Starting a skate company

[strictly carved]

I want anyones advice on starting and becoming a vendor. My goals are becoming a vendor and then promote my on board line. thanks

[Mile_High_Mark]

Allow 2-3x more than you think you'll need for advertising.

Do not expect to be paid for your time/effort for 1-3 years.

The customer is always right.

[george]

I stared mine about 2 weeks ago. I just made a thread, posted some pics of boards I have built and a description of what I can do. Mine are $30 a deck, so I make about $10 a board (It's not really about the money, I like building boards).

[crash]

well there goes my dream of becoming a vendor...

maybe I'll just sell stuff at swap meets.


oh and some advice. work for a small business owner. someone who is cool. get to know the kind of things he/she has to do to make ends meet. once the glamour wears off you might re-think your idea of becoming avendor. I'm doing this with my boss. he's 6 years younger than me and bought his own sandwitch shop after getting his discharge. really opening my eyes to the trials and tribulations of running your own show.

[V1RG1N14 L0NG804RD3R]

I am kinda in the phase where I am like hey it would be really cool to build boards and sell them! But I realize that making boards is tough to make money off of. Right now all the money I make along with ryan and cwazy nick-e is going towards buying more wood and griptape.

[strictly carved]

No i was thinking more like vending stuff like other manufactures products. Im young and my father has been a owner of a couple of buisnesses. So i unjderstand what it takes. mostly im in for it just to make enough money to design the boards that i want to build. So what iwas wondering is were can i make the contacts to sell the product.

[Mile_High_Mark]

No i was thinking more like vending stuff like other manufactures products. Im young and my father has been a owner of a couple of buisnesses. So i unjderstand what it takes. mostly im in for it just to make enough money to design the boards that i want to build. So what iwas wondering is were can i make the contacts to sell the product.

Do you have a business license/resale number?

Are you prepared to pay for the goods with a credit card or by COD?

If you're taking phone/internet orders, do you have a method to accept credit cards and/or PayPal?

Before you contact any manu's or distro's, you need to have these things nailed down.

[Momona Boe]

/\ he's exactly right!

If you don't have a Tax ID, most manu's won't ship to you. They'll want you to do CC or COD at least the first few times you order. Plus if you're under 18, they're gonna want an adult involved - nothing personal, they just can't go after a minor if you don't pay. That's kinda really all there is, if you give them a credit card and a Tax ID, you're golden in their eyes

Oh, they would also prefer if you didn't cut everyone's price on their stuff or sell it on eBay for too cheap

[strictly carved]

I know that most of you guys own companys but what iwant to know is if you guys do drop shipping. If you dont know what it is. its when you fill the orders for the manus and they cut you a check. do you know anything about that.

[Mile_High_Mark]

I know that most of you guys own companys but what iwant to know is if you guys do drop shipping. If you dont know what it is. its when you fill the orders for the manus and they cut you a check. do you know anything about that.

Very few skate vendors will drop ship for you. Those that do will charge extra for this. Your definition of drop shipping doesn't match my experience. You take the order, you then place the order for the items purchased, and the distro ships to the customer.

I stock every single item you see on my site. The inventory is updated in real time, so with the exception of the rare stocking error, what you see is what we have right now.

[mellowkat]

Hey! Whats the best way to make a million dollars in the longboard industry?













Start with Two!

[VolvoGuy]

Hey! Whats the best way to make a million dollars in the longboard industry?













Start with Two!

Hey!! Never heard that one before!!!!

[Directive0]

Hey! Whats the best way to make a million dollars in the longboard industry?













Start with Two!

Hey!! Never heard that one before!!!!

Ya, cause you're reaaaal original, there. Mister: I use someone else's comic in my sig so people will think I'm cool.




burn.

[VolvoGuy]

Hey! Whats the best way to make a million dollars in the longboard industry?













Start with Two!

Hey!! Never heard that one before!!!!

Ya, cause you're reaaaal original, there. Mister: I use someone else's comic in my sig so people will think I'm cool.




burn.

Hey you douche. I've taken them out MANY times, but people tell them to bring them back.

[mellowkat]

Glad you liked It Volvoguy!

[strictly carved]

Hey thanks its been a real help. I keep you posted on how im doing,

[A-Drain]

Strictly,

I don't want to sound like a wowser, but I'm gonna. If you don't want to do this for a living and you only want to do it to make enough cash to make your own boards, why not just get a casual job? It'll pay more, be less hassle and it won't require you to undercut guys who have overheads to pay (rent, wages, taxes, etc) to get customers. Remember that every $ a part-timer takes is a $ less that a real retailer takes, eventually you don't have anymore retailers left.

I am lucky here in Oz, we have a few distributors who tend to vet who they sell to, so if they feel there is already enough outlets in a particular area/city they won't supply anyone else. Tends to give us all a chance to make a few bucks rather than heaps of us going broke.

It sounds as though what you really want to do is get your product at wholesale. Get a job in a skateshop and be nice to the owner, I'm sure that he'd be happy to take your wages back off you by selling you product at his/her cost.

My 2 cents worth. Now I'll just step down offa my soapbox.

Cheers

A-Drain

[strictly carved]

Its good advice, but there is no skateshops in town. I know it sounds crazy but there is no skateshops in vegas none of them are privatley owned. there is no market down here unless your willing to wait two to three weeks. But i would not want to but someone out of buisness. I understand ill keep ya guys posted on whats happening though.

[Mile_High_Mark]

A-Drain makes some very good points.

There are seriously better ways to make money. I put 40 hours a week (minimum) into Mile High (on top of my regular, full-time job), and I don't even make minimum wage (on Mile High). This summer's sales are 150-250% above last year's, but with inventory costs, credit card processing fees (and PayPal), shipping (to us AND to customers), the typically low margins on hard-goods, etc, it leaves very little actual profit.

[A-Drain]

Mark,

I've had my shop open for nearly 6 years now and haven't taken a wage yet. I have a seperate income so it doesn't really matter and I love what I do, but I am a one-man band and open every day of the year (including Christmas). I reckon I put in on average about 60 hours a week and I guess I could turn a good profit if I didn't sponsor a team, supply prizes to every skate comp within 500km of here, pay the freight on all mail orders, flow kids gear when they break stuff and have no cash, etc, etc, but then I could put in 90% clothes and shoes and a bit of shortboard gear in the corner and maybe a Sector 9 pintail and make some serious cash like all the surf shops around here do. Guess then I wouldn't be a REAL skateshop would I?????

I guess what I'm saying is that if you want to make money, don't get into the skate business, if you want to do something for a sport you love and have done for over 30 years, then go for it.

Cheers

A-Drain