Electronics Reselling

I think I have an idea to start reselling electronics, I know the people that supply Staples and I was wondering if I could get an account with them. The main rules I saw were:

-I must order $10,000+ in merchandise yearly.
-I have to pay a $200 application fee.

Do I need a business account to get this started, also do you think a bank would give me a loan, maybe for $2000 to start this off?

Thanks!

I doubt you need a business account, although you may need to have a business license and vendors permit to open an account with the supplier. You probably don't need a loan either....a credit card or line of credit should cover you. Terms for paying the supplier are likely better or identical to the terms you would set. Unless you plan on carrying a lot of inventory, you should be able to survive with a $5-10K limit.

The most important thing to ask yourself is where you would resell the items.

If you plan on selling on RFD, you're going to end up bankrupt. There are too many lowballers and penny pinchers on RFD, you'll never get them to pay retail prices.

Selling on E-bay will result in the same problem. Too many penny pinchers looking for a good deal.

You could set up a website and sell from there, but how would you attract customers? You'll have to pay a lot for advertising and there's already so many online businesses that there will be too much competition to even gain ground in the market.

So, where would you resell the items?

Thanks for your input, they do have net 30, so that's nice. I was thinking eBay actually, I'm pretty sure I can find something that gives a bit of profit, right?

RFD? no way lol, I sold a new sealed $700 + taxes DVD recorder I got as a gift during christmas time and the buyer received it for $400 flat and he still asked for a cheaper price.

E-bay will be a tough one, although if you can get the items cheap enough, you might be able to squeak out a very thin profit.
E-bay businesses are very time consuming though, as you'll be dealing with stupid people who you have to chase to make payment, leave feedback, etc. People will also try to rip you off, so make sure to use tracking numbers!

I had an E-bay business a few years back and I made a good chunk of change, but it was so time consuming that I gave it up. I was selling porn though, and there's always room in the porn market for more sellers. It will be harder with electronics.

Yes, I was hoping to have a high volume of sales in order to offset the thin margin. I think it's like this for electronics for the most part You're right Shaner, tracking is a must, as a seller I was hit with refunding since I had no tracking number. lol porn, it's an amazing industry, so many players out there, yet they're all driving around in Hummers. Thanks for all your input.

Originally Posted by Shaner

I had an E-bay business a few years back and I made a good chunk of change, but it was so time consuming that I gave it up. I was selling porn though, and there's always room in the porn market for more sellers. It will be harder with electronics.

man, I think we should gather a few RFDers (mature members in age) and get a full side business going on. Since you mentioned you can make some good money and you know the "ins" and "outs" of the industry (no pun intended), it would be worth considering.

But not something you would tell your friends I guess.

don't do it unless you've got contacts overseas that can get the product cheaper than Ingram Micro, Tech Data, etc.. That's how Canada Computers operates.

If Newegg pulled back from expanding into Canada then you know it's either saturated here or it's just not worth it because of a small market base.

However, I wouldn't mind helping even with pr0n.

Dang, that's who I was thinking of contacting, Ingram. I won't be selling through a store though, it'll be strictly eBay and nothing else.

Originally Posted by Shaner

E-bay will be a tough one, although if you can get the items cheap enough, you might be able to squeak out a very thin profit.
E-bay businesses are very time consuming though, as you'll be dealing with stupid people who you have to chase to make payment, leave feedback, etc. People will also try to rip you off, so make sure to use tracking numbers!

I had an E-bay business a few years back and I made a good chunk of change, but it was so time consuming that I gave it up. I was selling porn though, and there's always room in the porn market for more sellers. It will be harder with electronics.

It was your own porn wasnt it you crazy lil man wh0re.

I did an Ebay business too back in the day... i was able to find a NICHE market in Canada that no1 could touch and i made a HUGEEEE freakin profit b/c i was the only one doing it on Ebay. However.. 2-3 other competitors came in and ran me to the ground... I didnt wanna be stuck making 5-10% profit when i was makign 50% net profit easy.
Then i imported a bunch of LED keychains back when they were really popular, now EVERYONE knows those suppliers in china.

Remember the Profit % on electronics is Very small

Yeah, I'm cool with the low profit on electronics, I hope to gradually increase volume increasing profit overall. Anyone know how to get a business licence?

Everything you need to know about biz registration.

And Ontario Vendor's Permits

Wow, thanks a bunch deep!

sell clothes instead...higher profit margin...but then again, you'd be supporting child labour

Originally Posted by jaigandhi5

sell clothes instead...higher profit margin...but then again, you'd be supporting child labour

Sell clothes eBay? Who would be the supplier?