Opening a Business
Starting a Baby Products & Accessories Wholesale & Manufacturers Business
It's time to become an entrepreneur and start a baby products manufacturing and wholesale business. So far, so good. At first, it sounds complicated but the key is to get started and never give up.
Now you can realize your dream of starting a baby products manufacturing and wholesale business...and we've got the tips you need to start down the path to success.
Breaking Into Baby Product Manufacturing & Wholesaling
Baby and infant products are a major industry in the U.S. With annual sales of baby durables estimated to be in excess of $5 billion, there appears to be no shortage of buyers for quality, affordable baby products.
And that's the problem for new baby product manufacturers and wholesalers. The size of the baby product market attracts a large number of entrepreneurs (a.k.a. competitors), many of whom are well established in the industry.
If your intention is to launch a general baby products business, you are likely to be outgunned by entrenched competitors in the areas of price and product selection. Instead, you will want to identify a narrow product line or even just a few products that are underrepresented in the marketplace.
Safety Concerns for Baby Product Manufacturers
Baby products are exceptionally vulnerable to consumer safety concerns. Product recalls for cribs and other baby products routinely make national headlines, creating the potential for a PR nightmare in companies that fail to take product safety seriously.
In addition to making sure your startup is protected by a robust liability insurance policy, you will need to carefully research product safety requirements before you start cranking baby products off the assembly line. Industry organizations, trade shows and other opportunities can be great resources for information about product safety. But the best place to begin your research is with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
How Drop Shipping Can Benefit Your Baby Product Wholesale Operation
Drop shipping is a supply chain management tool wholesalers can use to attract retail customers. In a drop ship scenario, retailers don't maintain inventory themselves, but forward orders to wholesalers, who in turn ship the products directly to customers.
The benefits of offering drop shipping are that it provides a convenience for prospective retail customers and creates efficiencies by minimizing shipping costs. While some of your retail customers will prefer to have your products shipped to their stores, others will leverage drop shipping for online sales or other purposes.
The downside of drop shipping is additional startup costs -- your operation will need to be outfitted with the resources, people and procedures to reliably ship your merchandise directly to your retailers' customers. But for the right baby product manufacturer and wholesaler, drop shipping has the potential to become an important competitive advantage.
Best Practices: Business Plans for Baby Products & Accessories Wholesale & Manufacturers Businesses
A great business plan will lay a strong foundation for growth in your startup baby products manufacturing and wholesale business.
Business plans address a wide range of issues, including startup financials. Since investors and lenders rely heavily on your business plan's financial forecasts, fudged numbers and vague forecasting are a sure way to sabotage your funding efforts.
Subsequently, a thorough understanding of business plan financial basics is a prerequisite to effective business plan writing for baby products and accessories wholesale and manufacturers businesses.
Don't Overlook Competitors
Prior to opening a baby products manufacturing and wholesale business within your community, it's a good idea to find out how you will fit in the competitive landscape. We've provided the link below to help you find competitors in your area. After clicking on the link, type in your city, state and zip code to get a list of baby products and accessories wholesale and manufacturers businesses near you.
It's important to be aware of what the competition is doing. Take the time to visit the competition to properly assess their strengths and weaknesses.
A Good Source of Advice
Once you've finished assessing the competion, it's a smart move to learn as much as you can from somebody who is already in the business. It's very unlikely that the local competition will talk to you. The last thing they want to do is help you to be a better competitor.
However, a fellow entrepreneur who has started a baby products manufacturing and wholesale business in another town may be more than happy to give you a few tips, as long as they don't view you as a competitive threat. Indeed, many experienced entrepreneurs enjoy offering advice to startup entrepreneurs. It can take a while to find an entrepreneur who is willing to talk, but it's well worth the effort.
Where does one find a baby products manufacturing and wholesale business owner in another city who you can speak with?
It's easy. Here's a link you can use to find a mentor outside of your area.
Financial Benefits of Buying a Baby Products & Accessories Wholesale & Manufacturers Business
You've invested a lot of time and effort in planning your startup. But here's something you probably don't know: Startup baby products and accessories wholesale and manufacturers businesses consistently fail to achieve the financial performance of acquired baby products and accessories wholesale and manufacturers businesses.
Financial risk management requires you to at least consider the possibility of setting your startup plans aside to explore acquisition opportunities. Established baby products and accessories wholesale and manufacturers businesses have reliable revenue streams and loyal customer bases � both of which will shape your company's financial landscape.
An acquired business also has documented assets and earnings - a big advantage with lenders and investors.
Consider Buying a Franchise
If done right, a small business startup takes months and months of preparations just to lay the groundwork for the first day of business.
That makes franchising an attractive alternative to traditional business startups. Our baby franchise directory offers a variety of baby products manufacturing and wholesale business franchise opportunities, many of which may be the perfect fit for your personal and professional goals.
Entrepreneur Interviews
These interviews should be of interest to you.
- Interview with Christy Cook, Founder of Teach My
- Interview with Barbara Schantz, Founder of Baby Dipper
More Advice for Startups
These additional resources regarding getting started as an entrepreneur may be of interest to you.
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