You can make extra money from an online shop either as a hobby, or this could be the basis of a profitable and fulfilling future business. Selling other people’s products, it easier than selling your own, otherwise you’ll hit a minefield of compliance and certification.
Many people who sell products via an online shop do this via eBay, Amazon, or Etsy. While these platforms are great and set the benchmark, once you’re set up, selling, and established, these ecommerce platforms that don’t advertise their 40 to 50% sales and marketing fees, may prove quite expensive if not disastrous to many small businesses.
Its easy to start selling branded goods only to find out later that the brand owner is not keen on unlicensed resellers. Check this thoroughly or you’ll end up with products that are barred from sale via eBay, Amazon, or Etsy. Worse still it could get legal. That mistake could cost a lot of money!
Why not have your own shop running in parallel and save on all these sales fees? The rich documentation features of Etsy are all available via Royal Mail and Shiptheory. MiE host an online shop for a retail client of ours in Hertfordshire. https://www.sewing-kingdom.com/ The cost is around £60 per year, once you’ve paid for initial set up. Then no more fees!
Have control over your own retail shop sales. Don’t pay extortionate sales fees to platform owners’ shareholders. Don’t have all your eggs in one basket. Increase your gross profit by 40%. This is how Jeff Bezos started, its never too late…