The title says it all, does anyone know how being a dealer for Athearn, Broadway Limited, ect. Work? Could you sell through eBay? Or do you need a brick and mortar? Can you buy wholesale?
I am asking because I was considering it as a possible business opportunity…
Most of the big name manufacturers want you to have a brick & mortar. But that has been changing. Also unless you have a established business you probably will not be able to get thru the credit process. It took me almost 10 years to get a BLI dealership.
Is there a way to buy trains wholesale?
A couple of years ago I looked into how to buy wholesale from Walthers, you were required to show proof that you had a B&M shop. Perhaps you know someone with a retail store who would be willing to let you “partner” with them.
So if I know a Brick and Mortar retail person and they let me use their entity I can wholesale it and sell on ebay?
So if I understand correctly, your latest scheme involves using someone else’s credentials, credit, and good name to purchase items from another company (I think that might be called fraud), and then resell those items through ebay or other venues, undercutting the guy who owns the shop.
And why, exactly, would the “retail person” ever agree to that?
Unless the person you’re buying it from let’s you use his name, probably not. I say that as when you’re selling as a ‘dealer’ and there’s an issue with an item, the customer will be asked by the factory where they bought it, want proof of receipt and if you’re not a registered dealer with them or you can show that you own the business or bought it from a distributor, the consumer may not be able to have it repaired or replaced under warranty.
I deal with this daily as my products are sold thru distributors (not model trains) and trying to trace it back to them when a consumer calls my factory can be an issue.
Neal
That is not what I said!
I am saying I know a person in retail who is owns a retail facility, and is a family friend if they partnered with me I could buy wholesale and resell the stuff on ebay thats all I said, no fraud!
As Neal just said I’ll need my own retail store so never mind…
Now this info is many years old but I looked into this, Bachmann would sell to anyone at discount, min. $10,000 order. You got lots of money sitting around? Also do you know all the tax laws, don’t forget about your required licence, and quarterly reports to the state for sales taxes. etc etc etc.
There is a way…The LHS owner can partner with you and use his shop’s name on the receipt he gets a niece slice of the pie.
There is one catch…The other partner will be restricted to train shows while the HS owner can legally open a e-Bay store.
In the past when everything was done through wholesalers all you needed was a small business license and tax number.
MBK says:
The title of the thread: How does being a dealer work? Do you buy wholesale?
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The actual question: How can I get product at a low enough price to make selling on eBay a profitable business venture?
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OK… You can forget about becoming a dealer… I will not drag down the conversation with why… just accept it.
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So you want to get product cheap to resell… there are several ways to do this.
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The easiest is to find a retail store with slow moving stock and purchase this at a very low prioce for liquidation. I got a lot of my hobby product like this. Hung out in a hobby shop, they said midwest scaler lumber was moving slowly, I offered to buy their entire stock that moment for 40 cents on the dollar of retail in cash, and they agreed. They cleared shelf space and cut losses. I got a good supply of lumber for future projects. Do you have cash lying around? You need cash to do this.
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Another way is to make full turnaround on a big purchase for big discount. Walk into a hobby shop and say I want to order $3,000.00 worth of product, I will pay you in cash in two weeks, but I want 30% off of retail. With the ability to make $400.00 for 2 hours of work, most shop owners will jump on that. They might say no. You are under no obligation to tell him what you are doing with the product. I went to four Games-Workshop dealers trying to cut this deal on two new armies. Three said no, one made a big sale for almost no effort. Again, you better have cash.
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There are other ways. Any way you try this, you are looking at a tremendous amount of work.
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You are better off mowing lawns to get the jingle-jangle in the pockets.
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-Kevin
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Trying to keep this all straight,
Your going to start a retail business,without any knowledge of business or the product to be sold. This would be financed with capital left over from a layout build, that was paid for with future lawn mowing,done with a mower purchased with wages from a power washing job you didn’t do yet.
OH forgot the BBQ gig. should work.
He’s a budding entrepreneur. They don’t teach capitalism in school these days.
I give the boy credit for wanting to make a wage doing something he loves.
NWP, this isn’t likely going to be a fruitful avenue for you my friend. It’s just not practical.
When the time comes for you to start mowing lawns, let me know. I’ll get you set up with some of the landscape referral services.
I am trying to find a low initial investment business that will help me build capital to finance a bigger business…
I was asking a question not trying to start a riot…
Thank you Granite Railroader and Big Daddy…
How do you have a million dollars and a model railroad business?
Start with two million dollars.
Also, there are at least three companies I can think of off the top of my head that buy in volume and sell less than retail. You’d have plenty of competition from experienced professionals.
And speaking as somebody with an actual business degree, buying a $100 product for $60 and selling it for $65 is a mug’s game. To make actual money you’ll find yourself pricing in the same area as established businesses.
On the other hand, MTH started out in a garage as a Lionel repair shop. Apple started out in a garage. Sometimes we need to think creatively and differently than what was taught when I got my BA in Business.
HUGE ideas and plans but little or no means to put them into motion. NWP, you have guts. But of course that is only a piece of what is needed. BTW, have you heard how to make a small fortune selling model trains? You start out with large fortune. One advantage us older folks have in many cases is having watch a hobby shops over time. Selling models trains is a tough way to make a living.
I was just wondering, obviously it’s not a suitable business…
My dad for a while ran a very successful ebay business that produced a good bit of money for the low investment cost, he only stopped because we moved… I think I’ll do something like that…