# Selling nucs to just queens?



## Matt903 (Apr 8, 2013)

I feel funny about posting in the commercial forum, since I am just a sideliner, but I needed some business advice. I have been selling nucs now for several years, which has been successful. My business model to date has been to sell a lot of nucs, and a few queens, all queens in the nucs are bred and raised by me. I am thinking about switching over and selling queens exclusively. I've got the land for it, and have just completed a new bee house / shop behind my home. I really enjoy the queen rearing and breeding aspect of the business. I am trying to think of drawbacks that I might not be thinking of. For instance, I could produce around 1000 queens a season, could that many be sold? I know I always sell out of nucs, but queens are different. Nucs are sold in large lots a couple times a year, whereas queens would be sold from April until September. I would be worried that I would get stuck with hundreds of queens in the fall. Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated, as I am sure there is something I am not thinking of. Financially, my bee business helps my family, but is not the sole income.


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## Gumpy (Mar 30, 2016)

Matt903 said:


> I would be worried that I would get stuck with hundreds of queens in the fall. Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated, as I am sure there is something I am not thinking of. Financially, my bee business helps my family, but is not the sole income.


So you overwinter them in nucs and sell those nucs in the spring with a highly productive queen. Not seeing a downside.


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## clyderoad (Jun 10, 2012)

Matt, I'm hesitant to offer any advice but will offer my thoughts.
Queens can be shipped quite easily and so opens up a very large potential sales area for you in comparison to nuc sales. With few exceptions they can be shipped out from April until September to most everywhere. 
You'll have to think about shipping details (how, cost, weather related no-go zones, etc) and be part weatherman and geographer to protect your business, and customers, from lost, dead, late shipments. Shipping will be an important skill to learn to keep the wheels moving, as will good book keeping and communication.
There is a market, I believe, for good solid queens. No need to get fancy but certain areas prefer one bee breed over others so if you can, 2 types may prove to your advantage, say Italian VSH and NW Carniolans. Those 2 types will cover a lot of the country. Recently, smaller quantity queen buyers are experiencing trouble getting good spring queens. Some better known queen breeders have put a minimum quantity per order and others save April for long established big customers. This shuts out those wanting 25 or 40 queens in the spring for nucs etc. in snow country. Late summer/early fall queens are sure to sell if they have desirable traits.
Practice good solid business acumen at all times. No empty promises or tall tales. 

Maybe test the waters making/selling a few hundred at first while still selling nucs? 
clyderoad


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## squarepeg (Jul 9, 2010)

matt, i see that madisonville is not too far up the cumberland plateau from my location. i'd be willing to bet that you have some of the same feral survivor genetics lurking in the woods around there as we have in this area.

if you seriously ramp up your queen production in that way and are interested in propagating from this proven treatment free stock i would be willing to supply a couple a breeders from down here.


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## Ian (Jan 16, 2003)

Why change a successful business model? 
Keep revenue streaming with nucs, add on the queen business as demand grows. 
Use your surplus queens to build nucs for next year.


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## ruthiesbees (Aug 27, 2013)

If you can find a way to successfully bank the mated queens and overwinter them for early spring sales, at a premium, you will be golden. Everyone is looking for spring queens in March.


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## jean-marc (Jan 13, 2005)

I'm thinking like Ian, "If it ain't broke no need fixing it". Put 50 or 100 or 200 mating nucs on the ground as well and go for it. Beekeeping business is pretty simple, just do it. Take care of the bees and the bees will take care of you. Take care of your customers and your customers will take care of you.

I'm not so much into analysis of business models and so on, because Mother Nature has a few words to say about it all.

Evidently if your customers like your nucs and apparently they do because you sell out, then they will be more than willing to try your queens. 50 or 100 of the Mann Lake mini mating nucs is not a large investment, nor are the bees necessary to stock them. Go for it.

Jean-Marc


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## AR1 (Feb 5, 2017)

Sounds like a plan you can gradually move into, not something you have to immediately jump into whole-hog. Since you have satisfied customers, keep that side of the business going and them happy. Add in queens gradually and see how many people want them. Your nucs must occasionally lose queens, and your nuc buyers probably need emergency queens for their other hives too. Let them know you can back up your nucs and back them up in emergencies. They will be happy and tell others. Learn the ropes on a smaller scale, make your mistakes early and be ready to supply satisfaction to customers when you do make mistakes. Then, in a year or two you can advertise more widely.
Just my two cents!


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## mbc (Mar 22, 2014)

I sell a few hundred queens a year and could happily produce many times this many however, like you, I'd be worried about getting left with an unnecessary large number at seasons end.
I believe selling queens is all about developing the market for them, don't put the cart before the horse.


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## Skinner Apiaries (Sep 1, 2009)

The two business sides are not exclusive. Nucs give you a hole to throw excess bees and queens in, Queens is just the fast money. I would say "oh it dries up in May" but apparently I can't find anything right now for some drone mother's for August so I am very very wrong. Maybe build up baby nucs and use standard nucs and boxes to hold bees, have left over make a yard of 1 frame and a shake splits with leftover Queens and beetle traps away from other yards so they don't get robbed to death, lose 25%, feed them, treat em, dump em. The way things going you can sell any form of bees at a premium


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## Sunday Farmer (Nov 13, 2013)

clyderoad said:


> Maybe test the waters making/selling a few hundred at first while still selling nucs?
> clyderoad


Matt, I used masonite divider boards to make 2 and 3 frame nucs this spring in NC. I put fondant on the bottom board. I caught queens out of small nucs or moved the divider board over to draw out foundation. You can always catch one and combine. Anyways, I'm mentioning cause it might be a good hybrid way to focus on queen sales. Literally you can just catch and drop cells, or catch and unite to either sell a whole nuc or overwinter.


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