# Can someone explain about being a distributor?



## davel (Jan 29, 2011)

What does it entail and how would it benefit me becoming one? There are some voids in areas I know of but need to learn more about this. Distributor of packages and queens...not equipment.

Thanks for the advice/info!

Dave


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## JRG13 (May 11, 2012)

Is this a rhetorical question, because it's worded like one.


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## davel (Jan 29, 2011)

Umm, no..I'm not a commercial beekeeper. Just thought I would ask for information from the people who would know.
Thanks.


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## JRG13 (May 11, 2012)

I never heard of queen distributors, but packages and nucs, yes. The main thing you need to be a distributor is a customer base that allows you to buy bulk packages at a discounted rate, then selling them at a retail price. If you need to haul them, a cooled trailer is probably the best way to go. Other than that, it's about sourcing bulk bees and providing queens if you want to make your own packages but don't have the hive numbers to shake enough bees from.

How all this benefits you..... only you can find that out....


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## davel (Jan 29, 2011)

Thank you JRG13...makes sense.


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## Tenbears (May 15, 2012)

I guess I was one at one time. A 3# package was selling for about $12.00 ea. I would advertise in the paper for buyers beginning in September If I purchase 100 package I could get them for $9.00 meaning I would make $300.00 on the deal. Fuel was $0.25 a gallon And the trip would take 12 hours one way. That was back in the days when I did not mind sleeping in a vehicle. Remember each package lost eats the profit made on 3. and any unforeseen expenses can play a major role in your investment. I do not know Exactly How well I was financially compensated for tis venture if at all, but I made contacts and friends in the beekeeping community that have benefited me my entire life. Sort of a foot in the door thing. And as a teen I loved it as a major part of my life.


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## Oldtimer (Jul 4, 2010)

See if you can organise a supplier, then advertise and see how many orders you can take.

You will have experienced customers, and also brand new beekeepers who know nothing, and you will be expected to be a problem solver for customers who don't know much / anything and make mistakes or read things wrong, you will also be asked to replace bees that were fine when you sold them and were killed by the customers own ignorance.
Beyond the skills needed to handle those things, organisation and time skills are critical.

I'd suggest starting small, it is possible to lose money so limit your potential losses during the first learning curve season.

I think the average beekeeper believes package distribution is a very lucrative thing, until they try it. The breeders make money, less so the distributors, unless they have their loss control and customer relations nailed right down.


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## The Honey Householder (Nov 14, 2008)

I've been a dealer of packages for over 20 years and started dealing nucs 4 years ago. It takes year to build up the customers to make it a good business. This isn't something you just one day buy and transport 500 packages. 

The dealer puts all the money (a load of packages $60K) out up front in hopes that buyers show up for the goods on time. Packages and queens don't have a shelf life. Nucs will last a little longer, depending on how they are made up. 

You'll get beekeepers of all kinds. From the ones that buy 50-100 package to resell, alway to the new beekeeper that needs all the equipment and 5 hours of your time to get them started. I've been in the business long enough that 90% of my business is bulk sales for less money and headaches.


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## RAK (May 2, 2010)

Start off small and grow slow. 

Basically you buy a thousand 3 pounders for 80 bucks a pop, truck them home and resell for 150. Make an easy 70k and call it good for the year. 

On a serious note, this is a high risk business. nucs are easier to deal with imo.


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## ChuckReburn (Dec 17, 2013)

Yes, high risk business. I know of more than 1 instance where someone thought they were going to get rich hauling packages, cooked or suffocated the hole load and lost everything... well in 1 case, it was the customers who put down deposits that lost everything.


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