You are correct, you need to be able to walk the walk and talk the talk. All types of business have their own language, and you usually have to be an "insider" to get inside.
You are also correct in saying you very well may not get paid on time. They will want 30 or 60 day terms and take 90 to 120 to pay. They are very organized at losing paperwork. "Oh, we never got that invoice." "Do you have a signed receipt for that.?"
Of course, they can sometimes pay twice for the same invoice, which can give you a cushion.
And they also have a way of paying by returning what didn't sell for full credit after the season is over.
The sad fact is that you work on their terms, no matter what you believe when you get into the deal. You ship goods and they pay when they get around to it. In the meantime, you've bought equipment and hired staff. You'll be late getting paid, be behind on your equipment payments and soon paying unemployment because you cannot meet payroll, since your money is all tied up.
Here's a brief notice of the end of a chain called Peoples Pottery that left literally hundreds of small business crafters, many in the same stages of their businesses as many here, dead in the water.
"The Rochester newspaper reported today that Peoples Pottery filed chapter 11
on November 29. Since it owes more than 1000 creditors [most of them
craftsmen] I am sure that some of you will be interested.
www.democratandcronicle.com has the story."
Many were single person shops who expanded on the promise of big sales to this company. They all ended in hearbreak and turmoil. All the while the couple who owned Peoples Pottery were basking in the limelight in their home town as being great benefactors.
">I kept thinking "Peoples Pottery, Peoples Pottery." Finally a light went
>off in my head. Arrogant, look down his nose buyer; stuck a bunch of people
>in Kentucky. Thank God he didn't give me an order. It's a sorry sob who
>will stick it to the little guy!
Jean, and whomever else asked...
I don't know the particulars on the bankruptcy of People's Pottery. I do
know a few other things...
Robbie Dein started People's Pottery in Ithaca, NY in the 1970s. I started
dealing with him in 1979. He was an honorable gallery owner, very
supportive and sold a lot of work. Sometime in the early 90s, I believe, he
opened another store in an upscale mall in Syracuse, NY, and developed a
business model to put dozens of them across the country into upscale malls.
At some point he sold the business to a couple from Rochester, NY, and they
were the ones who took it into bankruptcy. Robbie helped them for a while
identifying artisans whose work he thought would do well in the environment.
He is not, as far as I know, in any way responsible for the bankruptcy or
stiffing the many people making pots who got stuck with the bad account. A
further irony in this saga is that at the same time this couple was going
under with People's Pottery, they were given a philanthropy award in
Rochester for their donations to cancer research. People's Pottery was in a
form of bankruptcy that allowed for it to be brought back if certain
conditions were met. The stores in Rochester have been up and running for
the past few years. It sounds as though they are slowly expanding again. I
don't know if the same people are still in charge, who they are dealing
with, how they are dealing with suppliers, etc."
I've personally sold to Montgomery Ward, JC Penny, Sears, Pep Boys< Firestone, Goodyear and other national and regional retailers. Their employees, from the guy at the receiving dock to the supervisor of the Accounts Payable department couldn't care less about you getting paid.
If everything fits, you get your money. If a receipt is missing, it's your fault. If an invoice gets lost, it's your fault.
Not all are that way. Some send blank checks and you fill them out when you make your invoice. But they are in the minority. It's a tough way to make a living.
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How to get into department stores?? 
Re: How to get into department stores?? 
