Buying Wholesale-A General Guide to Sourcing Products

Finding the right products to sell at the right prices can be the most difficult part of starting an online business. Whether you have an online e-commerce website, or are a seller on EBay, it can be difficult to even decide where to start sourcing your products. The problem is there are many companies out there who will sell you products at “wholesale prices” but you will come to find very quickly that 99% of these companies are not real wholesalers, and the fact is you could go on eBay or search the internet right now and buy the products you want for less from a retailer than these so called wholesalers. I have spent countless hours searching for wholesalers over the internet, and when I say countless I mean well over 100 hours, and that is no exaggeration.

In order to save you time and countless headaches, here is a list of things to avoid when sourcing products:

DO NOT use search engines to find wholesalers. Real wholesalers are not that easy to find, I know this from plenty of experience. You will waste much of your time searching for wholesalers on search engines only to find that even products that seem to be offered at low prices aren’t going to make you much, if any, money.

DO NOT buy wholesale lists off eBay or e-books claiming to have the ultimate wholesale lists. These aren’t necessarily scams in the traditional sense. You will get a large list of companies, but typically none of them will offer anything close to wholesale, and even worse, you’ll notice some of them are retail stores. So save your money, I have spent hundreds of dollars on these lists and I guarantee you that you will have nothing to show for that money except empty pockets.

DO NOT buy from any companies that use Western Union or Money Gram or any kind of untraceable, unsecured wire transfers of that sort, especially if they are from Western European countries such as Romania or the Ukraine. These sellers will typically offer products at unbelievable prices and they can do that because they aren’t really selling you anything, they are stealing your money and disappearing. You will typically run into these on larger, global directories of suppliers so be careful. Only use non secured methods of payment if you have done prior business with the company, someone you know very well has done business with them, or they are an internationally recognized company.

DO NOT Expect to buy one or two products at a time, that’s called retail sales, wholesalers don’t want to waste their time selling to a consumer, they want to sell to businesses and if you are only buying one or two products, they will just think you’re a consumer trying to get products for yourself at wholesale to save a couple dollars. You will never get even close to a wholesale price doing that. Some companies will require thousands of dollars or items per purchase while there are others that will work with smaller businesses with orders under $500.

By following the above “Do Nots”, you can save a lot of time by not wasting it on methods that do not work and save you from an abundance of headaches down the road. So where should you be looking? There are three major categories that I believe are the best sources for finding your products. These involve using REAL wholesale directories, overseas suppliers, and buying direct from the manufacturer.

Real Wholesale Directories:

There are a myriad of wholesale directories out there, some are free, some have a monthly fee, some have a one time fee, and some have a mixture of both. The free directories are usually useless and will basically lead you to the same suppliers the search engines will. Most wholesalers with readily available websites that display their up front are usually not real wholesalers, and you will see that with the prices they display. Real wholesalers do not have websites or they do not have their prices listed for the public to see. You will either need to contact them via email or phone and ask for a price list or fill out an application to become a customer (you will also typically need a resellers license). The problem is, even these wholesalers are extremely hard to find, and that is why it’s worth the little bit of money to purchase a membership to a wholesale directory.

Do not “subscribe” to a wholesale directory; look for services with a one time charge. There are two very popular wholesale directories on the internet right now. One is World Wide Brands. World Wide Brands connects you to literally thousands of pre-screened, pre-qualified wholesalers that are willing to work with smaller quantity purchases. They will help point you in the right direction and save you time you will not have to sift through “fake” wholesalers. Yes there are some suppliers that do not offer the best prices, and that is to be expected. You will still have to do a little searching, but by using their services you have a much better chance of finding the supplier that’s right for you. Also their new one source tool is pretty impressive and provides you with a wealth of information on product demand and pricing.

Another site to use as a wholesale directory is SaleHoo. They also have an extensive list of wholesalers at your disposal.

Both of these sites have a one time fee which means once you’re a member, you’re a member forever. Keep in mind that just because you join these websites does not mean you will be buying products at the price you want right away. Take the time to research suppliers and see which offers the best mix of price, quality, quantity, and service; subsequently, remember that the larger quantity you can afford, the better pricing you will get. There are also other services out there besides World Wide Brands and SaleHoo. Doba is a popular dropshipping company, but I feel that their prices are a bit too high for my definition of wholesale; however they do have some good deals hidden throughout their site.

Overseas Suppliers and Buying Direct from Manufacturer:

If you have been in business for a while or are ready to move up to the next level of product sourcing, then it is beneficial to begin sourcing your products directly from the big manufacturers overseas. There are two big sites that you will want to use when sourcing products overseas (primarily from China), Globalsources.com and Alibaba.com. These are the two main directories for overseas suppliers and trade leads. Keep in mind that sometimes you can find domestic suppliers from these sites, but your best deals will be from China. These suppliers are the real deal. Some of these companies even supply the big name brands with OEM products (original equipment manufacturer). The fact is that the TV you have might have a big brand name on it, but the truth is most of these brands do not manufacture the TV (or many other electronics product for that matter). Large manufacturers in China do and they might even sell a very similar product to multiple major companies and just slap their brand name on it. This is where you get the best prices imaginable.

The problem is the quantities. Many of these companies will require you buy containers full (a container may hold thousands of products depending on the size of the product). Some have smaller minimum quantities, some have astronomically large quantities. Again you will have to do some searching here to find the best suppliers. Also be aware that these directories are where you may find scammers and fake companies waiting to take your money. Also note that most major Chinese distributors will use wire transfers, COD, Direct Lines of Credit and other payment methods you may not be familiar with or just simply haven’t really used. So do a little research on these payment methods before purchasing any products. In addition, don’t be afraid to negotiate with manufacturers and do not be intimidated by them. They sell billions of dollars worth of products a year but may be willing to sell smaller quantities if you present yourself in a sincere and confident manner and raise the prospect of frequent, future purchases.

Buying direct from the manufacturer is also an excellent way to source products simply because you are getting the product from the first place it appears, no middlemen, no multiple markups on the price, etc. Again, larger quantities are a must for this method of purchasing, but if you are willing to spend the money (remember you can start with larger quantities of affordable products and build your way up to high ticket items) then you can get the best deals of all. Many companies do offer direct sales even if it doesn’t seem like it. For example, Sony and Sceptre (LCD’s and such) both offer accounts for resellers, it just takes a little searching on their websites and/or emailing to find out how. Also use www.thomasnet.com if you are a manufacturing company, engineering company, etc. They will connect you with thousands of companies and distributors nationwide.

These three sourcing categories are the best way for you to find a steady source of wholesale priced products; however, you can also find low price products by purchasing from liquidators and closeout sales. These are also available on World Wide Brands and you can actually find them using search engines. Be warned however, some products could be damaged and you will not get warranties from the seller and typically all sales are final. Also, once these products are gone, they’re gone.

These three sources will be your best bet for finding products at REAL wholesale prices. In fact if you buy from an overseas supplier, you may be getting products below what wholesalers will sell them for. Just make sure do your research and learn as much as you can about the suppliers before you even engage in negotiations with the company. Also, make sure you follow the “Do Nots” of product sourcing to save you time and energy, and keep yourself safe from scammers. By following this advice you will be one step closer to finding the products you need. Good luck.