Retail or Online Arbitrage to start with a low budget?
Hi Guys
I’m writing this partly out of interest, I have a rough idea of what I’m doing just want to see how people generally start out.
I’ve done a lot of research in to both Retail and Online arbitrage. I started with a pot of about £250 (£60 went on a prepper which I think was a bit of a premature move). I found some clearance stuff in stores but found it time consuming. In fact my first shipment is nice and stuck outside an amazon warehouse waiting to be activated!
I tried tactical arbitrage for free but that expired and I found it’s great for finding products but I don’t have barely any capital to invest and feel retail is the way to go for a low budget.
Do you agree? How did you start out? Feel free to share any tips!
Thanks all, happy posting
11 replies
Seller_EHYOwAkoZV3Hb
Rule number one if wanting to sell brands on Amazon - DON’T unless you are able to furnish invoices from authorised distributors or the actual manufacturers. You will at some point be asked to furnish them and if you can’t, your account AND funds will be gone.
Receipts from retailers are not acceptable.
Rule number two - read rule number 1
Good luck.
Seller_n69tBBqSFt504
Brilliant idea but as Rugsy said you may get into difficulty regarding authenticity and manufacturer invoices.
Perhaps Amazon may not be the most effective platform for this. Have you considered eBay instead?
Seller_D45CRFQrqc1Xk
Wow, didn’t expect that reply. I’ve looked a lot in to the arbitrage scene and it seems people are reselling a lot of brands, they are “restricted” on the app if you can’t sell them. I think certain marvel things etc.
Seller_EJIX7rqDNQJi2
Being a new seller, Amazon will often e-mail you to provide them invoices for random items from your inventory. If you won’t be able to send them, your account will get suspended.
As a beginner, you should only buy directly from European or US manufacturers during the first 1-2 years. I would advise you to pick a category of items, which you would like to sell and then purchase some products wholesale. £250 is not enough, you should invest at least £1000 to buy your first inventory.
After you establish a selling history on Amazon and learn, how does the site work, you can also try some retail arbitrage, private labeling or designing your own products and having them manufactured in China.
If you would like to sell Marvel, why don’t you order from them wholesale? You will save a lot of money compared to buying retail and get legit invoices.
Seller_QlN0mmCAFPtjZ
What exactly is tactical arbitrage ?
Seller_72Sy9T6sEfmjl
if you have limited funds then you can still import goods from China in small quantities and still have room for reasonable profit.
Look to DHGate and buy things you think might turnover quickly.
If you are on such a low budget I would avoid selling on Amazon. You are unlikely to shift your items at a quick enough rate as a small seller to avoid long term storage fees which will eat up your profit.
If you buy something and put it up against an established seller at a cheaper rate then the most likely outcome is they will cut their prices and you’re into a price war which you will not win if you only have limited funds.
For £250 I would spend £200 on stock of fast moving items like scarves or shawls - scarves do sell even in hot summers if they are light-weight.
Then spend £20 getting a stall at your local market.
You can buy nice quality silk head and shoulder scarves for about £4 - 6 each each including delivery and with a nice display and stand at a good market you should get £20 to £25 each maybe more depending on your boldness.
A lady at our local market sells silk scarves for £40 each and I know you can get them from DHgate for £6 each.
At your budget your local market is a much safe place to trade than Amazon.
