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Apply to Buy From Commercial Distributor

by whiskership
4 replies
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Recently I have been applying to open an account of a distribution company but filling out the application form is confusing. I assume that buying products from distributors is a way of getting very low priced bulk products. An example would be D&H Distributor, if you apply for an account they ask for a bank reference and a reference from other distributors. I don't intend on applying for credit so I don't know why it's relevant.

Does anyone have experience opening an account and buying from a distribution company? How do I sign up if I have a sole proprietorship and all I do is sell eBay and Amazon?
#apply #buy #commercial #distributor
  • Profile picture of the author tgpros
    I've been in your position, and it's not fun!

    I can't remember how we got around the references thing at first - it was a chicken and egg scenario because our first supplier insisted on references, but we had no other suppliers to give a reference, and we'd only just opened our account.

    Sometimes honesty is the best policy - you could tell them the truth - that you don't have any other suppliers that can offer a reference.

    With regards to the bank reference, if we're not signing up for a 30/60 day account then I always leave it blank. If you're happy to be on pro-forma, you could do that and explain when submitting in the form.

    Finally, it's impossible for me to say for sure because I don't know what supplier you're trying to deal with, but most suppliers want you to have your own website or your own bricks and mortar store.

    When I started out, I only sold on Amazon and eBay too. I spent about $100 having a horrible website built just so I could say we had our own standalone site. It was never used and we never made a sale through it - but the supplier was happy enough with it when we signed up with them.

    I hope this helps - best of luck with your application!
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    • Profile picture of the author Importexport
      If you have sufficient funds to buy wholesale from a distributor such as D&H, why not consider making real money by importing direct from overseas manufacturers?

      You can ignore the myths about having to place huge orders, or that importing is complex. I have taught hundreds of people in 35 countries how to safely source very high profit products direct from real manufacturers, and import them without needing to learn all the rules and regulations.

      Order quantities can be quite small if you want, and the low prices will blow you away. Don't settle for inflated prices by buying wholesale. After all, wholesalers and distributors have already taken their slice out of the pie.
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      Use emotions and perceptions to build a great brand. Ask me about my book LabelsThatExploit. For safe sourcing and easy importing from 41 countries globally, see https://provenglobalsourcing.com
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  • Profile picture of the author Undercover Hidden Cameras
    My supplier asked the same questions. I just called them and explained that this is a new venture for me and briefly explained my business plan so they knew I was serious. ( I also needed to have a site) I also placed a credit card on file to be used for orders as they came in. They set me right up. Their main concern was discouraging individuals from buying just one thing for personal use at a cheaper price and moving on.
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