in my opinion if you have to pay a fee to join a dropshipping scheme then it is worthless! To me this means that their products are not very good so this is the way they make their money!
I would personally try to find a wholesaler or importer in your local area whre you can go and view there operation and speak directly with them, this way you can negotiate best prices, cut out the middle men and have your supplier on your doorstep in case anything goes wrong with deliveries etc.
Once you know what you want to sell try the yellow pages and see if you can find a supplier in there, it's amazing what you can find on your doorstep!!