But I also have to keep lots of inventory that can be wasted if certain situations come up. When things go wrong, it would be worse to only have one or two large customers. If they get rid of you, you're left with nowhere to go. Taking chances is important, but not having all my eggs in one basket has helped me a great deal. Some distributors say that in order for the retail market to be worthwhile, they need to sell to a major account.
Some vendors think the only way to make money is to sell by the truckload.
But he says smaller stores are viable targets because they tend to order many different products, and they tend to be a bit more loyal than huge companies. That's fine with me. That leaves guys like me with an important place to fill a vacuum that's being created. Small companies give nice, steady business with lots of reorders. Verlotta also supplies the store 2,000 repair tags every few months, as well as 2-part work order slips and business cards.