Home Business Product Supply--Understanding how to Find Your Own Wholesale Sources

Written by Strand Davis Monday, 09 May 2011 06:01

Those in the know would just about kill for the right wholesale drop ship eBay products suppliers. Discover reliable product sourcing for home business so that you can get the small business profits you deserve only possible with legitimate drop shippers and legitimate wholesalers. You owe it to yourself to be at the cutting edge of product sourcing information for home-based business. Read on, baby, read on . . .

Those in the know would just about kill for the right wholesale drop ship eBay products suppliers. Discover reliable product sourcing for home business so that you can get the small business profits you deserve only possible with legitimate drop shippers and legitimate wholesalers. You owe it to yourself to be at the cutting edge of product sourcing information for home-based business. Read on, baby, read on . . .

If you are just starting out, prepare yourself for a trip that will hand you the key to self-sufficiency finding your own reliable product suppliers. This article is not a plug for an online directory or another so-called definitive list of drop ship wholesalers. Although many of these products are very good, in the end you are left with your own capacity for solving problems, and I hope this article will help free you up from the problem of product sourcing.

Tip #1: Know What Selling Environment You Are In!

So, what exactly does that mean? Consider eBay. Even though you might think that this is a retail environment, in reality, it is wholesale venue. For a professional seller, that is one of the first things you must understand about eBay. If you are currently buying goods from a true wholesaler or from a drop shipper and trying to retail them on eBay, I understand your howls of frustration. The fact is, almost all mass market consumer goods found on eBay are already at or below wholesale prices. How can you hope to compete selling at retail prices? EBay Power Sellers understand the importance of identifying the right products and then buying in bulk lots where the prices will be lowest. They also understand that eBay is not retail as are many ecommerce sites. Products that sell very well on retail ecommerce sites may die on eBay.

Tip #2: Understanding Legitimate Wholesale from Fake Wholesale

Wholesale does not just mean reduced prices. A real wholesaler is a business with a very specific business license allowing purchase of goods from manufacturers for distribution to licensed retailers. A true wholesale business is required to have proof of your sales tax permit in order to sell from you. This is sometimes known as a resale certificate or seller's permit and is generally very easy to get from your state department of revenue. You should know that any business that does not require proof of a sales tax permit is not a wholesale business, at least not a true wholesaler. Sometimes you see the phrase, "wholesale to the public." This is a cute turn of phrase, but "wholesale to the public" is not true wholesale.

That does not mean that any business not requiring a sales tax permit is not legitimate. No, not at all. There are many businesses that sell deeply discounted goods but do not require a sales tax permit. What you need to know is that no matter how much they may refer to wholesale prices, unless they require your sales tax permit, they are retail companies hoping that you will think they are wholesalers. If you read their website carefully, at no time will they ever directly say that they are wholesalers. Also, you should know that a true wholesaler requires a special business license from the state in which in resides to be a wholesaler. This allows it to buy from manufacturers and sell to retailers without charging sales tax. A true wholesale business can set whatever wholesale price it likes. Market forces generally require a substantially reduced price. I just wanted to clear that up. Wholesale prices are really just whatever prices are charged by a true wholesale company.

Tip #3: Handing Over the Goods

Let's talk about finding your own wholesale distributors. Many people want to know if they really need to join an online wholesale directory membership in order to find suppliers. While some of these memberships are very good (I'm a member of two), it isn't necessary. Yes, some of these directories can lead you to product sourcing "paradise," but in order to be self sufficient, you need to know how to do this for yourself. We will help you get started, and in a moment you'll be finding your own supplier for eBay, ecommerce, flea markets, and for just about any other kind of selling situation.

This is just a sampling, but I believe you will find more product suppliers than you will know what to do with: (1) The Google Directory. Google "wholesale trade" and that will open the doors to many wholesaler. (2) The DMOZ directory. Search "wholesale" + the name of the product you want to sell. (3) The Thomas Register. This is available at your library, but you can also search at thomasnet.com. (4) Thomas Publishing at thomasglobla.com. (5) Legitimate Wholesale at legitimatewholesale.com. Last, try Proproductsourcing.com. Not a directory but a product supply resource for much helpful information.

With the leads above, you will find contact information for well over 1000 legitimate wholesalers and manufacturers to help solve product sourcing for eBay and home business. You will find even more information by following the bread crumbs in our resource box.

Tip #4: Trade Shows

Some of your best wholesale dropship leads will come from the contacts you develop by attending trade shows for those product lines of interest to you. How do you find trade shows? Locally, you will get this information from your Chamber of Commerce, local newspapers and possible even a local branch of the Small Business Administration. You can also do a search online by searching for, "trade show" or "trade shows" as your search terms. Also, be sure to add the name of your state of regional area to the search term. Here is resource to get you started: BAO Link at baolink.com.

Earlier in this article I mentioned online memberships. Many people starting out spend a great deal of time trying to figure out if they should sign up for one of these directories. Ultimately, this is a personal decision. I am a member of two such memberships that are very different but both quite good. One was free when I joined and the other had a one-time fee. Both were learning experiences. In hindsight, neither was necessary, but I have never regretted joining and have learned from both. If you decide to sign up with a membership, I suggest choosing one with an active member forum as the opportunity to network can be invaluable.

If you follow the tips above, there really is no reason why you should ever lack for product suppliers for you home business whether you choose to run an ecommerce site, do eBay, or sell goods at local flea markets and festivals. You can be on the leading edge of product supply if you take the time to do a bit of research.