OT: Experience w/Usborne Books?

[wildfan1473]

I posted this on the Budget and Community Boards, but maybe I'll have better luck here...

I am considering being an Usborne Book consultant. Does anyone here have any experience they are willing to share with me?

TIA

 

[BlondeAlligator]

I'm not a consultant, but I did go to a party, and I have to say, I think that the books are really overpriced for what you get. Most of us at the party only bought one book to support our friend, but in this day of Amazon & Scholastic in the schools, I don't know how Usborne stays in business. Amazon books are cheap, and Scholastic orders always support the schools. And let's not forget our public libraries!

I think there are better companies out there if you want to start that kind of business...Pampered Chef for one, because they offer great products that can't be found anywhere else. Usborne just did not impress me...

 

[roobug]

I'm not a consultant either but I have to say we love the Uborne books we've gotten. They seem to stand up well to our twin boy toddlers. And their absolute favorite books are from Usborne - they love the "That's not my..." books, and they love the animal noises one from them. I really like them, but don't know about the price because I was given them as babyshower gifts.

 

[Honeymooner04]

I used to be a consultant and I mostly heard from customers that they thought the books were too expensive but did like what they ordered. I became a consultant mainly to get the books I wanted at a discount and when I had everything I wanted, I stopped. I do find it frustrating that if you look carefully, you can find many of the Usborne titles at your local Barnes and Noble and other book stores and even in the Scholastic flyers so the exclusivity of buying Usborne through a consultant isn't there.

My daughter does love the books though and I'm glad I have all these books for her to enjoy.

 

[wildfan1473]

Thanks for the input so far.

As far as being able to buy the books elsewhere, I should have stated we live about 40 minutes from the closest metro area with a B&N, or any bookstore for that matter. I live in a rural area, with 3 towns in 3 different directions each about 10 miles away. The town my boys go to school in is about 20,000 people with 2 private liberal arts colleges, 2 charter schools and a parochial school, as well as a large homeschooling community. The only Usborne consultants do it for the discounts, they aren't interested in selling to everyone else.

As far as other opportunities go, the Pampered Chef, Mary Kay and Tastefully Simple markets are saturated here. I chose to look into Usborne because I am a voracious reader, my kids are readers, and I would love to work in a bookstore (which we don't have, and I can't afford to open one). I have grown up with Scholastic, and my kids still get their book orders from them, but I really like the quality of the Usborne books.

 

[ktlm]

Honestly, I have a really good friend who is a consultant, so I occasionally had to buy the books (or DD gets them from her as gifts), and I personally don't think the books are very good. My DD, who absolutely loves books, has no interest in the Usborne books she gets. If she looks at them once, I'm lucky. They are always in the donate pile the first sweep after she gets them. They seem to be very basic and not that well written to me. I think they are really overpriced for what you get.

When you talk about not having book stores close by, you have to remember that it is so easy now to buy books on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Borders on line. Plus, many books have a "look inside" option, so you can see a few pages before you buy online. We have both a Barnes & Noble and a Borders store within 3 miles of our house and I still buy books on line quite a bit. I'd take that into consideration before jumping in.

 

[npmommie]

I'm not a consultant, but I did go to a party, and I have to say, I think that the books are really overpriced for what you get. Most of us at the party only bought one book to support our friend, but in this day of Amazon & Scholastic in the schools, I don't know how Usborne stays in business. Amazon books are cheap, and Scholastic orders always support the schools. And let's not forget our public libraries!

I think there are better companies out there if you want to start that kind of business...Pampered Chef for one, because they offer great products that can't be found anywhere else. Usborne just did not impress me...

If anyone likes Usborne books but not the price, check Amazon, I have ordered usborne books on amazon for a cheaper price

 

[jdrum3]

The Apple Tree Farm books are excellent! Our kids are DS6 and DD2, we ordered it when he was 3. He loved the short stories with tractors, dogs, animals, etc. Now, our daughter loves it and DS6 can read the stories to her. It has helped him to learn how to read and is great for keeping while they grow through those stages. I am an elem/middle school teacher and love it. However, we buy one or two every year, not going to break the bank.
Sincerely,
Jamie Smith

 

[higgy66]

I was an Usborne rep in the UK for a while and although I got nothing but praise for the books there were so many discounted online stores who sold the same Usborne books for half the price. In fact I often ended up getting my stock from them as it was cheaper than direct with Usborne and the consultants discount!

The final straw was when they started to be sold in the local discounted shops as there was no way I could compete with that.

It's great to be able to get the books at a great deal for your family but as a business I think the books are overpriced.

I still have 2 boxes full of brand new books which I now use for birthday gifts for when my DD's are invited to parties.

 

[Elmo888]

I sell them (and I use the term "sell" loosely), and, although I love the books, they are pricey. I think that is really the problem with selling. I get the discount, which I like (I only seem to order about once a year now). I haven't seen them much in other outlets, but I haven't really been looking!

You don't have to keep stock (like Mary Kay) and you can potentially have multiple sales to one customer (my two requirements when I was trying direct sales). You only invest the first time for the books and supplies (and you can sell the books that come in your "kit"). And when you do need some books to show to potential customers, you just go through your kids' bookshelves!

Watch the Recruiting Starter kit price if you want to sell them. I joined late in the year (Nov or Dec), and I think that I only paid about $30 for the set. It can vary (the number of books varies, too, of course). I just looked at the April flyer, and it is $60 and you have to sell $125 in the first 12 weeks. Other than that, there aren't sales requirements. You do have to pay for the ordering web site, but just as you use it and it is inexpensive. I haven't ordered in a year, and I just had to pay $1.30 for the month subscription.

And the ordering web site is archaic. It can be easy to miss discounts.

Just keep in mind that you are doing sales. Sales is sales. Yes, it helps to love the product, but it is still sales. I did one book fair, and that was enough.

That is another point - you can do book fairs for schools, too, and they can get books or the money.

I think that is everything. It just helps, when you are looking into direct sales, to have all of the info. I hope that helps!