Finding suppliers from another country

[SuccessInMind]

*DISCLAIMER* Forgive me for being very secretive and not explicitly stating certain things in this post. I just don't want anyone taking my idea!

So my cousin just got back from a certain country. I told him I was planning on buying a certain item online for about $200 and he tells me that there were a lot of vendors in the country he just came back from where they sell them for about $55. I was really surprised. The first thing I thought was that the price is cheap because the items are not good quality. So I decided to do some research and I got in touch with a person who lives there who confirmed for me that the items ARE in fact as cheap as my cousin told me and they are of VERY good quality.

Here's my dilemma. The items are mostly handcrafted and I can't find any suppliers from that country online. What should I do?

 

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[biophase]

*DISCLAIMER* Forgive me for being very secretive and not explicitly stating certain things in this post. I just don't want anyone taking my idea!

So my cousin just got back from a certain country. I told him I was planning on buying a certain item online for about $200 and he tells me that there were a lot of vendors in the country he just came back from where they sell them for about $55. I was really surprised. The first thing I thought was that the price is cheap because the items are not good quality. So I decided to do some research and I got in touch with a person who lives there who confirmed for me that the items ARE in fact as cheap as my cousin told me and they are of VERY good quality.

Here's my dilemma. The items are mostly handcrafted and I can't find any suppliers from that country online. What should I do?

Call them? You said you know someone who lives there and can go buy them?

First question is, how much is shipping? Handcrafted items can be delicate and hard to transport.

 

[Chitown]

I'm from the Frank Lucas school -- I'd be on the next thing smokin'.

 

[SuccessInMind]

Hi Biophase,

I got in touch with the person I talked to through another online forum. I don't know this person personally so asking them to buy for me is out of the question. Also, I asked her if she could give me a contact over there, but she hasn't responded and that was two weeks ago.

I don't know how much shipping is, do you happen to know where I can find that information? Apologies if that sounds like a dumb question, I'm very new to ALL of this :fryingpan:

 

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[SuccessInMind]

Chitown,

Yeah that was what I was thinking of doing exactly that, but I'm in school right now so I'm trying to find another way of going about this problem. If going there is the only way I can find suppliers then so be it. In American Gangster, Frank Lucas had a friend there who was able to give him a connection, but I have no connections in this country whatsoever. So my next question would be how do I do business there once I arrive?

 

[Chitown]

Success,

Check out this blog:The Global Small Business Blog

She runs a fantastic site, full of great information and articles. Also, check out these sites:

Import Administration

International Trade Update newsletter

Platinum Key Service

Market Access and Compliance

China Business Information Center

This final site is one that I've checked out over the years. I haven't used any of his services but he seems to know his stuff.

Coble International Company Information About ImportExportHelp.com

I hope this helps. Much Success, Success.;-)

 

[Chitown]

Success,

Unfortunately, the links I cut and pasted didn't highlight properly. Here they are, again.

Import Administration

International Trade Update newsletter

Platinum Key Service

Market Access and Compliance

China Business Information Center

Google "commerce dept" and hit the "trade opportunities" link. You'll find the above links there.

Anthony:smx4:

 

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[SuccessInMind]

Thanks for the links. I'm sure they'll point me in the right direction. However, some of the links aren't working, can you post them again? or maybe just put the URL. Thanks.

 

[Chitown]

Success,

I didn't have my thinking cap on last night. Here you go:

Department of Commerce - Trade Opportunities

 

[Smooth]

any on alibaba?

 

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[SuccessInMind]

Hey Smooth,

Thanks for taking the time to reply to my post. Yeah I searched on alibaba already and there was only one company and they are just a middleman for another company so the prices of their product are a lot more expensive and the quality is a lot lower too.

Looks like I'll just have to go visit the country myself, I see no other way right now.

 

[biophase]

Ask the person online what store they saw it in. Are you really going to spend a few thousand dollars to fly there already? You can make your first order on alibaba for that much money.

 

[SuccessInMind]

Good point biophase.

I could make my first order on alibaba but the way they make them is low-quality and they're a lot more expensive. Also considering the price that competitors are selling them, I would only be getting a 15% return (assuming I sell them all). My original plan was to use my savings to go to this country and stay there for about 6 months and try to work out deals with the vendors there. Being an experienced business man in e-commerce, would you advise against this?

 

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[MrPink]

I don't mean to interrupt, but I wouldn't spend my savings on this idea (yet).

I would get the person that confirmed your cousins price on these items to send you 10 (or whatever number makes since based on shipping, your finances, etc).

I would set up an ecommerce site for 3 months and see if you can sell them all. The site won't have much search engine juice so you will have to be creative.

This could help you in a number of ways:
1) Find out if you like ecommerce
2) Find out if people are buying this item
3) Perhaps learn about competitors that you may have missed

If the items are a lot to ship you could set up a store with the items in it and have the checkout page say thanks for shopping this item is out of stock. I have found having a bit of skin in the game like 10 of your product sitting in your house can server as a good motivator.

 

[hakrjak]

Ask the person online what store they saw it in. Are you really going to spend a few thousand dollars to fly there already? You can make your first order on alibaba for that much money.

Have you used Alibaba at all? I was on there today looking at Ipad's, and there are like 20 sellers overseas offering new IPAD 3G's for $100-250.... I know these will sell for $800+.... Ummmm, scammers anyone? I just don't believe for a second they can provide these products.... And apparently the only form of payment they will accept is Western Union?! Yeh right....

If I could find a real source for Ipad 3G's for this price, I would order 5,000 of them tomorrow

Cheers,

- Hakrjak

 

[Smooth]

What about trying to find someone on linkedin? Don't post the question because you don't want someone to reveal a great source to everyone, but try to find a specific person and send them a message -- not exactly sure how to find someone you are looking for though...

 

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[SuccessInMind]

I would get the person that confirmed your cousins price on these items to send you 10 (or whatever number makes since based on shipping, your finances, etc).

The person that confirmed my cousin's price hasn't replied to several of my e-mails in weeks so I don't think I can depend on this person to help me out. But I'm confident that if I search hard enough, I can find someone else who lives in this country to do this for me.

I would set up an ecommerce site for 3 months and see if you can sell them all. The site won't have much search engine juice so you will have to be creative.

Okay, that sounds good. How much do think it would cost me to set up an e-commerce site and to "be creative" with marketing these products? The reason I ask is because money is tight right now (which is why I'm saving up). Another alternative I've been thinking is maybe I can just sell them on eBay.

Have you used Alibaba at all?

Yeah I've looked and while I did find a couple companies, their prices are way too high and the quality is average.

If I could find a real source for Ipad 3G's for this price, I would order 5,000 of them tomorrow

I DID find a real source for iPads selling at $100, why do you think I started this thread? Just kidding

What about trying to find someone on linkedin? Don't post the question because you don't want someone to reveal a great source to everyone, but try to find a specific person and send them a message -- not exactly sure how to find someone you are looking for though...

Never thought of that, I'll look into it. Thanks Smooth!

Thanks also to everyone that has replied to my thread so far, like I said I'm very new to this and your replies are all pointing me in the right direction. I appreciate any and all input!
fftopic::yourock:

 

[biophase]

I told him I was planning on buying a certain item online for about $200 and he tells me that there were a lot of vendors in the country he just came back from where they sell them for about $55...

...I would only be getting a 15% return (assuming I sell them all).

So you are saying that the people on alibaba are selling them for $175???

and the vendors in the country are selling them for $55??

 

[SuccessInMind]

So you are saying that the people on alibaba are selling them for $175???

and the vendors in the country are selling them for $55??

EXACTLY! The companies on alibaba are selling in the $150-$170 range (but from what I can see the ones on the higher end are the ones that are of good quality) but these vendors are selling high-quality ones in the $55-$65 range! Crazy right? That's why I want to hop on this opportunity as soon as I can, before anyone else catches on (hence the secrecy).

 

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[Dee]

Good point biophase.

I could make my first order on alibaba but the way they make them is low-quality and they're a lot more expensive. Also considering the price that competitors are selling them, I would only be getting a 15% return (assuming I sell them all). My original plan was to use my savings to go to this country and stay there for about 6 months and try to work out deals with the vendors there. Being an experienced business man in e-commerce, would you advise against this?

There was an interesting show on TV in the UK regarding this a few years ago. It was called 'brits get rich in china' and basically followed 3 or 4 people, who were from the UK, but went to China to do business. From what i remember, one set up a factory over there to produce cushions to sell in his store back home, another to get his hands on household appliances so that he could sell back home etc etc. Was interesting viewing as it wasn't all smooth sailing, as you saw these people arrive in the country, then having to deal with the local customs and business practises etc etc. Check it out, should be on youtube

 

[SuccessInMind]

There was an interesting show on TV in the UK regarding this a few years ago. It was called 'brits get rich in china' and basically followed 3 or 4 people, who were from the UK, but went to China to do business. From what i remember, one set up a factory over there to produce cushions to sell in his store back home, another to get his hands on household appliances so that he could sell back home etc etc. Was interesting viewing as it wasn't all smooth sailing, as you saw these people arrive in the country, then having to deal with the local customs and business practises etc etc. Check it out, should be on youtube

Wow, really? In that case, I will definitely find some time today to watch it, I think I can learn a lot from these Brits. Thanks Dee, rep speed!

 

[JHosche]

A year or so ago I was looking into the whole import/export game and a few things to think about...there really are a lot of components to importing something into the US. You've got the original seller, the person who will handle exporting the item, the shipper, the person who will handle importing it once it gets to the US, and then it gets to you. It's entirely possible for an item that starts at $55 to end up at $200 once it's in the US.

I'd recommend checking out the following books if you really want to get into the process of importing things into the US for resale:

[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica][SIZE=-1]How Small Business Trades Worldwide: Your Guide to Starting or Expanding a Small Business International Trade Company Now[/SIZE][/FONT]
by John Spiers

Importing, Exporting, and Beyond
by Lawrence Tuller

Both those books were HIGHLY recommended to me. The second book was a little more dry but gets more into the technical/legal aspects of it (if I recall correctly) but the first book was a pretty good read.

 

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[biophase]

EXACTLY! The companies on alibaba are selling in the $150-$170 range (but from what I can see the ones on the higher end are the ones that are of good quality) but these vendors are selling high-quality ones in the $55-$65 range! Crazy right? That's why I want to hop on this opportunity as soon as I can, before anyone else catches on (hence the secrecy).

Sounds like a better business would be to buy them there and import them into the US at $150 rather than retailing them.

 

[SuccessInMind]

Thanks JHosche, I'll go read those books and learn more about importing and exporting because my plan is to undercut the competition, not sell at the same price as them.

Thanks biophase, I'll consider that as a possible alternative plan!

 

[SuccessInMind]

Question for anyone and everyone:

What if I find a vendor from that country who would dropship for me? Would that reduce the price of bringing in the items into the US?

 

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[JHosche]

A lot of that could depend on US import laws/taxes for the particular item, how many you're ordering, how big they are, what country they're coming from, etc etc etc. Also I'd look into how you're going to sell said merchandise so that you're not sitting around with unsold overhead.

It's one thing when you're ordering for personal use...it's another when you're ordering with the intent to resell. You fall under different tax rules if you're intending to resell the stuff.

 

[SuccessInMind]

From what I understand, and please correct me if I am wrong, but if I find a vendor to dropship the items to my customers for me then that should reduce the price since I'm not buying them myself in order to resell them. So the only costs that should go with the items are tax and shipping costs...right?

 

[SuccessInMind]

Okay so I did some more research. Assuming I get some vendors to dropship for me, here's what I'm seeing so far in terms of how much it will cost to get the product from there to the US:

Cost of Item: $66
Shipping costs (using postal service): $55
Total: About $121
My price: $185 (pretty reasonable, most people sell it between $200-$215)
Profit: About $64 per item


However postal service takes about 2-6 weeks. If a potential customer wants it within a week then shipping goes up to $83.

Cost of Item: $66
Shipping costs (using DHL shipping service): $83
Total Cost: About $149
My price: $185, or maybe I'll bump it to $200 for the DHL shipments
Profit: $35-$50 per item


To the veterans: Do these numbers sound right? Any and all input is appreciated and I thank everyone who has helped me out so far!

-SuccessInMind

 

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[biophase]

It would probably be better for you to ship yourself a box of them and then ship them out from your house. What's the cost to ship 10 or 12 to the US?

 

[Topaz]

Success,

Check out this blog:The Global Small Business Blog

She runs a fantastic site, full of great information and articles. Also, check out these sites:

Import Administration

International Trade Update newsletter

Platinum Key Service

Market Access and Compliance

China Business Information Center

This final site is one that I've checked out over the years. I haven't used any of his services but he seems to know his stuff.

Coble International Company Information About ImportExportHelp.com

I hope this helps. Much Success, Success.;-)

WOW I know how Mr. Coble is, yeah, I wish I had gotten his course when the opportunity was available. He's retired now and no longer offer his courses/training anymore. I've heard nothing but great things and emailed him a few times prior to his decision to retire for it all. However, he still has the website full of information.