After reading the numerous historical posts here, I pretty much decided I couldn't really waste a lot of time looking through the suppliers listings here at Salehoo to determine who is pure and who is a broker, clone, etc. (I find the community postings much more useful anyway.) While I was digging around for wholesalers and liquidators in my state (AZ) and I came across Manta.com. It's similar to Hoovers.com except it's free. I did a forum search and didn't find any reference to this, so i'm posting this here now.
Anyway, Manta.com lists companies that are public in the US, Australia, U.K. and Worldwide. Since it lists the D&B numbers as well as the SIC codes, it might be helpful in finding true to the core liquidators and wholesalers instead of the small time middlemen and brokers.
Wholesale for the US folks:
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You can refine this list by entering your state: Wholesalers Texas or even the city: Wholesalers Dallas
Liquidation for the US folks:
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Same refinement process as above or you can scroll to the bottom of the results and filter by category: electronics, plumbing, furniture, etc.
Wholesale for the Australian folks:
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Liquidation for the Australian folks:
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minus the results for companies containing 'liquid,' the results even show companies in liquidation as well. I figure the enterprising person could call the company in liquidation and find out who is managing the liquidation and deal directly with them.
Unfortunately for France and other countries listed in the worldwide category, you cannot search. However you can flip through the pages of companies listed. This might be useful if you know the name of the product manufacturer. If you need to search another country then a Hoovers subscription might be worth it for a month or two.
Just for fun, query your supplier and see what results you get. Some reputable ones like Jimmy's might not show up until they hit a certain revenue point so don't worry, it doesn't mean that ppwdg isn't legit :) These listings also depend on the company structure, so a sole proprietor and smaller LLC's won't be listed.
Some have websites and some don't. It would figure to conclude that true liquidators and wholesalers really don't need a public website (maybe an intranet for their clients) So I would pick up the phone with your reseller, tax id number in hand and knock out a few deals.
Anyway, I hope this eases the search for some of you. Happy Hunting.
Cheers,
--Daniel