Discuss the process of getting your t-shirt line into brick and mortar stores and selling offline. Topics include industry tradeshows, events, line sheets, sales reps and other retailing tips and advice.
We just ended our relationship with a non-industry sales rep that we took on 90 days ago, paying him $500 per week. He had selling experience, but none in this industry. He learned very quickly, and was bringing in some good orders, but after 90 days, I guess he felt that he deserved more money, and asked for a raise. We put the numbers to paper, and came to the conclusion that at his current pay rate, he would have to write $1,500 of sales per week for us to break even. He was writing only about 1,000 per week, on average, and had not written any orders at all in 2 weeks. We asked him if he honestly felt that he was capable of writing at least $1,500 per week, and he stated, "NO, not at this time, due to the sluggish economy in this area". So he answered his own question as to his request as to an increase in pay. We then counter offered a base pay, plus commission, but he refused, sticking to his orginial pay "demand". I use the word "demand", as thru out the conversation, he would state "You understand; I may have to quit & find a company that will pay me what I need". We wish him the best of luck.
Bottom line, you have to be able to justify whatever you are willing to pay someone to take the time to learn the business on your "nickle", but at some point, have to have a return on your "investment".
I would suggest that you get someone that you know in the business that has a great personality.
You'll be surprised at the results you get from someone that believes in your poduct.
Was the rep local and you taught and train that person? For me I am looking for someone in a different area so it would be remote.
Yes, he was from this area, and both myself & my business partner trained him. I would suspect that hiring & training a sales rep "long distance" would be very difficult. We had him come in to the office each morning to go help him setup appointments, and work on quotes, and also in the late afternoon to go over the calls he made for the day, and answer any product questions that came up. After about 4-5 weeks, we cut it down to just one meeting each day in the late afternoon, and by the last 2 weeks, he was coming in every other day, and we would communicate by phone during the day. However, it was the last 2 weeks that he did not write any orders, so maybe the daily meetings were still necessary at that point, or something else was going on we did not know about.....
I tried a couple of young people to give them an opportunity and they were not in the biz and it didn't go anywhere. You need experience and relationships. It is all about those relationships. Wish you the best
Experience with non-industry sales reps? 
Re: Experience with non-industry sales reps? 
