3/10/2011 11:59 AM (PST)

I would avoid this. There have been similar companies (e.g., Wise Rep and IntoStores)that have been exposed as scams and may even be related to this one. Their model is getting you signed up for a monthly membership (and there's a big setup fee too) to have your products posted on their site so that retailers can find you and order your products. Do these orders materialize? No, the "retailers" aren't looking at places like that.

I can't tell you the best way to get an appointment or connect with real store buyers who work for retailers, but that's what you should do. Perhaps there are bona fide manufacturer reps who take on the kinds of products you have. Architectural prints sounds like a specialized niche and I would imagine there are specialized channels for these. Good luck.

5/11/2011 8:58 AM (PST)

Hi Susan, I also just received an e-mail from SellBeyond for my Bakery business, and it looks just as sketchy as the IntoStores e-mails that I used to receive. I did a search for the address listed for this business (21520 Yorba Linda Blvd, Suite G), and it returned a FedEx/Postal Centre, so I have reason to believe that this company does not have a physical location. Yes, this company could theoretically exist without an office, to me it doesn't sound professional that they use some outlet address for their "official" address. Truth be told, if a company isn't registered with the BBB, that should be a good warning sign right off the bat, and the $180 registration fee with a $20 monthly fee makes me remember the adage of "don't ever take a job where you have to pay upfront". Shouldn't the retailers be paying SellBeyond for the privilege to the data that they get from the smaller distributors, rather than the other way around? Also, while doing a search for this company in my e-mail, I came across the fact that IntoStores used to be under the name WiseRep, and I made a post about it on my blog. Almost exactly one year ago, IntoStores had an A+ rating, and they've slipped to A-. I'll also note that these three businesses all are pretty close to each other geographically. http://tamakun.livejournal.com/1030279.html I'll also link to this article which also raises some questions about their validity: http://www.craftdom.com/2011/04/sell-beyond-legitimate-company-or-yet.html Just my two cents. :)