14-year-old NEEDS advice for reaching out to sell at local hardware stores

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user 188535

Chainsaw-wielding middle-schooler
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I will be reaching out to a lot of local hardware stores to try to get places to sell my wood other than my stand. I will be reaching out to some hardware stores tomorrow and on my day off Friday. I need advice on this subject and I will also mention to potential distributors how I see this as a great opportunity for me and the people interested in carrying my products because most people will go to hardware stores and similar establishments to buy equipment and supplies to make their yards nice in the fall they will also be surprised at the convenience of being able to get firewood from a local company owned by a hard-working young man. Will they be "allowed" to buy my products to sell? What should I say when I call and should I ask to speak with someone in charge?
 
Just curious, Why do you always add in your posts that you’re 14? I think all the regulars here are well aware of it. Age won’t matter when you ask to speak with the owner of said hardware store. If you have a quality product, professionally packaged and at the right price in a wholesale position, I don’t see why the local places wouldn’t want to retail it or care about your age.
 
In grocery stores and the like the company making the product pays for shelf space based on several factors, at the end of the isle is the most costly, upper shelf space costs more that lower, etc. So for instance Kellogg pays each store for shelf space and sends them Fruit Loops for free, one or more customers may buy the product and the store gives Kellogg a cut of the sale.

A hardware store is a bit more like McDonald's, the owner pays for a franchise (the right to sell a brand of product like Echo or STIHL) and is bound by the terms of the franchise licensing agreement. In order to take up floor space you generally have to pay for it one way or another.

As a minor you cannot legally enter into a contract, and cannot carry your own liability insurance (say a customer buys wood with bugs and the bugs not only infest their home but also the store), yet must follow all Federal, State, County, City/Local laws and ordinances. So...it could be difficult as a minor to start a LLC or legally operated Private Business.
 
Just curious, Why do you always add in your posts that you’re 14? I think all the regulars here are well aware of it. Age won’t matter when you ask to speak with the owner of said hardware store. If you have a quality product, professionally packaged and at the right price in a wholesale position, I don’t see why the local places wouldn’t want to retail it or care about your age.
I suppose you have a point.
 
In grocery stores and the like the company making the product pays for shelf space based on several factors, at the end of the isle is the most costly, upper shelf space costs more that lower, etc. So for instance Kellogg pays each store for shelf space and sends them Fruit Loops for free, one or more customers may buy the product and the store gives Kellogg a cut of the sale.

A hardware store is a bit more like McDonald's, the owner pays for a franchise (the right to sell a brand of product like Echo or STIHL) and is bound by the terms of the franchise licensing agreement. In order to take up floor space you generally have to pay for it one way or another.

As a minor you cannot legally enter into a contract, and cannot carry your own liability insurance (say a customer buys wood with bugs and the bugs not only infest their home but also the store), yet must follow all Federal, State, County, City/Local laws and ordinances. So...it could be difficult as a minor to start a LLC or legally operated Private Business.
Hmm... Well, how do I heat-treat wood?
 
Just letting you know some of the obstacles you may have to overcome. How many cords are you producing, or capable of at this point?
Ok. I already have a pick up truck load of dried wood. More of it is seasoning. I've also thought about building a solar kiln but I'm not sure that that works. And I also don't want to have to go through all the hurdles of USDA testing. Because then they'll come after me for not having tax information or something like that
 
Sorry Mets, I don't want to pop your bubble, and I love your ambition, but in order to get into any retail outlet, you will have to be able to guarantee supply. You don't even have half a cord ready for sale, and even bundled that won't last a weekend at a typical hardware store. Keep in mind too, you will be selling to them at wholesale rates, which is going to be basically half of retail. At this stage you are way better off selling from your stand, and using guerilla marketing, i.e. Craigslist, next door, Facebook, etc. Start small and efficient and build up.
 
Ok, don't let the nay sayers get you down (though Jolly does have some very good points)
that said, do some research (which I suppose this post is research lol) find out what sort of laws you need to be up on.

Each state varies on business practices (rather a lot btw)
But you will likely need to have a proper business license, which you may not be able to legally get until 18, if you want to sell wholesale to retailers, here in WA you also need a resale permit, and you have to keep track of BO taxes as well as what you spend and receive then pay taxes on the profit either quarterly or annually (again each state varies) Any of this legal BS could totally be taken on by a parent or drunkle/vodka aunt/grumpa/trusted neighbor, its just paperwork and its a stupid law to not let underage folks have legit businesses... If you were my nephew, I'd totally sign you up and push you along, turn 18 and sell it to you for a dollar (eyes wide open if you have to choose an adult for legal reasons FYI, they may be nice now, but 4 years and a successful business later even nice guys will see dollar signs its sucks but so do most people)

Anyway... As for getting retailers to sell your goods, you first need to have a reliable supply, and dependable delivery, if they need xx cords delivered Friday, you better have it ready BEFORE they call (this isn't always feasible, but you should strive to do your best in this regard)

As for kiln dried, there are commercially available kilns built and marketed just for this purpose, they are however not cheap, but the concept is fairly simple, heat at xx temp until xx moisture content or a set length of time (the time is to kill the bugs etc, moisture content is the guaranteed fresh stamp) Yer a smart person, all you really need is a big heat proof box and some sort of reliable heat input and temp/time control, a bunch of corrugated siding and a crab cooker or some other heat input(as the crab cooker is not exactly the safest) with a manual pyrometer (like a thermometer only more skookum) and a clock, maybe just maybe some fiberglass insulation for efficiency, add a couple vents so you don't build a steam bomb... stack loosely, cook until done (there are many many threads on kiln drying lumber, the concept is the same without all the saw work)

However all the technical BS aside chances are you live in a smallish town, and small towns tend to have opinions about gov interference so you might just find a gas station, or mom and pop fishing/camping/hunting type store that will gleefully sell your products for you, (and to be honest the hardware store types tend to have national supply chains, and likely won't want to bother with "some dumb kid") (and frankly you probably would hate dealing with that type anyway) (theres a guy in my town that sells at the grocery store, and a few others, he's built some reasonably skookum plywood boxes that live just outside the main entrance, and are lockable... folks take what they need on the way in or purchase on the way out like buying bagged ice each bundle is shrink wrapped and has a wad of kindling and sometimes some paper honestly i'm not too keen on the plastic shrink wrap, but there aren't a whole lot of other viable options)

as for making a deal, pull yer pants up high, waltz into the nearest likely culprit of a store, and DEMAND TO SEE THE MANAGER... they worst they can do is tell you no.... yer 14 time to get used to rejection anyway lol. (remember the stores that were rude... 3 years from now when they are begging you... charge em extra)

I'm rooting for you, even if it seems like the world isn't
 
but wait... theres more...
when selling to stores, they will probably want to do a consignment deal, this is in the hopes that you dry up and forget to collect YOUR money.
Insist on them buying wholesale, i.e. they buy bundles at a lower cost, then sell them for whatever they want, point being they PAY you BEFORE you leave product behind. Be prepared to collect any product that doesn't sell though, and repay THE WHOLESALE price when you do.
Theres a lot of shady ways to run a business, and the consignment thing is probably the top of the heap.



Queso Crisco, the more I think about this, the more crooked things I can think of... people suck "businessmen" more so never trust anyone in a suit that isn't getting married or buried
 
but wait... theres more...
when selling to stores, they will probably want to do a consignment deal, this is in the hopes that you dry up and forget to collect YOUR money.
Insist on them buying wholesale, i.e. they buy bundles at a lower cost, then sell them for whatever they want, point being they PAY you BEFORE you leave product behind. Be prepared to collect any product that doesn't sell though, and repay THE WHOLESALE price when you do.
Theres a lot of shady ways to run a business, and the consignment thing is probably the top of the heap.



Queso Crisco, the more I think about this, the more crooked things I can think of... people suck "businessmen" more so never trust anyone in a suit that isn't getting married or buried


Hey man, I'm rooting for him, I just want to set him up for success, better to game play this on AS than let him trip in the execution.
 
Hey man, I'm rooting for him, I just want to set him up for success, better to game play this on AS than let him trip in the execution.
I know, Just made you an example lol no harm meant.
Hell If I had half a clue when I was 14, I would of ran with my own business and never looked back (technically I kind of did? Tying Flies for fishing, but it wasn't my idea, and I wasn't really into it, plus a year or so later was the dreaded surrounded by rotten fish with nothing but muddy lake fish to eat for 3 days trip that pretty much killed any desire to do anything involving fishing)

But if 45 year old me, could reach back through time and B slap 14 year old me, self employment doing something I enjoy would be written on my palm.
 
Ok, don't let the nay sayers get you down (though Jolly does have some very good points)
that said, do some research (which I suppose this post is research lol) find out what sort of laws you need to be up on.

Each state varies on business practices (rather a lot btw)
But you will likely need to have a proper business license, which you may not be able to legally get until 18, if you want to sell wholesale to retailers, here in WA you also need a resale permit, and you have to keep track of BO taxes as well as what you spend and receive then pay taxes on the profit either quarterly or annually (again each state varies) Any of this legal BS could totally be taken on by a parent or drunkle/vodka aunt/grumpa/trusted neighbor, its just paperwork and its a stupid law to not let underage folks have legit businesses... If you were my nephew, I'd totally sign you up and push you along, turn 18 and sell it to you for a dollar (eyes wide open if you have to choose an adult for legal reasons FYI, they may be nice now, but 4 years and a successful business later even nice guys will see dollar signs its sucks but so do most people)

Anyway... As for getting retailers to sell your goods, you first need to have a reliable supply, and dependable delivery, if they need xx cords delivered Friday, you better have it ready BEFORE they call (this isn't always feasible, but you should strive to do your best in this regard)

As for kiln dried, there are commercially available kilns built and marketed just for this purpose, they are however not cheap, but the concept is fairly simple, heat at xx temp until xx moisture content or a set length of time (the time is to kill the bugs etc, moisture content is the guaranteed fresh stamp) Yer a smart person, all you really need is a big heat proof box and some sort of reliable heat input and temp/time control, a bunch of corrugated siding and a crab cooker or some other heat input(as the crab cooker is not exactly the safest) with a manual pyrometer (like a thermometer only more skookum) and a clock, maybe just maybe some fiberglass insulation for efficiency, add a couple vents so you don't build a steam bomb... stack loosely, cook until done (there are many many threads on kiln drying lumber, the concept is the same without all the saw work)

However all the technical BS aside chances are you live in a smallish town, and small towns tend to have opinions about gov interference so you might just find a gas station, or mom and pop fishing/camping/hunting type store that will gleefully sell your products for you, (and to be honest the hardware store types tend to have national supply chains, and likely won't want to bother with "some dumb kid") (and frankly you probably would hate dealing with that type anyway) (theres a guy in my town that sells at the grocery store, and a few others, he's built some reasonably skookum plywood boxes that live just outside the main entrance, and are lockable... folks take what they need on the way in or purchase on the way out like buying bagged ice each bundle is shrink wrapped and has a wad of kindling and sometimes some paper honestly i'm not too keen on the plastic shrink wrap, but there aren't a whole lot of other viable options)

as for making a deal, pull yer pants up high, waltz into the nearest likely culprit of a store, and DEMAND TO SEE THE MANAGER... they worst they can do is tell you no.... yer 14 time to get used to rejection anyway lol. (remember the stores that were rude... 3 years from now when they are begging you... charge em extra)

I'm rooting for you, even if it seems like the world isn't
Would a solar kiln work?
 

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