To sell something online, you don't need a ground-breaking new product concept. You may launch your own ecommerce business without even creating your own products.
Different business strategies give others control over order fulfillment, production, and product development while placing the profits in your own hands. The resale business model is one of these types.
A great approach to launching a small business and beginning online sales without starting from scratch is to become a reseller. Continue reading to find out how to start a reseller business and to obtain advice on how to manage an online reseller store.
What is a reseller?
A business that buys products from producers, liquidators, or other merchants and then resells them to its own customers is known as a reseller. The following products may be purchased by resellers without paying sales tax thanks to a reseller business license, also known as a resale license, resale certificate, or tax exemption certificate:
- Items to sell at wholesale
- Items to sell at retail
- Ingredients or components to manufacture and sell things
Reselling is simply a kind of dropshipping in which businesses get products and materials from several vendors and offer them to customers via an online shop. The typical customer finds it simpler to locate and buy products because of this business strategy.
Additionally, many resellers add value to the customer experience. For instance, ordering directly from a provider isn't always simple and sometimes necessitates minimum purchase amounts. In contrast, resellers can brand the customer experience and offer things to customers individually (at a markup). These components might be as simple as thorough product descriptions and evaluations, a customer loyalty program, and customer service.
A reselling business has several advantages and may be a successful business concept, particularly if you have specialized knowledge. When you don't have to go through the whole process of product creation and audience growth, you can launch an ecommerce business more quickly.
For those who like and are successful at marketing, reselling is a profitable business venture.
Since product reselling is a typical kind of dropshipping, it may be challenging to draw customers when you first begin as a reseller. Your chance of success in the reselling business increases if you can develop and implement efficient marketing techniques.
Straight product reselling is great for someone with a particular industry or demographic knowledge or skills. For instance, someone with knowledge of animal behavior may create a dropshipping business around the many toys that are most appropriate for pets.
How to become a reseller
- Register your business. Wherever your business is located and/or is incorporated, get a business license. You'll need to have foreign qualifications in states other than the one in which a business is registered.
- Research state laws and regulations. You may avoid paying sales tax on things you plan to resell in many states by using an out-of-state reseller's permit. Some, though, won't accept permits from other states. Both for in-person and online sales, research state legislation before making purchases that transcend state boundaries.
- Gather your application materials. Prepare all the required papers for your reseller business after you are aware of what you need to do to register and submit your application.
- Get a resale permit. Each state where you purchase and sell items requires you to apply for a reseller business permit. Additionally, there may be costs that need to be paid.
Each state has its own sales tax rates and different sales tax legislation. Local sales taxes may also need to be collected in certain states. According to the Tax Foundation, local sales taxes are collected in 38 states, in addition to statewide sales taxes in 45 states and the District of Columbia. It is advisable to check with your local authority to determine your exact needs.
A business operating in the United States with a reseller permit is exempt from paying sales tax on the products it buys for resale. The reseller, on the other hand, is required to collect and remit the state's sales tax from its customers.
Wherever your resale business is located, you must get a resale permit, similar to a business license. Therefore, if your company is incorporated in Florida but you operate a factory, shipping facility, or online shop there, you'll need a Delaware reseller's permit. You must have an active permit in each state where you acquire and sell items.
Best places to find suppliers for your resale business
Start by deciding what sorts of products you want to sell and the kind of customers you want to sell them to discover a supplier for your resale business. The next step is to decide whether you want to locate a supplier that acts as a distributor, giving you wholesale products, or as a dropshipper, giving you products and managing order fulfillment.
You may peruse online directories, do a Google search, or enlist the help of your network to find reseller business providers. These product-sourcing tools are ideal for Shopify retailers. Each of these functions as a listing service that makes it simple to locate products to sell online. You have access to a wide range of products in a wide range of categories, including electronics, toys, and cosmetics.
By collaborating with well-known dropshipping companies like Worldwide Brands, SaleHoo, Doba, and AliExpress, you may also launch a reselling business (see our complete guide to AliExpress). Check out their websites to discover what products are offered for resale.
Five reseller business opportunities/ideas
Reselling provides access to a wide range of new business prospects since it eliminates the need for manufacturing and product development investments. Reselling is a fantastic side business or home business that may ultimately lead to full-time employment because of these characteristics.
Here are five ideas to get you started with a reselling business.
1. Dropshipping business
You may launch a dropshipping business, which enables you to provide a wide choice of products without maintaining any inventory. All you have to do to run a dropshipping business is promote and sell the products. Everything product-related is taken care of by your dropshipping supplier, including product creation, warehousing, tracking, and even order fulfillment.
Because dropshipping doesn't require investment in inventory or the expenses related to holding that stock, it is a low-risk business strategy. Additionally, because the supplier handles your fulfillment needs, you don't require employees or a physical location to distribute goods to customers.
2. Sneaker business
Shoes provide resellers with a wide variety of market opportunities, including sports shoes, fashionable heels, contemporary sneakers, and everything in between. People will always need shoes, and by releasing seasonal styles, you can keep things interesting. There are several opportunities to resell shoes and do so for a healthy profit.
Packer Shoes, a New Jersey-based Shopify business, began as a little local bespoke shoe store. Since its modest origins in 1907, the firm has expanded, in large part because of its omnichannel strategy. Packer Shoes now provides its own designs in addition to reselling shoes from well-known companies like Adidas.
3. Vintage boutique
You're on the right track if you're considering how to start an online boutique for reselling. The used goods resale market is enormous; in the US alone, there are more than 20,000 businesses that sell used goods, generating an estimated $17.6 billion in yearly sales. A great way to benefit from this reselling business opportunity is to open a vintage shop.
You may either take the conventional definition of vintage goods as those that are older than 50 years and younger than 100, or you can be inspired by current vintage trends while selecting goods for your reseller business. COAL N' TERRY‘s vintage clothing line does the latter.
Vintage clothes, antique furniture, and other trinkets may all be sold again through garage sales, yard sales, thrift shops, or donation facilities. Learning what customers want and what prices they will pay is essential to running a profitable vintage resale business. For instance, a certain kind of consumer has a strong demand for vintage Corningware.
4. Consignment
If starting an online business selling vintage goods seems attractive, think about expanding this concept by launching a consignment shop. Not everything sold in consignment shops is antique or vintage; other pieces are more contemporary.
For instance, Love that Bag etc. is a Shopify business that runs a consignment shop out of its online store. Even though Love That Bag, etc. sells premium designer bags for less than they would cost to purchase new, their prices are higher than those of bags you may discover in a vintage store.
5. Subscription box
The subscription box industry saw its peak popularity with companies like Birchbox, and it continues to be a flexible business model for a reseller trying to create a more steady flow of income. A box may be assembled with a selection of goods and sealed.
Finding your target market is the first step in starting your own subscription business. Next, seek goods that meet their requirements and preferences. The goods may be put together in themed boxes, and you can release a new one every week, month, quarter, or at any other frequency you like.
Start your reselling business today
Given that you now understand how to do so, think about beginning your reseller career right now. This business model is a low-risk approach to testing the waters of running an online business and having your own shop since you won't need to spend on product creation, upfront inventory, or delivery.
How to become a reseller FAQ
If you know your audience and your items, running a reseller business may be highly successful. You may be able to purchase products used and resell them at a considerable profit, depending on your specialization.
Running a reseller business is legal as long as you abide by local tax regulations and secure all required permissions. An object becomes yours after you pay for it, and you are free to resell it whenever and however you choose.
It may be surprisingly inexpensive to start a reselling business if you have access to a source of secondhand or heavily discounted goods and an online audience where you can resell items to eager customers.
Resellers get their inventory from several places, such as wholesalers, liquidators, thrift shops, and even neighbourhood estate sales.
