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Leslie Carothers

Easy cash flow for tough times

Dear Readers:

Every once in a while, an idea comes along that seems like a gift from heaven and the old adage, "if it seems too good to be true, it probably is" immediately enters one’s mind.

Well, read carefully and, if you’re in Vegas right now, act, because what you are about to read is a cash generator with no downside and I am pleased to be able to bring it to my faithful readers’ attention. There is no catch-it is just a truly good way to generate cash during this rough patch in our economy.

Here it is:

Furniture Today is owned by a company called Reed Elsevior-a multinational conglomerate. One of Furniture Today’s sister companies, RS MEANS-A Reed Construction Data company is the largest purveyor of construction data in the world. They are also a publisher of a series of book titles that are bestsellers at Lowe’s, Home Depot and on Amazon.com.

The VP of Sales and Marketing of RS MEANS, Sev Ritchie, is well known to many of you as the former president of Furniture Fan.

Sev has decided to invest in distributing the books in the home furnishings channel.

Here is the cash flow opportunity. It is simple.

Each book retails for approx. $21.95. The net profit to the distributor is $10.00 per book.

RS MEANS pays all inbound shipping and offers 60 day terms.

Each title is pre-packaged for counter display.  The minimum order per title is 21 books.

That’s it.

If you are a multi-store retailer or a big volume single store retailer-this is a compelling way to generate cash flow without incremental sales costs as there is no sales time involved. These books are impulse purchases and are well known to many of your customers already since they are the titles sold in the two major home improvement stores and the major online book purveyor in our country-channels that your customers more than likely are already shopping .

They have also just been picked up here in Vegas for distribution by Costco.

The books are beautifully written and laid out. The photography is upscale and full color.

One title, "How Your House Works, is the number one seller on Amazon.com in the home improvement category. Hundreds are sold EVERY DAY.

Depending on your size, you can have the covers of the books private labeled, you can sell the books as a re-seller, you can sell the books on your website, you can set up seminars based on the book titles, you can set up online discussion groups(call me for help on that!) or any other idea you may have relating to how to sell more of these books in order to help your consumers educate themselves about their homes and generate easy cash flow for your business.

The subjects of the books range from green home improvement ideas, universal design, estimating remodeling costs and many more. Each of you will be able to decide which of the many titles would most appeal to your customers. And, again, remember: the title "How Your House Works" needs to be part of your mix as it is the number one seller on Amazon.com

Could there be more? Yes.

RS MEANS is making available a certain percentage of the profits of each title you sell to WITHIT-Women In The Home Industries as they recognize the main buyers of these titles in the furniture channel will be your female shoppers. In addition, depending on the size of your order, an additional percentage can be made available to the charity of your choice. It is an easy way to help Habitat For Humanity or Help1Up or any of the other charities that your organization actively supports in your market areas.

RS MEANS is showing in Bldg. C, 4th floor, Retailer Resource Center. If you are in Vegas, please come by the booth to see the titles. Otherwise, please go to their website at www.rsmeans.com to see the titles. If you would like, email Sev Ritchie directly at severin.ritchie@reedbusiness.com and he will be happy to help you customize your order so that it benefits you in the largest possible way.

I hope this helps all of you. And, if you have any doubts, think of what Starbucks has done with Hear Music and the distribution of books in their stores. It has become a major revenue stream for them in the face of declining coffee sales.

This is the same opportunity for you. I hope it helps all of you weather these tough times.

And, if you’re reading this, please pass it on to everyone you know in your performance groups, etc. Let’s work together to get the word out. 

If you are in Vegas, please visit the RS MEANS space in the Retailer Resource Center on the 4th floor of Bldg. C. I will be there, so drop by and say hello and place your order.

Let me know the results or email me if you have any further questions. Good luck.