Recommendation? Thinking of becoming a dealer...

Heartland_edc

Heartland_edc

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May 4, 2015
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I've been saving for the last 8 years, and in those 8 years, I've become very familiar with the knife industry. My brother has a business management degree from KSU, and my wife has a degree in finance from FHSU. I've been working as a car salesman for 4 years. We have been slowly entertaining the idea of starting a small knife shop dealing primarily in online sales. We're truly in the early discussion stages. We have a decent amount of money saved specifically for a small business. My wife would really only be available for a small part of the day, but my brother and I would be able to work full time. Does anyone have any advice? Good idea? Bad idea? Which brands should I start with? Mods, if this is the wrong place for this, you can move it. Wasnt sure where to post.
 
I can't give professional advice, from my consumer perspective it seems like a fairly well catered to market already with a couple big players and a few established smaller ones. With the recent hike in MAP it might be more difficult to get into it. I would probably suggest doing it part time first, get a good reputation and do it full time later. Seems more sensible from a financial stand point. I'm german though, so I am conservative and starting your own business here is a pain in the rear.
 
Well, good luck with the dream
And every success in the venture!
Pure Knife enthusiast are an unforgiving lot.
Their demands are usually pretty high.
They also don't necessarily make up the majority of knife buyers.
Alway good to have a wide range of selection to cater for every pocket.
Hopefully you will come to know where your bread and butter will lie.
For a start Survey your neighbourhood cutlery store if any.
You might learn a lot from the front liners who have to deal with customers
And their likes....
 
I'm by no means an expert, so take whatever I say with a grain of salt.
I think focusing as an online retailer is obviously a necessity.
You could keep a small store front for walk in buyers but I'd suspect your bread and butter would be online. You would just need a way to stand out in the crowd of the already established online retailers. I'm sure this isn't an easy thing to do, but somehow getting a dealer exclusive from an established knife maker would be great. Top notch customer service is a must too.
Best of luck in whatever you decide.
 
I think it would be a nice idea, as mentioned above, to focus on the online selling with a small storefront as well. Here in Kansas the knife shops, or shops that have a decent selection, are few and far between.
 
I'm not sure a knife for every pocket is a good strategy even with 8 years of saving you still don't have the budget to compete with the big online retailers. I think it might be best to sit down and do an actual survey of the retail industry with the intent to find an under-served niche. I'd also probably consider other services to bring in revenue whether that's pimping or sharpening or both. I think I'd take aim at businesses like ACK perhaps be a modern folder version of CK.
 
It's a low-margin industry that's currently oversaturated. If you want to get into the market it's going to take a lot of time, energy, and finding a niche that isn't already taken. It's possible to do it, but while we live in an age where it's great to be a buyer, that also means it's not a great time to be a seller. Think long and hard about if this is really the pasture you want to put your dollars out to graze on. I do what I love, but it's required a lot of sacrifices, not the least of which is financial stability. Getting a new business off the ground can really put a lot of strain on a relationship, too, so bear that in mind. As one of my entrepreneurship profs once said, whatever you go to throw yourself into, make sure you're really enthusiastic about it because you'd have to be insane to be willing to put in the work required otherwise.

Ultimately, I love the life I've chosen and wouldn't have it any other way, but I'd be hard pressed to actually recommend that life to anyone. Does that make sense? :D
 
Seems like you'd need a niche. I think of usamadeblade who offers annodized knives at regular price or Baryonyx who offers close inspection and sharpening of new knives.
I'm no expert but it seems like a very crowded field. Customers are fickle and typically will shop for the lowest price unless there's some other value added.
I'm actually amazed at how many large online knife dealers there are.
 
Not an expert at all myself. But if I were to become a knife dealer, I would be completely online. I am sure a physical store may attract some more customers, but the $ and time spent on running it will easily outweigh the $ made. Plus, you do not need to be full time to run an online store. Also, going completely online means much less initial investment and hence much less risky financially. If my online business runs well and expands and my name becomes better known in the knife community, then I can consider expand to brick and mortar.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
It's a low-margin industry that's currently oversaturated. If you want to get into the market it's going to take a lot of time, energy, and finding a niche that isn't already taken. It's possible to do it, but while we live in an age where it's great to be a buyer, that also means it's not a great time to be a seller. Think long and hard about if this is really the pasture you want to put your dollars out to graze on. I do what I love, but it's required a lot of sacrifices, not the least of which is financial stability. Getting a new business off the ground can really put a lot of strain on a relationship, too, so bear that in mind. As one of my entrepreneurship profs once said, whatever you go to throw yourself into, make sure you're really enthusiastic about it because you'd have to be insane to be willing to put in the work required otherwise.
Click to expand...
This sums up my impressions. I would do it entirely as a internet sales deal at first and skip the store front (for now). You could do it part time (evenings and weekends) for a while. If things are looking positive, spend the money on the brick and mortar store front. I have my own business and my credit was fantastic UNTIL I started a business and depended on the income. It's tough sometimes. Do what you love. Be aware of business location restrictions (zoning). Happened to a lot of garage type gun dealers.
 
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I've kicked the idea around before, but the market is just chock full of dealers. You've also got ebay and amazon sellers listing at cost who only stay open for a few weeks before closing down. So you'll never be the cheapest, which means you need to offer something else that the other niche sellers aren't already offering. Unless you have a firm idea of whats going to set you apart I'd stay away, there are just so many dealers already out there.
 
You can get some exposure and experience by doing Gun Shows, but your weekends will be hectic.
 
AF said:
Seems like you'd need a niche. I think of usamadeblade who offers annodized knives at regular price or Baryonyx who offers close inspection and sharpening of new knives.
I'm no expert but it seems like a very crowded field. Customers are fickle and typically will shop for the lowest price unless there's some other value added.
I'm actually amazed at how many large online knife dealers there are.
Click to expand...
I was thinking sharpening too.
That or getting in bed with a knife customized like REK. You could sell his/her work exclusively. That way a guy who wanted a customized production knife, but maybe didn't have his own vision, could get one. The customizer could make knives he wanted to, instead of customer demands. The retailer could start with users off the exchange to keep cost down.
If a American based online retailer got connected with someone like cuscadi scales, that could potentially benefit both parties too.
There may be legal or logistical reasons this wouldn't work, in just spit balling.
 
The first thing I would do is to explore the business with potential suppliers. You want to find responsible people to work with who are willing to help you establish a niche. Make sure you are clear on your required purchasing volumes, terms, territory and any specific market commitments - such as advertising requirements or required promotional participation; if possible, start as an exclusive sales rep for the distributor and piggy back off of their established marketing program. New businesses are a risky proposition, it is best to minimize the risk where ever possible.

n2s
 
After thinking it over. If I had the cash to spare. I'd more likely consider teaming up with an established knife designer and an OEM and do small batch mid techs under my own brand. There are plenty of well regarded designers, plenty of good OEMs and a market for them it seems, take the Giantmouse Knives for example. You would be in the knife industry, you'd make some money and it wouldn't even need to be a full time job but you can still be an active company IE personal marketing/support etcpp. And you can either come up with some parameters for the knife and the designer go nuts or you try your own design and have it fine tuned and turned into a CAD by whoever helps.
 
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