What issues should I pay attention to when partnering with relatives? I have been doing small business in Shenzhen for 2 years but have not produced any hit products. Recently, my relative invited me to do e-commerce with him. How should I choose?

Anonymous user

Tell me about your relatives:

My cousin's husband has worked in many industries. He used to be a salesperson and a manager. Now he has started his own business and opened a company (not in the e-commerce industry). He runs the business with his wife. Their living standard is average and they don't wear or eat branded food. My cousin's husband and his family have been there for almost 20 years, so they have some connections and factory resources, and they know many big bosses who run factories. This is also the reason why he wants to do e-commerce.

Two years ago, he mentioned to me about doing e-commerce together, but I declined and chose to be a small employee in Shenzhen. Now he mentioned it again, and his attitude is quite serious. He didn't say which platform, but he may prefer domestic e-commerce platforms. I personally prefer foreign ones, and he doesn't object. The most important thing is to make money.

Here are some of my thoughts:

Reasons for going

1. You can work on your own, with more freedom, and making money is another matter.
   
2. After one or two years of hard work, you may be able to earn several times more than you do now.
   
3. Small county town, life is comfortable, rent is low, no need to squeeze into the subway (escape
   

4. Relatives can receive some care
   

Reasons for not wanting to go

1. Worry about future economic disputes and poor relationship management
   
2. I was worried about my ability. I had been working on Amazon for more than two years, but I didn’t have any hit products to show off. My performance was always mediocre. I knew I was holding myself back. I opened a small Amazon store and tried a few products, but they didn’t take off and I didn’t stick to them, so I didn’t have enough confidence in myself.
   
3. My parents are not very optimistic about the character of my cousin's husband. It is difficult for my parents to evaluate. 50% of the time, they are fantasizing about others instead of communicating with them face to face. My parents' opinions are just for reference. I personally think that my cousin's wife is not a bad person, she just likes to brag. I just don't want to make things awkward with my parents.
   
4. My cousin's husband didn't have many detailed plans, or maybe I didn't ask him in detail. If he didn't make any achievements this time, where would he go in the future? (This is a long-term plan.)
   

5. I am a little tired of the e-commerce industry and want to change industries in the future, but I don’t have much professional knowledge accumulated yet.
   

My biggest confusion at the moment is, how much can the factory resources owned by my cousin's husband really play a role? If I do it myself and sell a lot, can't I go to the factory offline myself? If I really want to start my own business, this shouldn't be the most difficult part, right?

He didn't mention the details of the funding. After I went there, he helped me find a job first and then talked about it after working for a while. That's roughly the situation. What do you think?

"Wonderful Reply"

Anonymous user

Agree with: ak477, CW99, YIKUN, RUTHLESSAUTO, self-taken more »

If you go there, you will most likely be treated like a slave, and you will have to arrange and do everything for you; if you succeed abroad, he will say it is because of his good resources, but if you fail, it will definitely be your fault; if you succeed domestically, he will also say it is because of his good resources, but if you fail, it must be because you were born at the wrong time.

Here is an analysis of some of my thoughts

Reasons for going
1. You can work on your own, have more freedom, and make money is another conclusion: this is inevitable

2. After one or two years of hard work, you may be able to earn several times more than you currently earn. Conclusion: Daydreaming

3. Small county town, life is more comfortable, rent is low and there is no need to squeeze into the subway (escape conclusion: this is inevitable

4. Relatives can receive some care Conclusion: Sexual fantasy

Reasons for not wanting to go:
1. Worry about financial disputes in the future and not being able to handle relationships well <br>Conclusion: Being timid, hesitant, and not having the courage to face difficulties independently

2. Worry about your own ability. After working on Amazon for more than two years, your performance was mediocre. You opened a small Amazon store and tried a few products, but they didn’t work and you didn’t stick to it. <br>Conclusion: You are not confident in your own ability. You should go to a small company to learn their product selection standards, see how they survive with a small capital, and see what kind of products they make. It would be best if you go to a small company that gets its products from 1688. Then keep up with the learning of product selection and promotion techniques.

3. My parents are not very optimistic about the character of my cousin's husband. It is difficult for my parents to evaluate. 50% of the time, they are fantasizing about others instead of communicating with them face to face. The opinions of my parents are just for reference. I personally think that my cousin's wife is not bad, but she likes to brag. I just don't want to make things awkward with my parents . Conclusion: Listen to 50% of the parents. This person can get along, but you can't have a further relationship with him. Don't cooperate or have a deep friendship. Just maintain a polite relationship. From the perspective of human nature, people are living better than you now, so they are naturally confident in front of you, do something glorious, or help you, so that they can sound good in front of relatives.

4. My cousin’s husband didn’t have many detailed plans, or maybe I didn’t ask him in detail. If he didn’t make any achievements this time, where would he go in the future? (This is a long-term plan)
Conclusion: I like to brag when I am drunk. I can take you to heaven and earth. As for what kind of monsters there are in this world, who knows. If your cousin-in-law said he would take you to heaven and earth before he drank, without saying anything about him, would it make you feel confused? If you really want to know, you go and ask for the answer to the specific plan you want to know, and the answer he can give you is definitely: come back first, and then we will sit down and discuss it.

5. I am a little tired of the e-commerce industry. I want to change industries in the future but I don’t have much professional knowledge . Conclusion: You are not confident enough, or the feedback from this industry is negative. When you really travel thousands of miles a day, go through this experience, and know what cows, turtles, snakes, gods, and gyokuro syrup are, you will naturally fall in love with this industry. Without funds, background, and guidance, deepening your career in one industry is your only choice for success.

Final conclusion:

You need to accumulate more experience, and you must move forward with a purpose and direction. If your current company is not suitable for your business model, then you should find the right path while you are still young. Don’t be afraid of not making money. As long as you are not starving, I will do it for 3,000 yuan. Determine the business model and try it slowly. You must set a time limit for yourself, such as giving yourself a year to try. If it doesn’t work, you can switch back to a profitable one. Remember that you can’t stick to one company and learn everything. Pick up your own Amazon store. Isn’t the end of e-commerce to work alone? Isn’t the end of work to hone skills? Don’t lose the essence.

This society is a good society. At least you won't starve. What everyone competes for is time and age. Time is money, and money can never be earned enough. Exercise is the essential law of society. What you need is more action and less fantasy.

Are you also a young leek ? Guangzhou

Boss, your comments are so accurate. Can I be your friend? I feel like my life needs someone who can accurately see all my problems.

Jon yChua296 • Shenzhen

@請問你也小李菜: Your words are so in line with your ID

Open Society • Shenzhen

@請問你也小葱菜吗: Like everyone else, I think your reply is cute hahahaha~ Seriously, what you need is to develop your independent thinking ability and critical spirit (which can be understood as continuous self-reflection and improvement)

Heart Signal 888 - Fighting

Agree with: Red Wine and Black Tea, Saturday, Blue Ocean Fishing Expert, Big Pancake, Open Society More »

On Amazon's success in going it alone
If you have been working on Amazon for two or three years, it means you have a certain foundation. Now is the time to hone yourself. Usually, we will face a choice at this time.

1. Continue to work
2. Start your own business
3. Start a business in partnership

Usually there is still a stage at this time, because starting your own business and working are two completely different things. There are a lot of details that you have to worry about by yourself. When you really start, you will know how troublesome it is. For those who have never started a business before, the most difficult part is often the process from 0 to 1, and this process requires you to consider every step carefully.

In fact, a better suggestion is that if Amazon wants to start its own business, you must find ways to get in touch with the factory resources while you are at work. You can find bosses who have factories but want to enter Amazon. Because you have experience, everything is easy to talk about at the beginning . You just look for these bosses who are just starting out to work for Amazon. Go there for further study for a year. I believe that after a year of training, you will know whether you can do it. If you can't even do it with the factory's resources, then you will definitely fail the first time you go alone.

On the contrary, if you build up your factory's performance and get to know some owners of other factories, when you start your own business, things will be much better and your chances of success will be much greater.

My final suggestion is to find a capable factory that has not yet entered Amazon's factory, and build Amazon for it. Even if it fails, it doesn't matter. It only takes one year, at most two years, and you will have the ability to start your own business . If you succeed, I believe those bosses will definitely treat you much better than your brother-in-law.

Saturday • Shenzhen

My former supervisor seemed to have the same idea. She returned to Shijiazhuang from Shenzhen and found a factory that didn’t have Amazon business. She took charge of it, but she failed to make it work.

Chasing the Sun in the Daytime • Shenzhen

Now I have joined a company where the boss is in the supply chain, but I don’t know anything and I am the only one running the business. I am starting from scratch and have no experience in producing hit products. I chose to fight alone here in order to lay the foundation for my future entrepreneurship.

Anonymous user

Agree from: zhejiahuohenlan, rainco

Your brother-in-law has never been in this industry, so he doesn't know the bitterness of this industry. He only heard that some people made money to buy houses and cars. Usually, people who have never been in e-commerce think that e-commerce will not lose money. They don't understand the logic, and money has to be poured in all the time. Your brother-in-law doesn't know this, so he wants you to do it.

You have been doing this for two years, so you should know that Amazon has been so competitive in recent years that not everyone can get involved. If you want to work with your brother-in-law, you probably have to see what his bottom line is, and you might even ruin your relationship. This is just my personal opinion, for your own reference.

Besides, if your parents are experienced people, they will not judge people without any reference. So you should think about the worst case scenario and whether you can accept it, instead of looking at the best case scenario and whether you should go.

Anonymous user

First of all, my cousin's husband has 20 years of offline experience and supplier resources. He can get a lower minimum order quantity and hold the payment for a longer time, and the factory's original profit will not be reduced. If he hasn't thought about doing it for 2 years, he is probably a half-baked one. If he has already had an idea and has taken action, and then asks you to help, it means that he has a certain appreciation, and you can consider following him.

As for why we let relatives join in the partnership, on the one hand, it does sound better when relatives bring relatives, and on the other hand, outsiders may complain when they use it, but relatives are easy to use and will keep using it without you having any complaints or being able to express your grievances.
 
So my conclusion is that you don't have to focus on the Amazon platform and start your own business. After all, the cost of starting an Amazon business is relatively high and the cycle is long. We can only say that in the long run, Amazon will ultimately be the most comfortable choice, with both volume and high profits. However, without sufficient resources and operational technology in the past 1-2 years, it has been difficult to achieve great results. It is better to start with a platform with smaller volume and less competition. Moreover, product selection requires taking root in one category and studying it in detail. It can be said that product selection technology is the result of one's own input bit by bit.

Anonymous user

What everyone should be concerned about is the "later economic disputes". In fact, economic disputes can only be avoided by settling accounts clearly in most cases.

1. Negotiate the shares, for example: money: technology = 7: 3, your cousin's husband: your investment = 9: 1, your cousin's husband 0.9*0.7=0.63, you 0.1*0.7+0.3=0.37;
   

2. Discuss the exit mechanism;
   

3. Independent accounting accounts;
   

4. Produce profit statements regularly;
   
   

You have to get paid for your work, but you also have to account for costs, hold regular meetings to report on your work, and clearly list your expenses and income. These are just some examples. In fact, if you want to start a business, there are more details and more things to consider. I just want to throw out some ideas for discussion.

Ryoma111

In fact, don't read the above nonsense. First of all, you have to see whether you are investing in technology or capital. If you don't need to invest money and you have registered shares, then definitely go for it. There is basically no risk. Once successful, it will not be a matter of a monthly salary of tens of thousands, but a matter of hundreds of thousands of dividends at the end of the year. Why not give it a try? Even if you are finally abandoned, so what?

If you have registered shares, and he buys your shares, whether it is calculated according to the company's profits or assets, you can let your partner spend tens or hundreds of millions, or even tens of millions, to buy your shares. Even if you are cleared out, what have you lost? You have the experience and the first pot of gold, and you can work on your own or just lie low. The prerequisite is to write everything into the rules and into the partnership agreement, such as regular disclosure of financial statements, dividend time, and exit mechanism. With these agreements, even if it comes to a lawsuit, it is a sure win. This is what I did, and my current experience is that it is thousands or hundreds of times better than working for someone else.

Anonymous user

Agree with: zhejiahuohenlan, Adam002, Saturday, Beneme, I want to work hard to make money more »

Excuse me, if he really had the so-called 20 years of industry "resources", he would have already started his own business and made a fortune. He has been waiting for two years, waiting for you, a small Amazon employee, to be the pioneer? If his so-called resources can be considered resources, then what is Masayoshi Son who stood behind Jack Ma back then? That is a real resource, and it is a resource if he is willing to support you at the critical moment.

ZEXU110

Agree from: wahahahahahaha , Adam002 , lucky9999 , ink painting , desert fish more »

Ask about the product, the funding, the platform, and how much loss or how long you can wait . Then analyze the market situation from the product and platform, and evaluate how confident you are in making it work. There is a reason why everyone opposes it, because the description alone is too vague...

Anonymous user

Agree from: algerdeng, zhejiahuohenlan, Fat Man Runs Fast, Kaifa Laoqing, Adam002 More »

It seems that you can only rely on luck to succeed. Your brother-in-law seems unreliable and has no experience. He only has some so-called factory resources. You are in the industry, but you have no success experience. In addition, partnerships are always prone to failure and breakup. I suggest you work hard, otherwise you will lose your job and your relationship with your sister.

Anonymous user

Agree from: zhejiahuohenlan

I don't know how to evaluate you. You want to work alone but don't know much about it. You believe your "cousin's husband"'s words. What does he mean by finding you a job first, and then you will know your mistake when you start working on the land with a basic salary of 4,000. He gave you a brief introduction to the so-called factory resources and product lines, which is a little bit of sincerity. From your words, it seems that your cousin's husband is just talking nonsense.

Anonymous user

Many people come to talk about this as experienced people, but they won’t take you to do profitable projects

1. From what you said, your cousin's husband's resources will not be of any help to your business. The probability of failure is very high. The success of entrepreneurship does not depend on funds, but on your own courage.
   

2. First, you need to work as a manager, for example, if you are an ordinary Amazon operator, you need to be at least a supervisor.

Wild Wheat - Soho Decade

I don't recommend going. They are just to let you test the waters and see if you can bear the consequences of this test. You know the current environment, all kinds of competition. The international environment is not good, and the domestic environment is even more conflict-prone. If you have a stable job, stay put first. If you want to give it a try, you can give it a try, but it is highly likely that the outcome will not be very good. That's all I have to say.

yuxiaoxiao

From experience, never form a partnership with relatives. Brothers and sisters will turn against each other and you can only share the good times but not the bad times. When you have no money, you can discuss it with him. When you have money, he can only do more. You can't do more than him. If you do more, you will be kicked out.

k olina • Jiujiang

@yuxiaoxiao : I've learned the same lesson from my own partnership with a relative. No matter who you work with, you must sign a contract in advance and make it clear what you can think of. Human nature cannot stand the test of interests.

Huaishui Wuzhiqi

Agree with: Beneme, zhejiahuohenlan, Adam002, ink painting, summer spring more »

He himself has no experience, and the so-called resources are just superficial. . . You should either start your own business or work honestly in a company, and don't get involved in too many financial matters with your relatives.