Fnding a Distributor for my produts.

[edpaiz]

Hello dear fastlaners, we just created a new company called www.mayastuff.com in which we create technology cases with mayan fabric, we basically grabbed handwoven mayan fabric and created cases for cellphones and ipads. We want to get ou product mainstream and trying to contact distributors everywhere i must have sent out more than 500 emails to dsitribtion companies but i cant seem to ge my foot on the door. The product is highly unique very olorful and nothing like the product mix of the actual store offerings. Our margins are industry standard but i cant seem to get my foot on the door, in Guatemala our country we are already in stores but that is because we know the owners or someone that knows them but abroad we really want to work with distributors, can anybody help me out with any contacts, feedbback insights? we will send a phone case to thank you!!!

 

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[Ikke]

i can't speak for the industry you're in. But I myself create, manufacturer and retail my own products. I have had 2 foreign (over seas actually) retailers contacting me asking if they could sell my products. I know that the 2nd retailer came to know my product because he attended the national competition where quite a few people were using my products. I guess it's just a case of making products that sell themselves.

Other than that that utterly useless advice I think I have not much useful to say... Have you asked the people you emailed why they don't want your product?

 

[edpaiz]

The problem is not that they don't want the product, the problem is that i don't get a response at all i am contacting them through their info emails but i am not getting through to the correct buyers so i am not receiving any feedback whatsoever, of course if they would tell me why they wouldn't buy from me i would use such feedback but i am not getting any feedback whatsoever. I know its difficult and that there is no secret formula but i was actually hoping if anyone in this forum knew anyone in the distribution of phonce accessories industry could give me a hand at least to get in the door.

 

[rocksolid]

Email is not enough. Have you tried making some calls?

 

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[ableme]

Out of 500 emails you get zero response? Why don't you post a sample of the email you are sending them here so we can take a look at it?

Also, it could be your email is getting put into their spam folders? Try emailing friends to see if it could be a problem with your email address?

 

[edpaiz]

I havent tried calling since i dont know who to ask for!! what should i just tell the receptionist that i need to talk to the buyer? or tech accesories representative? i have been receiving some responses but mostly from smaller companies the big ones are quite difficult, any further suggestions? we already closed a deal ad will be in california as of next week but the process is long and difficult anyone that can hook me up with a tech accesories distributor? i would really really appreciate it...

 

[edpaiz]

Here is the email templeta i have been using let me know what you think and how can i improve it.

\THIS EMAIL IS INTENDED FOR YOUR ACCESSORIES DISTRIBUTION MANAGER OR DISTRIBUTION OF ACCESSORIES ACCOUNTS MANAGER

Hello my name is Eduardo Paiz I am contacting you in behalf of Maya Stuff.

The long time descendants of the Mayan culture still preserve a very ancient and complicated hand weaving technique, creating with it colorful designs and incomparable patterns, we combine this fabric with quality modern materials (pu, leather, microfiber etc…) and along with one of the best factories in the world we create ipad and phone cases among other tech accessories of the highest quality and not to mention originality (attached some pictures, let us know what you think!!)

The combination of this ancient technique with modern details and materials, results in a colorful, original and unique product.

We are already selling in the United States, Spain and Central America and are negotiating distribution to the United Arab Emirates, but we need more distributors to carry our products to achieve the massive market penetration our investors are requiring, and that is where I think you can come in. We have already set our pricing policies to work with distributors and give good margins to our company, distributors and the final retailers.

These accessories have been quite successful with the 27 to 50 year old range of women because they’re colors originality and handmade mayan history appeals to such market, our accessories blend perfectly with any product mix of cases since they are completely different and singular since we are the only manufacturers of this concept in the entire world.

Ley us know if you think you can carry this product and if it will be successful amongst your established customers so that we can continue to explore ways to collaborate and work together.

Best regards,




Lic. Eduardo José Paiz Cerezo
Marketing and distribution director

epaiz@mayastuff.com
Maya Stuff - Home

 

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[nope327]

we will send a phone case to thank you!!!

It seems your link for smart phones is broken or at least doesnt display any models. Bulletproof your website and I am sure you will have a little more luck while trying to land a deal.

 

[nope327]

I too am in the Phone case business, so I understand your pain. Here is what we found to help us out a bit (by no means are we "making it" yet though). So far, we have dipped a bit in to social media such as facebook. We run some competitions to all that like and share our pages. Also, by having a blog, you may be able to boost your keyword success on search engines (someone correct me if I am wrong on this).

We also are on Amazon so we can get reviews and potentially reach a huge market base.

As for calling, I understand the difficulty here. I usually call and try to reach a buyer department. My suggestion, look for smaller, mom and pop shops locally. Once you get a few of them, you will be able to track sales numbers each month. Then go the next step up. Find clothing stores, and accessory shops and include the fact that you are in X amount of stores and selling X amount per month. This is what stores want to hear. They want to know how and why you will make them money. We are in a tough area for sure, but once you can land a deal, you can make it big. Afterall, I want to say in 2010 there was over $500 million spent on cell phone cases alone (in the US I believe).

 

[jvl269]

Email is not really that effective. Response rate is less than 1% in my experience. Better try a different tac. Try calling or maybe visiting them or attending a business gathering where you can meet them. Product expos is one way to meet distributors. Hope this helps.

 

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[SideSwipe]

Hi Eduardo,

Best of luck with your business - you are in a very competitive market but with a unique product you can certainly succeed. Here are a couple pieces of advice based off what you have told us.

1. The e-mail you are sending is far too long for an initial reach out, and you are making what Gary Vaynerchuk describes as the "19 year old guy move" (going in for the score on the first date). It comes off as spam, I received e-mails like this from Chinese manufacturers all the time when I was importing performance products.. they get ignored easily because you're not giving them an opportunity to connect with you as a person, you're just making the business pitch right off the bat.

Instead, I would send a much shorter e-mail that is specific to the company. Something like:

Hi, I came across your website through {another site} and noticed that you carry iPhone and iPad accessories. My company produces unique, high quality mobile accessories designed with the spirit of our native Mayan culture. They are especially popular in the 27-50 female demographic. I have attached some example photos for you to get an idea of what we can create. If you'd like to speak further about our line, feel free to send me an e-mail or call at ###-###-####.

Oh, and ditch that first line about being intended for the buyer. Whoever receives it will know who they are supposed to send it to, if they find it worthy of forwarding.

2. If all you have are "info@" e-mails, start digging through linkedin to find people who work at the company. Connect with them, send them "inmail", do whatever it takes to get a direct contact.

3. Call the company and say "Hi, I have been speaking with someone in your purchasing department about (company name) picking up my product line, but embarrassingly I forget their name. Could you connect me to purchasing?" Usually the secretary doesn't know who's been talking to who. Lie your way in and then wow them with your product so they HAVE to carry it.


Hope that helps!

 

[Worldisyours]

OP, my god, an email..

Call, if not, send samples to them, if not, walk into their office, if not move to the next

 

[CPisHere]

Definitely change your e-mail, try phone, etc.

But beyond that, try taking a reverse approach. Find competitors, reach out to their retailers to see about selling direct and/or see what distributors they are using.

 

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[caezlar]

I think your email is too long, you should cut at least 80% of them.buyers get thousands of sales emails everyday, they have no time to read them one by one, you should show your unique feature in short words.

 

[Gale4rc]

Get in small places first and prove you can sell spaces, then hit the bigger guys with hard sales #'s


ALWAYS call, then get e-mail and address to send a sample to.

 

[hestati]

1. You need much, much better copy than that.

2. Try... Regular mail!

3. Your product is cool/unique. You probably don't even need a distributor. Internet can be your distributor. Can you pm me your email, we can discuss it, maybe I can help.

 

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[edpaiz]

I just would like to inform everyone that i finally landed a distributor in Spain, i had to visit them in person several times and at the end we reached a agreement in which i will give them some product in deposit for some time and they will push it to their customers. That was the safest way for them and i had the inventory sitting there i will keep you posted on how it works out. I am still in the lookout for more distributors, in case anyone has a friend, cousin e girlfriend int he technology distribution business.