SaleHoo

[singchee123]

Hiya

I'm new to this wholesaling business, and would like to get some things straight...

First my background - I'm a full time student, with a timetable of almost 9-5 monday to friday. I was looking for a way to earn some spare cash (nothing too much) in my free time, and came across this site. So far my impressions are that salehoo can't work for me for the following reasons:
1. I need to buy in large quanities with a tax number (which I don't have and can't get)
2. I need to be prepared to make 50c profit on each product - meaning I'll need to spend a huge amount of time mailing HUNDREDS of items out just to make anything more than $50 (something I can't do too much given my study schedule).

Again, I'm not trying to earn millions here - just some spare cash for everyday use.

Am i being to pessimistic? Or can salehoo actually be useful without sucking up hours of each of my day? Would it be worthit cancelling my membership?

Cheers
Sing

[grace_salehoo]

Hi Sing,

Welcome to Salehoo :)

To answer your questions

(1) You only need a tax number if you live in the United States and buy from US wholesalers. I see you are in Australia, so you won't need a tax number to purchase from wholesalers.

(2) Lately we have been emphasizing the fact that profits aren't always huge on eBay, just because there are a lot of people who join Salehoo with the impression they will literally be making hundreds from each item. But we certainly don't mean to imply it is impossible!

I agree, profits of 50 cents would never be worth the time and effort. In actuality, a more realistic figure would be between $5 and $50 profit per item, depending on what you choose to sell.

For instance, check out this post ** Link Removed: Only Available to Registered Members**.

Jimmy works part time on eBay, but still manages to make a nice profit from it. There are lots of other Salehoo members with similar examples.

If you can spare just 2-3 hours a day to work on buying and selling wholesale, then you should definitely find you make enough money for it to be worthwhile. Once you are up and running, there are also ways you can cut down the time you spend on it. For example, some sellers state in their listing that they only ship on Monday, Wednesday and Friday in order to streamline their shipping processes and save time.

What does take time initially is finding a product to sell that works for you. This is trial and error and is probably the most time-consuming aspect.

If you are selling on eBay, it will take time to learn how to best promote your listings. A website of your own will require time spent on advertising, driving traffic and maintenance.

But there is heaps of excellent advice on the forum. Asking questions as you go is a big help too, many of us have already faced the same problems and will be able to help you out.

Good luck and hope to hear more from you in the future :)

[jimmy_salehoo]

Well if you only want to sit on the couch and expect the money to roll in for you then there isnt much you can expect from salehoo or even trying to start a business.

I put in a good 55 hours a week on listings, Product purchases, page descriptions, packaging, documenting, labeling and shipping.

Thats just to earn on average $1,500 to $3,000 a month.

And I still find 10-20 hours a week to help members here with thier questions and concerns.

I know you have heard many times on stupid advertisements where people make tons of money with very little work on ebay. That in reality accounts for only practically .01 percent of businesses

Now if you sell the right product. 50Cents is a pathetic profit margin for your work.

I generally average 3-7 dollars each transaction and do approx
400+ sales per month.

1. There are many products you can buy and resell without a tax ID
2. If your mailing out hundreds of items out to make 50 bucks then your doing something horribly wrong.


If your just looking to make some spare cash then do what the average housewife does. Every time you see a yard sale. Stop.
Find items that look like they can bring you some cash. Buy it and resell it for more on ebay.

Summer is about here and yard sales will be everywhere. And many people dont even know what hidden treasures they are selling for 50 cents to 5 dollars.

[melaniebell]

Being an Australian, you might need an ABN (australian business number). Go to ** Link Removed: Only Available to Registered Members** and it will tell you how to get one. Although you may not need one it depends how much money you make. (the site should be able to tell you wheather or not you will need an ABN)

[vgs1953]

from memory if your sales in a financial year is $50,000 or more you must register for an ABN and pay the ATO the 10% GST on all items sold. At the moment the ATO is investigating Australian sellers on Ebay who have sold over this amount as many do not pay the GST to the Government and also are not declaring the profits on their tax returns.
If you have to pay the GST it then reduces your profit and makes even more items less attractive. If you buy your items from overseas you do not pay GST to the seller whereas if you purchased in Aust from a wholesaler you would and the GST you pay you can claim back.
A lot of people have thought that they have made a reasonable amount on selling large quantities of low margin, high cost items but in actual fact once the Taxman gets onto them and they have to pay the GST they may find that they were running their business at a loss.

[just_me]

Actually, in most case you only need a tax ID if you live in the same state as the wholesaler. You will find that alot of wholesalers do not require your tax id number.