Home based business opportunities as a sales representative exist with many larger companies. The quantity of such jobs available will depend on the part of the nation you are in. Such home based business opportunities actually tend to be more plentiful in more rural areas for some companies while being concentrated in metro areas for others.
Products don't just appear on supermarket shelves by accident. Many companies hire sales representatives to visit individual stores. In a rural setting theses sales representatives will often deal directly with store owners or managers, especially of independent businesses. In these rural areas home based business opportunities exist with companies such as Proctor and Gamble, the maker of brands such as Tide and Gain as well as General Mills, the maker of such well known products as Cheerios and Betty Crocker products. It is the job of these representatives to see that the newest products make it to the shelves of local markets.
Home based business opportunities are also available from companies such as Nabisco and Keebler. In the case of these two major cookie companies the responsibilities of the sales representative is somewhat different than for Proctor and Gamble and General Mills. With the cookies companies the sales rep actually goes into stores in a given territory and writes the orders for the product. The product is then delivered directly to the stores after which the sales rep goes in and actually takes care of stocking the product. In the case of supermarket chains such as Albertson's, Safeway and Kroger the sales rep is also responsible for visiting the store generally a couple of times a week in metro areas and seeing that product is properly stocked. In rural areas the rep would normally only show up every two to three weeks. Place an order, stock the product and be on his or her way.
Home based business opportunities, especially with Nabisco and Keebler, can lead to long term commitments. Many of these sales reps stick with a given territory for years if they are meeting company standards and as such can lead to some long term friendships in addition to the basic job.
Of course the number of home based business opportunities is more extensive than the four companies listed above. They are listed strictly to give you an idea of the scope of the work involved.
There are companies out there that deal with greeting cards, magazines, books, frozen food, refrigerated products all looking for sales reps. If it is in a supermarket, at some level most companies will need sales reps if nothing else, to make sure the space they are paying for on store shelves is properly allotted.