How I find suppliers for my Ecommerce Stores

[biophase]

biophase,

I'm curious, and you don't need to answer, but I was wondering if you could throw a rough number out on how much you're making a month from your online sales.

Oh, and how many websites you're running to produce the result.

Thanks.

Whenever somebody asks a question like this I want to know why you are asking? Is it because if I told you it was $50k a month then you would take the advice more seriously? If I told you it was $500/mo would you then not believe the thread? Or is it because if I told you it was $50k a month, then you would look into starting an ecommerce store vs. if it was $500/mo? The amount I make a month really should not be relevant to how or if you choose to use the info in this thread.

Just curious...

To answer your question... I don't think I make nearly as much as I could make. But I modeled my business after the 4 hour work week when I started. I know I leave alot out on the table when it comes to optimizing and conversions, but I'm not after every penny out there. Remember that the amount you make per month doesn't mean much without the follow up question of "and how many hours a week do you work?"

I'm after the freedom of not working many hours, not the dollars.

 

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[AdamMaxum]

Curiosity mostly...I have the capability of creating sites that look as good as yours, and with your seo knowledge and all that I was just curious about the financial side of it all and if i should commit to the e-commerce model.

If you told me you were making 50K vs 500 that would weigh considerably in committing to the advice within this thread, not to say whether the advice you are giving is good or bad. I believe what I've read in this thread has been very beneficial, and I thank you for it.

I'm after the freedom of not working many hours as well. However, to reach that freedom I have to commit substantial time to whatever it is that can provide that for me. I can make relatively passive income on ebay right now, but I'm in search of committing my time towards "something" that can make big money, and still keep a level of passivity.

To counter what you ended with. I'm after the freedom of not working many hours, and the dollars.

 

[ArnyHandelman]

There are a lot of wholesalers who import and have good deals

Many people always email me and ask me how I pick my niche product and how I find dropshippers or suppliers. There’s no exact science in finding a niche products. Alot of it is trial and error. You may find a decent niche product that has little competition and then find out that the wholesalers will only sell to you for $440 and the product has a $500 retail price. That is not a good product.



It’s hard to explain how to find the product. Sometimes it’s just comes to you while you are surfing the web or shopping in a mall. Other times, you realize you need to buy something and find out that you can’t find many stores that carry it.


Once I find a niche that looks promising I do a google search on it and write down the contact information for all the manufacturers. There should not be too many manufacturers if you are truly looking at a niche product. Once I have the contact info, I shoot out an email like the one below:

Hello,
I am launching a new online store that will sell only WIDGETS. My store will carry about 30-35 total products from various brands of WIDGEST. I would like to carry your WIDGETS in my store.


If you are interested I can fax you my business license, EIN number, etc… I would like to know if you offer dropshipping and if not, what your wholesale order requirements are. I prefer to pay by credit card for my orders, but can purchase on PO’s and pay invoices also.


A little background about me, I create and run online retail niche stores for a living. I purposely target niches because I feel that I can instantly compete from day one and I can concentrate on providing great customer service, aggressive marketing for my products. This is much easier to do efficiently and effectively if I target a specific niche. My store will also all include a very active blog that will be updated frequently. The blog will run promotions, contests and product reviews. All of which will generate relevant, fresh content about your WIDGETS and your brand.


Please let me know if you have any questions, feel free to call me or reply to this email.


Thank you.
​

I usually get a few responses, maybe about 40%. If the niche has 10 manufacturers, 4 or 10 may be enough to open a store. I usually send a follow-up email a few days later. This usually gets me a few more responses. So if I get enough manufacturers to field a store of 30-50 products, I feel that I can move forward to the next step.


The next step is to evaluate the margins. In most of the responses, the manufacturers include their wholesale price list. I go through and calculate profit margins and wholesale requirements. They also usually tell me if they do or don’t dropship.


If they dropship great! If not, you have to look at their minimums. As long as their minimums are small like $200 order total or 6 total products, I feel that I can deal with it. Let’s say I’m selling a $100 product and the wholesale price is $50 and I only need to order a $200 minimum. I will wait till someone orders 1 and then I’ll order 4 for $200. I sell one for $100 and have 3 in stock. This capital outlay isn’t that bad.


Based on all this data, I decide if I can profitably create a store.


I am moving to a stock and ship type of system now because I feel that I can afford to stock products now. As my ebizes grow and I continually add more, I can sell the same stock in all my stores which gives me a better chance of not getting stuck with stuff. Worst case scenario with stock is that you offload it on ebay at cost.


Questions? Ask away.

I have checked into this. I feel that a lot of the time, good products for online selling are the kinds of things sold by dollar stores. The wholesalers who sell to dollar stores usually have an association, or a few trade shows per year. They also have an online directory of exhibitors at the tradeshow. you get their names, and their websites. Then you register at their websites by giving your business tax number to show you're real, and not a consumer. Check through their products, and make note of items of interest, their wholesale price, and minimum order. Then check those out online to see what they are being sold for and by whom. You'll soon discover products on which there's a good markup, and a that seems like a decent product to carry. But before ordering, go into a dollar store, buy a few of them retail, and then sell it online. If they move, you've got a winner. Then you can order a case, or whatever the minimum is, and start selling.

 

[biophase]

If you told me you were making 50K vs 500 that would weigh considerably in committing to the advice within this thread, not to say whether the advice you are giving is good or bad. I believe what I've read in this thread has been very beneficial, and I thank you for it.

Just look at CSN stores, they have annual sales of over $300million. Hayneedle has over $200million in revenue. I'd say that niche stores making $100k a year are very plentiful and common and there's no reason you can't have 10 of them and make $1m a year.

 

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[kconnors@tpna]

Interspire

Hey Kenric,
I've been looking at Interspire's product and it seems perfect for the type of store I want to launch. I'm assuming you bought the licensed version since you told me at lunch that the software was $300. Why did you decide to go with the licensed version as opposed to the monthly hosted version? I understand that there are advantages to both, and I know hosting alone usually runs about ten bucks a month. Was it just more cost effective to do it this way? Any conflicts with the hosting/software relationship?

 

[kconnors@tpna]

Hey Kenric,
The other question I had for you is whether or not your wholesalers required that you pay for their wholesale price list. I've read this is the case with certain wholesalers and it seems a little shady to me. Your thoughts?

 

[LightHouse]

Hey Kenric,
I've been looking at Interspire's product and it seems perfect for the type of store I want to launch. I'm assuming you bought the licensed version since you told me at lunch that the software was $300. Why did you decide to go with the licensed version as opposed to the monthly hosted version? I understand that there are advantages to both, and I know hosting alone usually runs about ten bucks a month. Was it just more cost effective to do it this way? Any conflicts with the hosting/software relationship?

Interspire is great but the company has shifted from the self hosted version of interspire to almost focusing completely on BigCommerce which just started out as a hosted version of interspire shopping cart, but now is a continued development version of its own.

If you are not planning on needing to hack and modify your store all up, bigcommerce is probably the way to go if it works for you.

 

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[mavwrx]

i've been using pinnacle cart. it's working out well for me.

 

[keza]

"Have you ever looked at worldwidebrands.com? I'm thinking about giving up the cash so i can try it out."

Hi Savvacon, did you try worldwidebrands.com ? I would like to try them too, so I need your advises.

 

[Jill]

I always enjoy re-reading this thread! So many good nuggets. Fun also to see how the things that jump out to me are different every time, depending on where I "am" at the time.

Anyway, if there's another thread out there that discusses this in more detail that would be better, please point me there. But I'm trying to determine which eCommerce platform to use for a store. It is currently on Magento. But anytime I want something changed, I have to hire a developer to do it for me. BUT, I think I remember seeing somewhere that I can run a number of different stores from one instance of the software, by just partitioning the inventory into different stores. Is this true? Or did I make that up?

Will BigCommerce allow this? Any others? Or should I just suck it up and load a different store for every site I run? I just cringe at the thot of paying $30-50/mo x 20 stores before I even know whether they will be profitable. Looking for feedback / ideas.

Thx.

 

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[biophase]

BUT, I think I remember seeing somewhere that I can run a number of different stores from one instance of the software, by just partitioning the inventory into different stores. Is this true? Or did I make that up?

Will BigCommerce allow this? Any others? Or should I just suck it up and load a different store for every site I run? I just cringe at the thot of paying $30-50/mo x 20 stores before I even know whether they will be profitable. Looking for feedback / ideas.

Thx.

You cannot do this in Bigcommerce, they all have separate databases.

My question is, why do you want to have 20 stores right off the bat? Seems like alot to start with. Each store will cost $25/mo on BC. That's only $500/mo which really isn't much if say 25% of your stores are successful. If you have 5 stores doing well, you can easily cover the $500/mo. Then just dump the ones that aren't performing.

 

[Jill]

I wouldn't have all 20 immediately. But even so, it just seems more efficient to use one instance to store all my inventory, especially since it's free. But as i said, it may cost more in the long run since I'm not a developer and don't know how to customize anything in the back end. Is Big Commerce easier in that way? If not, then what are the advantages?

 

[biophase]

I wouldn't have all 20 immediately. But even so, it just seems more efficient to use one instance to store all my inventory, especially since it's free. But as i said, it may cost more in the long run since I'm not a developer and don't know how to customize anything in the back end. Is Big Commerce easier in that way? If not, then what are the advantages?

It would be nice to have all 20 stores come back to a single database. However, the downside is that each product on each store is basically the same with the same photos and same descriptions. BC has a very easy backend to work with. If you want to go the multiple stores like you said, Magento and a few others can do that, I have wanted to go that route, but separate stores ended up easier for me to setup.

BTW, it's interesting that Hayneedle and Wayfair all went from a ton of little stores to one big store.

 

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[Jill]

Yeah, it IS interesting.

I guess I just need to bite the bullet and do the BC then, because I do like to tinker with the site myself a little. And let's face it, I waste $500 a WEEK on stupid stuff. So I guess I can swing it! ;-)

Thx for the prompt responses.

 

[mavwrx]

I always enjoy re-reading this thread! So many good nuggets. Fun also to see how the things that jump out to me are different every time, depending on where I "am" at the time.

Anyway, if there's another thread out there that discusses this in more detail that would be better, please point me there. But I'm trying to determine which eCommerce platform to use for a store. It is currently on Magento. But anytime I want something changed, I have to hire a developer to do it for me. BUT, I think I remember seeing somewhere that I can run a number of different stores from one instance of the software, by just partitioning the inventory into different stores. Is this true? Or did I make that up?

Will BigCommerce allow this? Any others? Or should I just suck it up and load a different store for every site I run? I just cringe at the thot of paying $30-50/mo x 20 stores before I even know whether they will be profitable. Looking for feedback / ideas.

Thx.

do you have a link to your current store?

 

[XOthermic]

I wish i read this thread a While back. Good stuff. I am currently manufacturing my own product and will be selling it wholesale and retail. However I am green on pricing and will probably be making a thread about tiered pricing, wholesale pricing, and other stuff along those lines.

 

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[PatrickP]

I wish i read this thread a While back. Good stuff. I am currently manufacturing my own product and will be selling it wholesale and retail. However I am green on pricing and will probably be making a thread about tiered pricing, wholesale pricing, and other stuff along those lines.

You may find this thread interesting.

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/ge...p-your-product-pricing-long-term-profits.html

 

[SilverbackMP]

Linky no worky but I found it in your blog with no problem. Very awesome and inspiring story also. Thanks for the public service!!!!

 

[Brentnal]

there is this guy on youtube called kinghuman he is bald and has sunglasses he tells many ways to make money online go look it up

 

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[Twiki]

there is this guy on youtube called kinghuman he is bald and has sunglasses he tells many ways to make money online go look it up

I don't know why but this comment made me crack up. It sounds like you're describing a human from the future, because we know highly evolved people in the future will be bald, wear HD Blu-Blockers (no more ozone layer), and Starfleet outfits.

Anyway, I noted some mentions of WorldWide Brands here. I joined them a few years ago and used them to find suppliers for a couple of drop-shipping projects. The first one was OK, but turned out to be not profitable enough to be worth my time. The 2nd was a terrible terrible experience that really turned me off dropshipping.

The 2nd supplier I worked with turned out to be such a rip-off that I complained to WWB --- only because WWB had them featured as a "featured supplier" with videos on their website, presenting them as a shining example of their trusted suppliers. To their credit, WWB looked into it, but they just took the supplier at their word that everything was OK... total B.S.

I mention this because I foolishly got lulled into complacency by the fairly good reputation of WWB, and the admittedly neato WWB "wizard" that is meant to help gauge market demand and competition strength etc... all in nice color-coded results delivered on a plate. I wish I had run across this Forum earlier, with the info provided by the people here who are the real deal, I think it would have help me avoid a lot of the nonsense, and then I wouldn't have this aversion to the idea of dropshipping, which I know many people have success with if they do it right.

 

[Brentnal]

Thank you the purpose of this message was to just let people see his vids and to react back at this forum to talk about if the information he gives is right because many people watch his vids and they try to make money on how he says you need to do it but if everybody does it you can't make any money correct me if im wrong.

 

[21elnegocio]

With niches I think the main limitation is your niche. There is only so much traffic you can squeeze from it. If you are selling tennis rackets only, your customer base is very small. In a perfect world, your store is ranked #1 on all search engines for any tennis racket based search. Let's just say its searched for 50,000 times a month and you get all 50,000 clicks. At this point your site is pretty much at its max potential, as is.

You can certainly SEO for terms like tennis balls, tennis courts, but do you really want this traffic?

To expand you sell decide to sell tennis balls or tennis shoes. Once you do that, a whole new niche and set of keywords develops and you start from square one again.

Blogs should be started from day one on an ecommerce store. You need your store to be dynamic and your products and their descriptions don't change. Therefore, you need a blog to keep up with content. For example, your blog can cover a major tennis tournament by writing your opinion of the players, the matches, etc... Trust me, you will get a ton of visitors searching for that tourney coverage. They will visit your blog and hopefully click into your store.

I don't use social networking at all. I guess I don't feel that they are buyers. People who join a facebook group about tennis rackets aren't really looking to buy a tennis racket IMO. My stores have myspace friends and FB friends, but I don't do much for it.

One important thing is to get the myspace, facebook and twitter URLs of your stores. You don't want someone else getting them.

I've started using youtube to market. I make little videos and post them under my store youtube accounts. The videos are informational about my products. If you did a video of you holding a new racket, showing all angles, details and explaining features, people interested in purchasing that racket will watch it. I add the videos to my blog also.

My goal is to spend no money on advertising in the future. A few of my stores have no marketing expenses. On my new store with the yoga bags, I'm going to try something new. I'm going to spend $0 on adwords or PPC and spend it all on SEO. I think I can rank high on the front page within 2 months.

Great information and interesting stuff. I do agree people are all about vision, I do the same when I want to buy something and want to see how it looks like or how it works. I use youtube for that, lots of helpful reviews on there, just like cnet reviews, real helpful. How did the yoga bag ecommerce store come out ? Did you get a good ranking on it ?

 

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[raynoldcj]

I'm glad I found this thread. Thanks a lot.

 

[royalasg]

Thanks for sharing this is really very informative, I am going to lauch an ecommerce site and this will help me lot.

 

[pisco]

Thx for your awesome replies. After finding a partner, whos product you are selling. What comes next? How do you market your ecommerce site? What are the actual steps?

I appreciate your answer!

 

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[jon.a]

Thx for your awesome replies. After finding a partner, whos product you are selling. What comes next? How do you market your ecommerce site? What are the actual steps?

I appreciate your answer!

Really? You're doing this?
There is another thread by bio where he goes through everything step by step.
Your job is now to find it.

 

[pisco]

Really? You're doing this?
There is another thread by bio where he goes through everything step by step.
Your job is now to find it.

I guess you mean that:

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/ask-me-about-ecommerce.38312

right?

 

[jon.a]

I guess you mean that:

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/ask-me-about-ecommerce.38312

right?

close, but nope.
Read that one too.

 

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[jon.a]

I guess you mean that:

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/ask-me-about-ecommerce.38312

right?

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/co...s-how-to-create-something-from-nothing.47966/

 

[pisco]

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/co...s-how-to-create-something-from-nothing.47966/

Thx for that thread! However, cannot read it cause I am no fastlane INSIDERS yet ;(