There are two types of inventions; one is made from passion and the other one is made for business. Your question seems to be connected to the second type of invention. So you want to make business before inventing? Here are some tips you should do:
1. Look for a problem in the community/personal problem that you would like to solve.
2. Check if others have the same problem and if they would like it to be fixed too.
3. Make some research about how big the potential market may be and to what extent would a customer pay to fix or solve that certain problem.
4. Check the market to make sure someone else is not already offering your concept.
5. Do more research on costs of engineering, design, materials, component parts, shipping, overhead of your company, etc. Explore financing options if necessary.
6. If the financial research make sense and you can make the level of profit you require, go for it. If the numbers don’t make sense financially, recheck design, materials, features, and see if you can get costs in line with potential target market.
7. This one is the most difficult of all steps: finding customers, marketing, and selling your product. You have options: you can sell direct thru a website, be an importer and sell to distributors, be a distributor and sell to small retailers, or try to sell to the major big box chain stores.
If you want to make business with distributors or major retailers, hire independent commissioned sales reps. They are paid on commission based on the sales they make. These reps have already established relationships with major distributors and retailers. Know the buyers or category managers, and have them set appointments to get you in front of the proper decision makers.