You see I just had the delayed realization that my mother has a business, and this business is apparantly big enough in terms of asset volumn that they are able to import specialty arts and crafts supplies from multicraftsimport.com (spelling? might be best to google) which requires that purchases be made in 500$ bulk increments and roughly 10,000$ of purchases a year.
What is the advantage of this?
Looking at the price catalog when I was interesting in purchasing various art supplies like drawing pencils and paper and well, 8" tall mannequins (!! They arrived!! Had to order Six) I noticed that everything was absurdly cheap.
70 cents for example for the mannequin, the very same one I noticed sold for about 35$ in specialty drawing stores....
I mentioned this over at another forum and some people asked for links, I am foolishly going to assume that some people may or may not be interested in buying these things for at cost rather then the 900% markup.
So right now I'm asking for a list and prices for typical artist supplies and I'll take a look at the price difference to see if its viable, I might just be onto something here.
Posted by SoaPiNuReYe (Member # 9144) on :
Well, you also need someone to sell these things to. Being a salesman is tough, especially to a select demographic.
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
quote:I mentioned this over at another forum and some people asked for links, I am foolishly going to assume that some people may or may not be interested in buying these things for at cost rather then the 900% markup.
You may want to make sure that it is legal to resell these items.
Posted by Flying Fish (Member # 12032) on :
Take a look on EBay and see what such items are selling for. For example, the local art store may charge 35$ for the art mannequins, but there are a slew of them on Ebay for $9.99, shipping included.
Make sure you are comparing items of similar quality. Not to be a bigot, but often something made in China is not always identical to the same thing made in America, Germany, or Britain.
Make sure to account for shipping.
I'd like to see you work in a business. It can be a very instructive experience.
Posted by scifibum (Member # 7625) on :
quote:Originally posted by TomDavidson:
quote:I mentioned this over at another forum and some people asked for links, I am foolishly going to assume that some people may or may not be interested in buying these things for at cost rather then the 900% markup.
You may want to make sure that it is legal to resell these items.
Are you thinking the purchase contract perhaps forbids resale?
To anyone who would know: would such a restriction be enforceable? Seems like they could refuse to sell to you later on if you don't abide by their preferences, but otherwise, it would seem odd to me if there was a way to legally restrain someone from selling something they purchased. (except for controlled substances or items that require special licenses to legally possess in the first place)
Posted by Mucus (Member # 9735) on :
quote:Originally posted by Flying Fish: Make sure to account for shipping.
Import taxes too. Although, if you're operating a business you may be able to avoid them (while in some cases your customers can't) in which case that would be an advantage for you.
Posted by Flying Fish (Member # 12032) on :
I looked at their website. I think they are a typical wholesaler. They require that you have a business license. I think they assume you're going to be reselling it, because their typical client is a craft shop or online store. And none of their stuff is anything technical.
Plus the CEO, Mr. Kumar, looks like a nice-enough fellow.
Posted by fugu13 (Member # 2859) on :
The doctrine of first sale virtually guarantees he could legally resell them, even if the business tried to say he couldn't.
But it isn't relevant here; as noted, this is a wholesaler.
Posted by Phanto (Member # 5897) on :
What you're basically saying is that you can buy these goods for wholesale prices and want to sell them at lower price than typical distributors.
What you might be missing is how hard selling things is.
Posted by King of Men (Member # 6684) on :
It's not a stupid idea, but I wouldn't expect to get rich.
You might try this: Write a small catalogue, with pictures and prices, and distribute to your friends (I think you said it was your friends that might be interested?), saying "I can get you X for price Y; in stores, would cost three times Y". Don't put in too much stuff to start with. See if anyone bites. Try not to get too pushy about it. Incidentally, we haven't heard from Carillon in a while; can you sub France tomorrow?
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
Give it a try. Even if it isn't viable as a full time profession it can still make you a few buck. A lot of people started that way, and ended up with better opportunities than they first thought they would.
Even if it isn't viable, you will probably learn a lot of valuable lessons that only experience can teach. I'm not trying to patronizing of anything, I would learn a lot doing this as well.....anyone who is just starting out would.
Posted by Blayne Bradley (Member # 8565) on :
quote:Originally posted by King of Men: It's not a stupid idea, but I wouldn't expect to get rich.
You might try this: Write a small catalogue, with pictures and prices, and distribute to your friends (I think you said it was your friends that might be interested?), saying "I can get you X for price Y; in stores, would cost three times Y". Don't put in too much stuff to start with. See if anyone bites. Try not to get too pushy about it. Incidentally, we haven't heard from Carillon in a while; can you sub France tomorrow?
Already agreed to sub Russia.
And just the art subforum at SomethingAwful, nothing might come of it, just interesting to maybe inadvertently provide a service.
Doesn't seem likely now though seems I misinterpreted the interest. Oh well, it's something to keep in mind for later though.