8A – Solving The Problem
Though controversial, I have clearly stated my interest in creating a business that revolves around the sale of new firearms. Discounted, quality parts can be purchased online from a wide variety of sites, enabling me to take advantage of the price spread and possibly make a modest profit. I have done a lot of research into getting the necessary licenses to operate such a business, including an FFL and a manufacturing license. My only issue is that I am wary about purchasing items wholesale from distributors, assembling and milling lowers, and then re-selling them to prospective customers. I would need to cultivate a professional relationship with the distributors, which may be hard considering I will be profiting from the price gap created by my own work. This may seem like a minor problem, but it could turn into a potential lawsuit, rendering my business ineffective and a failure.
My solution to this issue would be to first contact the company and inquire about buying quotas of lower parts kits and other assembly requirements. The only part I am worried about is the actual lower, as seen below
The piece of hardware above is the only piece of the rifle that requires licensing and a background check at the gun shop. Every other piece of the firearm can be purchased effortlessly.
So, I will need to contact the company and make a valid case for purchasing large numbers of lowers, possibly including a part about marketing their brand and bringing more attention to their website for more publicity. By advertising their company in my store, I could point prospective customers to their site for after-market products and accessories. In return, I could receive a share of sales from that company by issuing discount codes to my own store customers.
I do not believe that your intentions of profiting from the price gap will lead to any law suits from the distributer. This is ought to be a very common thing to do and it make sense from your perspective and the manufacturer or distributer. Many people have the talent of locating customers and doing just the right marketing needed, which often is not done by the distributors. My father is an entrepreneur and much of his business is connecting distributers with clients by purchasing from one and selling it higher to the other. Eventually, he gets a license to distribute himself straight from the manufacturer. By the way I cannot not think about the movie Lord of War with Nicholas Cage as I am reading your posts. If you have not seen it, you got to check it out.
ReplyDeleteAh, it seems like you have read into the licensing issue that I had mentioned previously! I would not think that purchasing from distributors would be nothing more than some extra licensing on top of the previously mentioned. Most distribution work is done to other businesses instead of directly to customers. I used to work for a company that had a group of affiliate's that purchased products unbranded, so advertising the companies would probably not be required at all.
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