My name is David and I am from Pewaukee, WI. Like most people, I graduated from high school and college, then took a job in the corporate world. I worked for a major electrical distributor and was promoted three times in less than three years. The company was great and my coworkers were awesome, but I just wasn’t happy. I knew that 40 years of sitting in an office for 40 hours per week with 2-3 weeks of vacation time was going to be a rough life. I also knew that I would never be able to live the lifestyle I wanted (personal or financial) with such restrictions. I wanted out but didn’t know how to do it.
I always wanted to be a real estate agent, so I studied and got my real estate license. Since realtors are paid on all commission, I knew that I would need something on the side to make money in the meantime. I remember listening to a podcast on the way to work one day about someone who was making six figures selling on Amazon using their FBA program. I thought the Amazon FBA business model was perfect for side income while I was getting the real estate going.
I went home after work that night and bought the Proven Amazon Course. I had dinner at my parents’ house a few days later and told them that I bought a course and was going to start an Amazon business. They looked at me like I was crazy. I told them I was going to make this work, whatever it takes. Successful people commit first and figure the rest out later.
I spent the next few weeks studying the course, which was mainly on retail and online arbitrage (sourcing models I do not recommend anymore due to changing rules). Retail arbitrage is buying products at a retail store (for example, Target or Walmart) and reselling them on Amazon for a profit. Online arbitrage is doing the same thing online.
I registered my business, set up my Amazon seller account, bought the necessary software and was ready to start sourcing. One recommendation to find profitable products was to look at each store’s weekly ads. Target had a big sale on some toys that were very profitable, so I hopped in my car and headed to the nearest Target. Then I went to all the other Target’s in the area. I remember the cashiers looking at me weird and me saying “These are for charity.”
I labeled the toys with my Amazon FBA labels and sent them off to Amazon’s fulfillment center the next day. I got an email from Amazon when the products were received and anxiously awaited a sale. After a few hours, I already had my first sale! By the end of the day, 4 of my products had already sold. I was instantly hooked.
I wish I could say that I built up the business from there and never looked back, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. I found out that in order to join the real estate brokerage, I needed to attend a mandatory 2-week training course. It was the following month and I didn’t have enough vacation time at my corporate job, but I told the broker I’d be there (again, commit first and figure the rest out later). I had about 6 months of savings, a few hundred dollars a month coming in from the Amazon business and a deadline to quit my corporate job to attend the real estate training.
When I put in my 2-week notice, nothing I worried about came true. I explained to my employer that I always wanted to start my own business and if I didn’t do it now, I never would. They were a little shocked since I was due for another promotion soon, but completely understood. The company also said that if I ever wanted to come back, they would make a position for me. Life was good!
I completed the real estate training, sold my first house a few months later and continued to source at retail stores for products to sell on Amazon. I went from working 40 hours per week to 100, but that was ok with me because I was building something for myself instead of someone else. It wasn’t long until I realized that I should put real estate on the back burner because I could make a lot more money with the Amazon business.
I went through every local store’s clearance racks, sale racks and started online arbitrage (a sourcing model I do not recommend anymore due to changing rules). I was running out of products to sell and time until I heard about sourcing at liquidation stores (a sourcing model I do not recommend anymore due to changing rules). The nearest big liquidation store was in Chicago, so I drove all the way down there the next day, scanned everything and found absolutely nothing profitable to resell. I was totally discouraged and somehow managed to get a $400 speeding ticket on the way home in a speed trap. I felt completely lost.
I needed something that was more scalable and sustainable, but didn’t know how to do it. That’s when I started studying private labeling. I thought it was a great business model. Find high demand products with low competition that have a $25+ sales price, weigh less than 2 pounds and can be easily sourced on Alibaba. Have my own brand label designed, contact suppliers on Alibaba to see if I can private label their product, get samples, negotiate MOQ (minimum order quantity), place an order, create a listing on Amazon and I was in business!
What they don’t tell you is that every other Amazon seller is looking for the same products with the same criteria.
I went into many promising products with low competition, but by the time I received my products they weren’t low competition anymore! Everyone had them and the price war (race to the bottom) began. I was lucky to break even on some of those products. The other thing the ‘experts’ say is to private label a product in one category (for example, Home and Kitchen) and another popular product in something completely different (for example, Beauty). This method used to work, but it doesn’t anymore. There are too many sellers trying to do the same thing. If you don’t have brand loyalty, you will be another me-too product trying to get on page 1 of the Amazon search results.
With all of these setbacks and bad information, it’s easy to see why most people get frustrated and give up saying “It simply doesn’t work.” It’s not hard if you have the right information and take action, but it’s not going to be easy. I was taking massive action all of this time but didn’t have the right information.
I now have a very profitable online business. I have crafted a lifestyle that gives me the freedom to work from anywhere. I want to help you get there. So please, read through this website and take action!
