Resellers Source Kit - F.A.Q.
Q. Probably the first question you might ask is, where do I go to get my resale permit?
A. For years, we told people to just look up the state agency in their local phone book. Each state agency will be called something different. Here in California it's called the "Board of Equalization". Other offices might be called the "Department of Finance and Administration." Each state is going to have their own rules how to get your company set up. So check out the following government link to the state agencies which are now online. Look for sales tax information for your state.
Chambers of Commerce Directory:
You can also Search for Chambers of Commerce or Cities-States-Provinces around the world Includes hotlinks to their website and Email Addresses. This is another good way to find tax and other information for each online city.
Q. Wow, the Resellers Source Kit looks great. If I order it will I be an instant success as a reseller?
A. Resellers Source Kit is worthless if you have no finances to get started in your business.
I can guarantee to provide you with TRUE wholesale sources. But, my question to you is have you gotten your resale business permit yet? Can't buy wholesale without one. Have you established a company name? Do you have a business checking account? Do you have a business plan? If your starting a business locally and not using the web, do you have people NOW looking to you for hardware or software support?
For many resellers, getting into the computer business probably started by helping a co-worker at their regular job. Over the years, skills were learned that were likely the stepping stones leading to the field they finally chose for themselves.
Most successful resellers will specialize in something. Likewise, wholesale distributors specialize. Picking the right distributor is crucial when starting your resale business.
With our Resellers Source Kit we will get you pointed in the right direction, providing you have some background experience in the specialty niche market that caused get started in computer reselling in the first place.
We provide quality wholesale sources, it's up to you to make your own contacts.
Kevin King, owner/webmaster
The Resellers Source Kit
Q. Where is this Resellers Source Kit, All I see is the few sample sources on your Demo Tour or file download? How do I access it?
A. The Resellers Source kit is over 125 HTML pages long. We have this on our office computer where I input changes, corrections and continually add new wholesale hardware and software distributors as I find them each month.
We then compile it to our unique HTML viewer for easy reading, printing, e-mailing, and connecting directly to each wholesale company using your Explorer or Netscape browser.
Each month around the 10th, I upload this software program to my web site and e-mail all the subscribers to download at a non-linked page name for subscribers only.
This is going on our third year of monthly updates. Before that, for 3-4 years we were just Quarterly issues for the same prices. Going monthly helps us to keep this information better updated and still takes several issues a year to go back though and update all the sections, only to start all over again. We have been producing the Resellers Source Kit since 1991.
These last two months I've made a point in going after more wholesale software distributors. As of this writing we have over 43 distributors listed. We're not looking for single publishers but distributors who wholesale many types of software to resellers. Some distributors specialize in Education, gaming, or business, etc.
Same with hardware manufacturers. Many manufacturers don't sell in low quantity to small resellers, they rather send you to channel distributors. So it's distributors were looking for. There are many scores and not the top few most people know about like Ingram Micro, Tech Data, Merisel. Choosing the wrong distributor can be hazardous to your business.
Kevin King, owner/webmaster
The Resellers Source Kit
Q. On your RS-Kit, do you know if any of the companies giving discounts even if I only buy one or two items at a time? I have several distributors that I have signed up for, but because I'm a small business just starting out, I am only doing small purchases. And because of this, it is cheaper for me to buy off of the Internet as a regular consumer from someone else. I'm not trying to get information from you for free! If you know that your kit has some suppliers that does this I will buy the kit. This is just frustrating because I have signed up for several distributors and they are all like this.
A. I think part of your problem is choosing the right distributors. Some of the bigger named distributors which have many sales tiers are more geared to stores who buy in large quantity, and in order to get good pricing you'll need to probably sign a contract to buy $2,500.00 a month or more. These are not the type of distributors who are going to give you lowest price at quantity 1-3.
When I started out, I signed up with Merisel, Tech Data and Ingram Micro. Years ago the profit margins where better then they are today.
Those three distributors are good once you get your volume buying up. They have a ton of services for resellers. I'm only saying that there are scores of other distributors that you should also consider.
This is the reason I started compiling the Resellers Source Kit to show resellers that there are hundreds of direct distributors for every buying level, including small business start ups, also those who want to by pass their distributor and become a distributor themselves.
You're not going to need every source we compile information on, but as you grow and develop more niches to help service your customers' needs, you're going to be turning to our Resellers Source Kit for more help down the road. I can guarantee that!
Another thing that will help you is for you to take advantage of these manufacture rebates to resellers. Some types of hardware have very slim profit margins. Like reselling printers for example. It's tough to compete with mail order. It's those dealer rebates from manufacturers that will help you.
Every manufacture out there has dealer rebates going on through out the year. Last year some manufactures were selling 17" monitors and for a bonus giving resellers a $50.00 rebate for every monitor they sold.
Many resellers live on manufacturers rebates and sell those monitors at dealer cost to end-users just to compete with mail order pricing. Can you see how this works?
Contact your sales rep and let them know you want to be included in their daily, weekly fax or e-mail specials. Ask about their yearly close out inventory, refurbished equipment.
Many distributors promotions will let you buy 5 and get one free. That one free item is 100% profit when you go to resell it.
Kevin King, owner/webmaster
The Resellers Source Kit
Hi Kevin,
Q. I am very much interested in starting a business as a resellers from my own home.
The biggest questions, I have is will these suppliers ship the systems directly to the customer or Will I have to take a physical custody of the systems then ship it to the customers?
What are shipping costs approximately to ship a complete system for other cities in California?
Can I sell the systems clients in other states?
I truly believe that kit you have put together is priceless and if I decide being in the business of reselling computers in feasible (I am so far 80% convinced), I will undoubtedly subscribe to the kit.
Warm Regards, Abdi R.
A. Many of these distributors we compile information on, drop ship to customers anywhere in the USA. Shipping costs depends on the shipper company each wholesalers is under contract with, i.e.. UPS, Fed X, etc. But shipping costs are far lower because of their volume then you trying to ship just a few computers to a customer.
The Resellers Source Kit not only provides your with hardware and software categories, but you can click on your state and find out who the wholesale distributors are. Since you live in California, there are many companies to choose from. But even if you didn't, we also list the branch warehouses for each distributor. So this is even more time saved in picking a distributor near you and getting products to your customers faster.
After signing up with many of these distributors they will issue you a pass-word to get deeper into their website where you can custom configure systems to your exact customers needs. Many distributors offer drop shipping at little or no extra cost to you.
This will free you to not have to inventory anything if that's what your wanting. Some resellers lower the cost of their overhead doing business on the Internet, rather then investing thousands in trying to open a local computer store. Each has their advantages.
Many resellers work out of their homes or resell through a web site. Some have store(s) and are looking for volume purchases. Some sell through computer shows/fairs and need to know contacts for the many offshore companies who have their warehouses right here in the USA. Some want to by-pass your distributor all together, or become a distributor themselves. Many build and sell over ten computers a month.
Some resellers don't want to build/service anything, just want to move systems out the door and use system integrators to build/ship/and provide on site service warranties to their customers.
Please know that our Resellers Source Kit is worthless, if you have no finances to get started. You must have a business plan, some background experience in the specialty niche market you plan enter to help service your customers.
If you have that, then with our Resellers Source Kit, we can get you going in the right direction.
Hope this helps answer your questions
Kevin King, owner/webmaster
The Resellers Source Kit
Q. How many drop-shippers do you include with the kit? That is what I am really looking for and would be VERY interested in ordering your kit if you gave me a decent number...
Thank you, WilliamA. Just about every channel distributor will drop ship. I'm working on updating just the top 50 right now grossing over 500 million in sales and they all drop ship and have many branch warehouses they ship out of. There are more then that, I'm guessing 200 maybe.
I have not made a point to provide information on each wholesale company whether or not they drop ship, but most do and have electronic ordering where you can configure a system to your customers specifications and then have it shipped out. I'm pretty sure dropping is provided too.
Kevin King, owner/webmaster
The Resellers Source Kit