How did I start? You name it, I tried it. From mail order to selling hotdogs on weekends while holding a job as a factory worker working for minimum wage - $1.90 an hour! The first $90 paycheck went to pay for taxes and union fees ... I was left with no money! I said to myself "There must be a better way to make it in America." And there was.
One year after coming to America, I opened a toy store on a "shoe string" - which means I had no money of my own and only a small prayer to succeed. But I did! I used OPM - Other People's Money! Later on you will see an example of how YOU can - with NO Money and NO Credit - start your own Import/Export business TOMORROW!
This is a picture of my second toy store.
While in the toy business, I learned how profitable it could be if I imported certain merchandise myself. This is how I got my start in the Import/Export business. Later on, I became the head of the Import Dept. of a major retail organization and sat on almost every Buying Committee. This is where I met with the presidents and CEOs of the largest manufacturers, supplier, and importers in America.
When I opened my first toy store, I realized the American Market was missing a lot of toys available in other parts of the world. For various reasons, the importers would not bring them to the United States in the early 70's -- not enough interest, or high prices. Later on it became "fashionable" to import everything from Japan, Taiwan, or Hong Kong.
For me, the most attractive part of imports was very simple: I could make 5 times to 10 times more money than I could on the normal markup which averaged around 40%. For example, if you bought a toy from a domestic supplier/manufacturer which cost you $5.00 delivered, you could sell the toy at $9.99 to get a full markup of 50%, discount it at $8.99, or give it away for $5.99. However, if you keep doing that, you won't be in business too long.
The main reason retailers go out of business is because they don't make enough money to cover all their expenses and show a profit. If you look over the last 25 years, many discounters have disappeared because they didn't make enough money! The same thing happened to department stores and small stores --- and it will happen to everyone who doesn't make enough profit.
I realized if I import desirable, salable items not available in the USA, I will make a substantial profit. Slowly I turned my store (later stores) from just scraping by into highly profitable operations. I began to import toys from Australia, Asia, Austria, Italy, Spain, and Germany. For example, I bought Koala bears made of real fur from Australia which cost me from $1.00 - $16.00 depending on the size and was able to sell them for $10.00 - $100.00.
Of course, Qantas Airlines helped me with their TV commercials which showed a little koala bear climbing a tree. They still use the same commercials today. I did the same thing with Flamenco dancer dolls from Spain - tremendous mark ups.
These were my beginnings in imports and exports. The reason I am explaining all this to you is that you will learn I am highly qualified to teach you about imports. Later, I sold my toy stores (the 7 year itch in the business) and traveled the world looking for interesting items I could import to the USA.
As you know, things happen, money started to run out after taking a one-year vacation traveling the world. So, I decided to work for someone for a few years. Luckily for me, a huge retail organization was looking for someone who could function as Import Director. Besides having experience in retail, I also had experience in doing imports for 7 years. This function was for a much more experienced person than I was, but I got lucky and got the job.
The reason I was hired was because I made the phone call on Sunday when I saw the ad. Guess who was working -- yes, the President of the company. That Sunday I went for an interview and got the job. The personnel department was in panic on Monday morning because the head of the company hired me without consulting with them. I stepped into this situation which proved to be very profitable and educational for me for the rest of my life.
I had to learn everything in a hurry because I was working with a company that did millions of dollars in business. In fact, the whole group did somewhere around $500,000,000 in business a year! And their goal was to import as much merchandise as possible in order to improve profit margins. I ran that department for almost 4 years - until my assistant convinced me to go back into my own business.
Because of my position, I sat on the majority of merchandising committees where I met the presidents and CEO's of the biggest US companies and learned lots of trade secrets available only through these meetings. I also met with the overseas manufacturers, presidents of those companies and the presidents of trading companies.
I wanted to give you some idea of my background and expertise which is very important for you when you are deciding to purchase my manual, From Rags to Riches in Your Own Import/Export Business.
Thanks for creating your book. It has taken my life on a new course - hard at times, but all the time fulfilling as I overcome and grow. Many people are looking for a vehicle but cannot find one. I can say the night I found your website my life changed forever.
Jason Graham
Canada
Story About the
Bentwood Rocker
As I mentioned before, this company did some very substantial business. Let me tell you one story I will never forget. We were doing tremendous business with one particular item, a Bentwood Rocker, which would retail from $29.99 - $99.99 depending on the store where it was purchased. The quality would also correspond to the price you paid for it in either Taiwan or Korea. These were the only 2 countries making the Bentwood Rocker at the time and it was a key promotional item for us. It is supposed to be made, if it is the best quality, of 16 plies of wood which were treated in hot water and bent into shape, glued together, and sanded down. Sometimes the sanding process would lose a little wood, but not more than 1 or 2 plies.
One of my duties was to make sure we were getting a good quality product and were not being ripped off which can very easily happen if you are not on top of things. On one of my inspections in the warehouse, I came across a broken Bentwood Rocker. It really shouldn't break, so I took a closer look. Instead of 16 plies of wood, there were only 6 plies.
I went to my office, called the warehouse people at 4 different stores to bring me a sample of the Bentwood Rocker they had in stock and a saw. A very strange request. Anyway, they brought me the samples and a saw and began sawing. To my disbelief, all the rockers were made of a maximum 6 - 8 plies, not the 16 plies we were GUARANTEED in writing! I advised the President of the company what I discovered.