Roman Kagan has built a successful niche business, AppliancePartsPros.com, selling hard-to-find appliance parts to do-it-yourself types around the country. The site was launched in 1999 featuring about 300 products and in seven years has grown to showcase more than 1 million parts for 170,000 appliance models. Along the way, the business has grown to about $5 million in annual sales with the site having about 150,000 unique visitors per month.
I first had the idea of selling appliance parts online in 1997 while working for a local parts distributor. I would print out the orders from the site in the morning and then, during my lunch break, I would stop by my local parts store to fill them. Then on to UPS to ship them out. I did this for a couple of years.
In 2002, I quit my job, rented a small warehouse and hired a programmer. We began to work on the new version of the site.
A 16-hour work day was the norm, and I am very thankful for my wife’s support and understanding. She was (and still is) taking care of the financial aspect of the business, something I am really not good at.
I think the most important thing is to stay focused. Plan everything out, then work according to your plan. Do not expect quick results. Something you do today may not bring any results until six months from now.
“Take care of your customers. Be honest with them. They will spread the word and be your best sales team. Don’t give up. The Internet is a wonderful thing. With so many opportunities, I wouldn’t dream of doing business any other way.” Kagan said.
Photo by Practical Ecommerce.
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