It has been a year and a half since I launched my first product on Amazon. In this video, I will share with you all my numbers, how I launched my product, and the biggest mistake that I have made.

My Numbers
On Amazon, I’ve sold 24,183 units of Performance Nut Butter so far. This is about $650,000 in revenue. However, you have to keep in mind that revenue is not profit and there are expenses that need to be considered. The first expense was buying the actual units. It cost me about $177,000 for the 24,000 units. For the Pick and Pack Fees, I spent around $95,000. I also spent around $98,000 for the Transaction Fees. Every time I get a sale, Amazon automatically takes away 15%. Aside from these, I also spent around $10,000 on other random fees by Amazon. I also spent $32,000 on Amazon PPC as well as $9,000 on other fees in running my business. Out of the $650,000, Performance Nut Butter gave me around $232,000 in profit. On Shopify, I had $31,323 in revenue and around $15,000 in profit.

However, that profit does not go to my pocket. I re-invest most, if not all, of it back into the business. Of that profit, a lot of it goes back to inventory. At any point in time, I need 3 to 6 months of inventory which costs me anywhere between $40,000 to $80,000. I also used part of that profit for the Research and Development of a new product.

Private Labeling is Dying
Basically, private labeling is taking a generic product and putting your own label on it. While it worked for a few years before, it is no longer effective at this time. Below are some of the reasons why private labeling is dying:
1. China – China manufactures all private label products. They can do it cheaply. However, China is smart and has been sending the products directly to Amazon, cutting off the middleman.
2. Oversaturation – There is a lot of competition and not a lot of good private label opportunities.
3. Amazon Basics – Aside from other private labelers, you are also competing with Amazon Basics.

Instead of Private Labeling, you should create something unique and different: a Passion Product. Create something that you wish existed in the world.

Create a Passion Product
This process is the easiest way to make money online right now. What’s even better is it is sustainable. Below are the steps on creating a Passion Product:
1. Idea – A lot of people think that they don’t have any good ideas for a product. One tip to think of a product idea is to look at everything you interact with during the day and see what you can do to make something better. Another tip is when you search for a product on Amazon and nothing comes up, that is a product idea. To know if your product is a good idea, you should consider these things: The product should be of premium quality, less than a pound and easy to manufacture.
2. Brand – You should position your product as the best. If you can spend a little money on the design, you can make your product look nicer and you can charge more for it.
3. Create A Tribe – Before you even launch your product on Amazon, you should start marketing it. Start getting people interested in your product. Get people to join a Product Launch Group. The whole point of the Launch Group is to get people hyped up about your product. When you launch it, you will get a spike in sales and reviews. Amazon is going to see this and it will push your product to the top of the search results. The Launch Group will also help you create an amazing product.
1.Crowdfund – Even though you don’t have a lot of money in the bank, you can afford to create your own product by crowdfunding. You can launch a Kickstarter and use the money for your first production run. At the same time, you would know that it is a good idea if you are able to raise a good amount.
2.Production – There are manufacturing companies out there that their entire business revolves around helping you create the product. They are going to make it a lot easier for you to work with them.
3. Launch – This is the final step and where your Product Launch Group comes handy.

Big Mistakes
The first mistake I made is not putting in more energy into growing this company. However, I did it for a good reason. I was able to reach my goal of having $300 a day of passive income. I step back and started enjoying my life for the first time. But because I did not grow my company, it allowed competitors to come in. Performance Nut Butter was the first company on Amazon that is geared towards the athletic community. Within a year after I launched, two competitors came in. After them, more competitors came in as well. The great thing about creating a Passion Product is when you create a new category, competitors come in and grow the market space as a whole. My sales also increased along with it.

The second mistake is not launching my new product fast. I noticed that all my competitors have chocolate as their best-selling flavor, but they all have sugar and sweeteners. I thought why not create a product that is just pure cacao. I wish I would have created and launched this product a year ago.

My third big mistake is fear. Fear cripples entrepreneurs. I literally spent the two days just laying out on the beach because I was paralyzed with fear. The first production run of PNB Cacao is going to cost me $55,000 so I am pretty scared. I really want to make sure that everything is perfect.