Concrete products dealer with direct delivery

Homeowners, small landscaping crews and builders who want a single local contact to quote, order and deliver materials.

You earn a margin between the supplier's price and your quote, plus a delivery or coordination fee. You only buy product once a customer has ordered.

• Quoting and calculating quantities for a job
• Sales and customer service
• Organising orders and delivery schedules
• Building supplier relationships

• Your supplier's delivery times, since you carry the risk if a delivery is late or wrong
• Damaged or short deliveries, so agree clearly who pays for returns and breakage
• Commercial general liability insurance, plus any home-based business licence your municipality requires
• Register for GST/HST once revenue passes the small supplier threshold, and check provincial sales tax rules
• Check deposit and payment terms so you aren't paying suppliers before customers pay you
• Winter slowdown in many provinces, so the work is seasonal

Startup costs are typically estimated at around $3,000 to $15,000, depending on your set-up, insurance and how you arrange supplier deals. Monthly revenue is estimated at around $3,000 to $15,000, depending on how many orders you win and the size of each job.

Check your supplier's delivery times, since you carry the risk if a delivery is late or wrong. Also check who pays for damaged or short deliveries, commercial general liability insurance, any home-based business licence, GST/HST registration, and deposit and payment terms.

Estimates start at about 10 hours a week for quoting, taking orders and scheduling deliveries. The work is seasonal because of the winter slowdown in many provinces. Useful skills include calculating quantities, customer service and building supplier relationships.