Hello All,
I have been reading some of the threads and I feel so bad for many of you who have been searching so hard and had a difficult time finding real suppliers. When we first started in this business we encountered the same thing. Person after person claiming to have products they didn't have. Finally, we were so fed up with this cycle that we decided to use the common sense approach. If a someone is selling a brand new item for far less than retail it is only because of a few reasons:
- The Offer is not REAL!
- The Product for sale was STOLEN from the truck on the way to Wal-Mart!
- It is an "End of Life" model and you might be getting a good DEAL.
In most cases the offer is not real. The sad thing is that the person who is trying to sell it to you may not even know it! This happends because so many people are trying to sell other offers they receive. These people are called Brokers. When broker "John" collects your money and sends it off to the "supplier", he probably thinks he made a great deal. When he never gets the product to send to you, he realizes the money is gone and he is now responsible to send you, the customer, a refund!
While there are many reputable Full-Time brokers, there are many people trying to do it on the side to make extra money for their families.
In the beginning, brokers learn a lot of hard lessons. Many brokers will get out of the rat race and go back to the real world. The few that continue to fight to find the real suppliers and actually can make a business work, these people are the lucky ones.
Here are things to look for when considering new suppliers:
- Does the offer even seem possible?
- Did the person ask me for an application & resellers tax certificate? If not, have they added tax to the order?
- Does this person have an email signature with full contact information?
- Is it okay for me to pick up the product at the warehouse?
- Will they offer references on request?
- When you call the business does someone usually answer and are there several people to contact?
- Will they allow a sample order?
If you have answered
no to any of these questions then do more homework. Make sure you feel comfortable. Most wholesalers and distributors will accept a secure form of payment on the first order or for small orders. Remember, sellers are often victims of fraud too. We have experienced receiving fake cashier's checks for C.O.D. payments and customers have filed false charge-backs claiming they did not recieve their products on credit card purchases. We have to protect ourselves too.
I hope this information was helpful to you.