I want to open a small business that resells computer hardware, but how should I go about contacting manufacturers?

Thank you for your response, and I plan on opening up in Jersey City, New Jersey, or somewhere in the north Jersey area. And the business would do more than simply resell parts, I plan on offering various premade custom PCs (which would be customizable, with uses ranging from the typical office user to the most hardcore enthusiast), a service to build an entirely customized PC based on a client's needs/specifications, PC/laptop repair, reselling laptops, data recovery, PC optimization, and reselling software. A store that specialized in these services i feel is something hardly present in New Jersey (of course there'd be Micro Center), however you do bring up a valid point. If theres not much money to be made to survive, let alone thrive, then it might not be worth it. I'm not sure how much more revenue these additional services would bring, if any, to a business such as this. However, I never revealed this until now, sorry about that. However, what would constitute me being worth the time and effort of manufacturers/wholesalers?

yup, that is the risk of opening/running your own business, you never know if your going to make any money, or how long your going to stay in business. There should be all sorts of PC parts wholesalers who will do business with your store, you should be able to research the parts manufacturer's websites and see who they sell to and then call up the wholesalers and see about setting up an account, etc. Then you have to deal with the big killer of 'mom & pop' computer repair shops, the big box stores (Best Buy, etc.) and the Internet, so you have to offer services that people can't find online or get from the big box stores. Also, do you have any technical training or background in computers? Have you taking any classes on running a small business?

Yeah, i suppose thats what I'm going to have to risk. As far as the wholesalers go, I'll look more into that around the time i actually open things up. I'm not sure if I'm going to start this year home-based (obviously not doing EVERYthing i envisioned, and most likely doing one particular set of services), or just wait next year when I'm able to save up a lot more for startup capital. However, concerning the competition of bigbox stores, i think i shouldnt have a hard time offering more than what they offer in terms of services (Best Buy's "Geek Squad" really has a poor rep) and variety of hardware (or just products in general. thats something ive noticed in many stores like Best Buy even before this idea of starting a business came into my head). The main problems I see, though, would be persuading (in essence, marketing) people to come to my store as opposed to just running off to that big store they already know. Of all the local competitors though, I think only Micro Center should be the one I pay the most attention to (although its not THAT close to my area). Making myself a viable competitor on the internet i also kind of see a problem (competing against websites like iBuyPower, Cyberpower, and so on). I'm not sure whether to have a site created for me down the line from scratch (hiring people, basicallY), or just go through a website like http://GoDaddy.com and register a domain name through there. And no i dont have any FORMAL training in technical stuff/computers. All i have is years of independent research, a love for technology (to keep up with what the latest stuff is, the ins and outs of it, whats coming in the future, etc), and a few months of building computers for not only myself but a couple other people. Also i haven't taken any formal classes on running a small business yet, just weeks of reading various sources (articles and a couple books) on beginning, financing, planning, etc.

well on top of what your going to do, I would highly suggest obtaining your A+ certification and maybe also your Network+ and Security+ certifications, this way you will be able to advertise your an industry professional and can be trusted with your work and advise. A+ info http://certification.comptia.org/getCertified/certifications/a.aspx Network+ info http://certification.comptia.org/getCertified/certifications/network.aspx Security+ info http://certification.comptia.org/getCertified/certifications/security.aspx Because these days, any 12 year old kid can put computer parts together and get Windows installed, you have to market your skills and experience and having industry certifications to backup your claims of being a professional.

Hmm this should help a lot, because i know even a younger kid can put together a PC with some minor research as well. Thanks for your help. I think this is a good step in the right direction for now. I'll continue to do my business research as well as this on the side. Thanks again!

np. good luck.

Also, here are links to a few trusted wholesalers of IT parts, etc. D&H http://www.dandh.com ASI http://www.asipartner.com/Home/tabid/38/Default.aspx Ingram Micro http://www.ingrammicro.com/

Go to http://Alibaba.com, you can find every thing made in china. It's like an Ebay site were companies rely on there reputations so less of a chance of getting burnt.

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