This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
[Music]
One of the cool things about making this podcast for so many years, and of course, so many episodes over those years, is I have gained a surface knowledge of an incredible number of topics. Now, when I say surface knowledge, I mean, I really don't know a lot about all these topics, but I just know a little bit. And I've heard of things, or I've come to learn of things that I never knew anything at all about before. One of these topics was rain barrels. Maybe you know much more about these things than I do, but just in case you are equally ignorant, a rain barrel is a container, typically a large container, 40 to 80 gallons, that collects and stores rainwater from a roof via the home's gutter downspout.
And so, basically, people use these to reduce municipal water use, prevent runoff, and have a steady supply of chlorine-free water for gardens or plants. Okay, so that's what a rain barrel is. To the point of today's episode, 'cause why am I telling you this? This is Side Hustle School. We look at side hustle ideas.
And today we are hearing from a listener who's wondering about importing this item, rain barrels, from the Netherlands. So can you do this? This listener loves rain barrels. She's really into it. She's found the perfect one in the Netherlands, but she lives in the US.
Might she be able to partner with the company to become their national distributor? This is her idea. Let's look at it. I'll try to be as helpful as I can. And just in case you're not into rain barrels, let's see how we can relate this to something that might be applicable to you as well.
Stay tuned. I know it's quite the setup, but please stay tuned. [Music]
Hi, this is Katie from Omaha, Nebraska. I'm thinking about starting a side hustle involving rain barrels. I found a rain barrel that I love, but it's made in the Netherlands and they told me that they don't sell in the United States.
Should I try to find a way to partner with this company to distribute these rain barrels? Or would it be better to find a manufacturer myself and distribute it? Thank you. [Music]
All right, Katie, thank you for giving me my introduction to the world of rain barrels. Did a little quick research.
Basically, you've got two different paths here, very different paths in terms of the partnership or finding a manufacturer yourself. So let's consider why you might choose one over the other. If you are a distributor, you don't have anything to worry about making your product. And that's a big thing, right? It's a big benefit.
You just have to get it to the US. That might be expensive. It might take a while, especially these days, lots of concerns about tariffs and such, but eventually your product just shows up. Whereas if you are manufacturing the product, there's a lot more complexity. You need at least one vendor who will produce that item.
It might be multiple vendors involved. Then you still have that shipping issue unless you're making it locally, of course. Making your own potentially comes with a higher profit, but also a lot more work. So I tend to think it is probably worth exploring the option of distribution. You know, you could always write to them about the possibility that company in the Netherlands and see if they'd be open to it, ask what the minimum order would be and how the shipping process would work.
Then you kind of run your numbers from there. You think about what you might be able to sell these rain barrels for after purchasing them, after paying for freight and all that. And when you're checking on that, you could also be researching a bit more about manufacturing options. Just know that that's gonna have more complexity to it. And most likely from a bit of information gathering, I don't think it's gonna take a ton of time, the choice will become more clear.
That's my two cents. Katie, good luck. Let us know how the world of rain barrels continues to grow and evolve. Listeners, if you have a question, sidehustleschool.com. You can always post up there to check for show notes for any particular episode.
You can also download or stream any one of the 3,300 plus episodes we have featured so far over the past nine plus years. New episodes drop every day. My name's Chris Guillebeau. You're listening to Side Hustle School. [Music]
from The Onward Project.
