???? You need to seriously evaluate what you deem important focal points.

As for me, I'm dropping out of this thread unless you show some actual motivation. Enough of my time wasted here getting ignored.

 

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[BostonHusky]

Lol. You had trouble finding that for the past few months. Okay.

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=cheap+hosting+and+domain

Or if you want me to do the search for you as well...

www.godaddy.com . You've probably heard of them if you haven't been living under a rock for the past 20 years. A domain and hosting combo costs 9.99 for a year of the domain + $4.99 for wordpress hosting, and that's all you need.

I doubt you understood what I said as well. I said a premium wordpress theme would cost $40. Wordpress is the easiest way to get a business website going at this age and time. Most businesses use it.

I am not going to reply to this thread again. This is an utter waste of time and energy. I'm saying it again: this is mental masturbation. If you need anyone to show you what you could find out on Google within 7.2 seconds... And you keep delaying the SIMPLEST of things back... And you were wondering about finding a domain/website service for months now... Wow.

 

[albertut77]

You go, man! Glad to read so much enthusiasm. I also lose sleep everytime I think I find something virtually profitable and have to wait for the suppliers to answer. It almost feels like anyone's gonna realize about it in a few hours time and start selling it!

I'll be checking this thread regularly. Good luck!

 

[albertut77]

Thanks, Walter for the feedback and advise! I will SURELY locate your AMA thread and read through it!

Dealing with alibaba is NOT being kind to me at this point. Don't get me wrong, the suppliers are very friendly and (mostly) very responsive, but so far, no luck finding a supplier willing to send me samples of products in the material I want. I see no point in testing something I am not going to sell. Sure, they'll cater to me and make the product with the desired material IF I buy 300-500 at a time. And sure, down the line I will do this, but there is no way I'm going to order 500 immediately, NOR buy a sample order in a material I have no intensions of selling. The material is a key selling point.

I checked DHGate and searched Google for wholesale (my product) and their wholesale price is what my RETAIL price will be!! I KNOW I'm on to something now!! So DEFINITELY finding alternative suppliers is becoming more and more priority.

I also have to say I am having a hard time focusing on my Just Over Broke (J.O.B)...I seem to be on this forum or answering emails from suppliers or researching products. I'm at the point now where I don't care if they fire me. I'll take my slowlane 401k, pay 6 months rent, live off unemployment and build my business. Obviously, that is worst case scenario (even thought it sound SOOOOO freaking good).

If you have found this product exactly as you want it at the retail price that you would sell it, and don't want to make a 300-500 order because you're not sure if it will sell, why don't you try getting a small amount from these wholesellers and sell it at the same price yourself? This way, although you won't make any money, you will have an idea of its potential if you were to go serious with it.

As far as I'm concerned, and as much as I try not to follow this rule, samples are not a way of getting insta rich, but rather a way to evaluate your product and its welcoming in your market. If you lose money on samples, you'll gain in experience.

You gotta risk a bit, not every step is going to be profitable (but hey, if it is, good for you!). Just be reasonable on how much you risk according to your expectations on that product (and by expectations I mean thorough analysis of the product and the market, not just your gut!)

 

[Ecom man]

I would love to get the book but it is to expensive for me right now.

I've never read Walter's book so I can't speak from personal experience on the book but in the grand scheme of things what is $100 bucks? Get a part time job for a week and buy it. If I can learn 1 thing from a book it is worth the read. I just finished reading a book called "New Money Staying Rich" by Phillip Buchanon. Worth far more than the $20 I spent to get it. Knowledge is far more valuable and far more powerful than a little bit of money it takes to buy a book. Again, I've never read his book but if you believe he knows what he is talking about then get the money and buy it.

 

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[GuestUser202]

2nd sample ordered from 2nd supplier last night. Once "business" was taken care of, the conversation turned again to personal, which is kind of nice. Both suppliers suggested I come to China to meet them, to which I replied by saying I could make it a business trip and tour the factory. Both suppliers said I am more than welcome to tour their factories! It just so happens that my girlfriend lives in Singapore....coincidence??? I'm sure one of my trips to Singapore will result in heading up to China for a few days.

Now it's wait time...only a week or so, but in the meantime, I'll work on my sales pitch and continue to develop the business. I checked yesterday and to get an LLC in my state is only $50 and one form. Pretty easy. I also want to take Walters advice and get off alibaba, so I'll be looking for other sites and suppliers.

One question: my niche has probably millions of different styles. The sample styles I have selected range in price from $4 to $15 (pre shipping charges). Should I price each style at the same price (total cost/#of pieces)? Or sell each style at a percentage above cost (ie $4 + (shipping cost/total pieces)*200%, $15 + (shipping cost/total pieces)*200%)? Hope that makes sense. My goal is to have an entry level product, a mid level product and a high end flagship product..depending on material and features.

 

[GuestUser202]

Today, I researched my competitors warranty and started on my own warranty statement. I need to VERY explicit in my wording so I don't get burned. Once it is as I want it, I'll have my legal team review it.

Also refined company logo. Ideas are just flying into my head!! I have informed my coworkers about my business...one is like " Yeah! Go get'me! Love the entrepreneur attitude in you!" The other one is like, "I'm going to be your competitor!" Then he said, "Well shoot, I'll just invest in your company." Either way, I take it as a compliment. Definitely keeping some things secret.

Also started looking at branding today and processes and if I can or want to do it on my own. Didn't find a whole lot. I feel with the warranty I am going to offer, I had better brand my product. My supplier can brand my product if I order like 2000 pieces, which my be a possibly at some point.

Also started thinking about how I will market my product, which avenues to take. I really do not want to sell on eBay or Amazon, especially once the product is branded. I think I'll start a business Facebook page, but I think I need to wait to at least get an LLC or something so no one can steal my ideas and such. I also want some sort of advertisement on my vehicle...stickers or magnetic signs or a wrap or something....use my vehicle as free advertising.

Last night, I also told my dad about my idea to run my own business. I was expecting "you can't make money doing that" or "most business fail". But he was quite supportive and said he hopes it works out for me.

I started document things too...make an operations manual. That's about it for now.

 

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[GuestUser202]

Yesterday, I took more pics of my products and posted one model on Instagram. I also posted a motorcycle for sale yesterday...one of two fix an flips I am working on. I NEED inventory and by selling the motorcycle, I can definitely make that happen!

Today, I printed out my warranty cards and OMGOSH do they look good!!!! Also created a Google Voice number for my business and checked out vinyl lettering for my vehicle. OH! ALSO checked out getting a vendor license for my city and it's only $20/per 2 years per area. I only plan on selling in one area, so this is great news! I am also thinking of ever so slightly changing my domain name so I can get my website up sooner. I plan on selling through my site, locally in person, and local shops (depending on their cut and such). I also want to advertise as much as possible, so as of recent, I am CONSTANTLY looking for economically advertising solutions, but that needs to wait until I have inventory. Kind of in a holding pattern at this point

 

[Lone Wolf]

@BostonHusky - thanks for the feedback and constructive criticizim

I understand you want to get all the details of your business right, but I highly recommend you take a step back and think about whether it's actually required.

This thread greatly reminds me of the first 'business' I started. I registered all the domains, registered it as a Ltd. company, spent A LOT (for a 16-17 year old) on making a professional website and getting professional photographs done, planning every aspect of my marketing, I even got a professionally written PR made (amongst numerous other things). I did all these things over almost a full year, thinking everything needed to be absolutely perfect (but never actually getting a sale). You know what I did at the end of it? I didn't release it. I had virtually the perfect business ready to release, and I never did (now my reasons came down more to a legal matter that I was incredibly stupid to ignore / blinded by money - I was 16-17 at the time).

I know yours is a very different story to mine, but you may face similar pitfalls. You mention that there are other sellers selling for 2-3x less than you, and from what I've gathered in this thread, your main selling point is a different material and the warranty - meaning it's a relatively generic product. Which in turns mean these competitors can quite easily up there price and slap a warranty on their product.

I'm not saying this to demoralize you, but it just seems you're falling into the trap of making 'progress' without actually making any progress. You do these little things that feel good and make you feel like you're running a business, but they're not actually helping you to make real progress. The fact you haven't sold the samples from 7+ months ago should be a huge red flag.

So my advice is to sell your samples (you mention you can't sell these on Amazon / eBay), so use a free Wordpress template on a $10 domain, run some ads and see if people (other than you) actually want this product. Then continue from there. Work out the actual downfalls (i.e. figuring out the branding), rather than spending unnecessary money, which sounds as though it's scarce at the moment.

I only had a quick glance over the posts, so if I'm wrong then ignore and feel free to call me an idiot. I hope you succeed.

 

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[Yìlì]

Reading this thread makes me realize I've also been focussing on the wrong things. @Longinus also told me this.

Where I'm from, I do need to go through a lot of paperwork to sell products legally.

But nothing is holding me back to just order samples, go to friends, family and some business owners, show them the product and ask if they would like to buy. I could let them 'preorder'.
This will validate my idea a lot quicker than starting a company with a lot of paperwork, setting up my ecommerce store and driving traffic to it with ppc and seo. So that's what I'm going to do.

As for you @muddblood , it seems getting your website to work is quite difficult for you. Maybe it would be best if you set up a Shopify store. Will cost you $29/month. Alternatively, I remember you saying something about jimdo? Your already made your store using their platform right? Checking their website, I'm seeing it's even cheaper! And you get a domain name with their plan. So just go with them. You could also host a wordpress site with woocommerce, but it will still cost you to host the site so it won't be cheaper than using jimdo.

To answer your question more direct: get your domain with the Jimdo plan. Or buy it at Godaddy or Namecheap. If you have any questions, PM me. I know how get websites hosted, and if I don't, there's always Google

Get started, I will too!

 

[randomnumber314]

How would Adwords work if I change the URL? ie, when I buy the domain? Any other suggestions other than Adwords?

This is a bit of a "drive-by" comment, but a cursory reading of this thread makes me thing you're pretending to be in business. If you were actually serious about selling this stuff you would take a few samples to every.single.store in where you live and ask them to buy some and see if they sell. You would also spend time explaining why your product is worth $79, when I can buy them for $12.99 from a gas-station without your logo. You might also spend some time writing your own warranty, and not copy-pasting your most popular competitor's warranty and replacing their name with yours.

Finally, remove links to your stuff from this thread: there are literally thousands of people reading this forum who will copy you verbatim if you make any sales.

 

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[Vigilante]

Did you read the forum rules?

Booted him, and sent some rep speed to you. Too bad, too... because his spammed link site looked good actually. If people come here to spam, I don't care what it is they are serving up. The forum offers ad space, and this guy could have bought some but he chose the low road. He was probably just hoping for a few clicks before his inevitable departure.

Anyway... back to the subject.

 

[GuestUser202]

You go, man! Glad to read so much enthusiasm. I also lose sleep everytime I think I find something virtually profitable and have to wait for the suppliers to answer. It almost feels like anyone's gonna realize about it in a few hours time and start selling it!

I'll be checking this thread regularly. Good luck!

RIGHT!!!!!!! And thanks for the encouragement!!

 

[albertut77]

It's good to see not only your enthusiasm, but that you had the good sense to abandon a business that was not going to achieve what you want. Too many people are tempted to just hang on, hoping it will get better. That applies not only to start ups, but to established businesses that are going nowhere.

You mentioned Alibaba as the place you are looking for suppliers and I understand why. After all everyone says Alibaba is the place to go. All except me and a handful of other import specialists that is. (Oh, plus hundreds of people who have taken my advice on this subject including many Fastlaners.)

Now that you are getting started on what could be an extremely profitable enterprise that is scalable, I would hate to see you get stuck with buying from traders or wholesalers pretending to be manufacturers, which is the case with a high proportion of the suppliers on Alibaba.

May I suggest you have a look at my AMA thread and see what I have to say on the subject. One of my book users posted this on another forum: "I have contacted some manufacturers already (from links he supplies) and I am just shocked at the low prices they offer for products I am researching. Forget Alibaba, Global Resource, whatever. The Ebook shows you where to find manufacturers, how to verify their credibility etc."

It is worth remembering that profit begins with buying. If you buy from a trader or wholesaler you are immediately losing a big slice of the potential profit.

Thanks for the info, Walter. As I am just starting and I'm planning on moving to a far, far away country in the following 6-10 months, I didn't plan on digging in too much into this before settling down in my new place. But hey, the more I learn now the better for the future.

I've started reading the book and it got me pretty hooked. However, I'm reading too many books at a time and am quite busy as well with building my own small importing business and having a full time job (I know, I know, I have to start managing my time better. I also have a book about that, haha), so I haven't gotten to this point yet. Could you explain a bit how to get to the manufacturer when you're dealing with a trader or wholesaler? I mean, I simply don't know where to start looking, how to find them.

Also, when you find the manufacturers themselves, how do you arrange the shipping? Do they deal with this as easily as these traders/wholesalers do, or should I need to have a guy do this for me?

I'm assuming this is very much profitable for high volumes of sales, but what about low volumes of middle-priced products, such as ~$70 (selling price) products in orders of x100~x200?

I may have found a very promising product that I could even brand, and I'm going to try it out buying some samples through the guy I've found in DHgate, who is probably a trader. If it works, though, getting this product straight from the manufacturer with lower prices would be an interesting increase in my benefits, which are already pretty high.

Any tips will be much appreciated. Cheers!

 

[Polarbeans]

If you are going to sell on Amazon, this guy has a lot of advice: http://freedomfastlane.com/category/podcasts/

Do a search for Ryan Moran and Chris Guthrie, they both run 5-6 figure businesses on amazon. (they sell courses too though) but Ryan Moran is solid, dont know so much about Guthrie though.

 

[GuestUser202]

It's good to see not only your enthusiasm, but that you had the good sense to abandon a business that was not going to achieve what you want. Too many people are tempted to just hang on, hoping it will get better. That applies not only to start ups, but to established businesses that are going nowhere.

You mentioned Alibaba as the place you are looking for suppliers and I understand why. After all everyone says Alibaba is the place to go. All except me and a handful of other import specialists that is. (Oh, plus hundreds of people who have taken my advice on this subject including many Fastlaners.)

Now that you are getting started on what could be an extremely profitable enterprise that is scalable, I would hate to see you get stuck with buying from traders or wholesalers pretending to be manufacturers, which is the case with a high proportion of the suppliers on Alibaba.

May I suggest you have a look at my AMA thread and see what I have to say on the subject. One of my book users posted this on another forum: "I have contacted some manufacturers already (from links he supplies) and I am just shocked at the low prices they offer for products I am researching. Forget Alibaba, Global Resource, whatever. The Ebook shows you where to find manufacturers, how to verify their credibility etc."

It is worth remembering that profit begins with buying. If you buy from a trader or wholesaler you are immediately losing a big slice of the potential profit.

Thanks, Walter for the feedback and advise! I will SURELY locate your AMA thread and read through it!

Dealing with alibaba is NOT being kind to me at this point. Don't get me wrong, the suppliers are very friendly and (mostly) very responsive, but so far, no luck finding a supplier willing to send me samples of products in the material I want. I see no point in testing something I am not going to sell. Sure, they'll cater to me and make the product with the desired material IF I buy 300-500 at a time. And sure, down the line I will do this, but there is no way I'm going to order 500 immediately, NOR buy a sample order in a material I have no intensions of selling. The material is a key selling point.

I checked DHGate and searched Google for wholesale (my product) and their wholesale price is what my RETAIL price will be!! I KNOW I'm on to something now!! So DEFINITELY finding alternative suppliers is becoming more and more priority.

I also have to say I am having a hard time focusing on my Just Over Broke (J.O.B)...I seem to be on this forum or answering emails from suppliers or researching products. I'm at the point now where I don't care if they fire me. I'll take my slowlane 401k, pay 6 months rent, live off unemployment and build my business. Obviously, that is worst case scenario (even thought it sound SOOOOO freaking good).

 

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[GuestUser202]

I don't expect to get "insta rich". I really don't, not financially anyway. Time and control are more important to me.

The problem with ordering samples from other sources is price. For example, aliexpress the product is $30-45 each and on alibaba, the product is $10-15 with shipping. So for an order of 10, aliexpress is $300-450, while on alibaba, it's around $140. I am also reading your AMA as we speak so now I am concerned about shipping...if I am being quoted complete shipping from warehouse to my house.

I completely understand the need to take risks, and I am not afraid to do so (and getting better at it). But buying my product at the cost I would sell them for seems way too risky. With a much higher margin, I can lower the prices to next to nothing if I have to in order to move my product.

 

[Brentnal]

I can feel your excitement through my screen

 

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[Brentnal]

GOSH I WANT THIS BAD!!! And even more so that my product affects me personally!!

hahahaha awsome man take lots of action, i'll see you in a Ferrari italia 458 within 5 years

 

[GuestUser202]

hahahaha awsome man take lots of action, i'll see you in a Ferrari italia 458 within 5 years

Haha! Maybe 6-7 years...girlfriend/potential wife wants a Maserati.