855 Comments (page 3)

Awesome to hear that - you'll have samples in hand in no time! Yea, you would think they would try to respond quicker, I'm always surprised by that. I think it's due to many new importers coming into the market, they never know whether an Alibaba lead will be serious or profitable. Oh well, as long as it works out :) Let me know how it goes!

Thanks Will for your reply. Now here's where I'm at after deciding to persevere. I've finally hit a sweet spot with spotting products but it's been an extremely arduous task communicating with suppliers. What should take 2 emails seems to take dozens. Getting a price is sometimes like getting blood from a stone. Many are clueless to what product you are enquiring about, even though you make it perfectly clear in your email. Most have been rock solid on their MOQ's. Just when I think I've got somewhere, a supplier will tell me they can't send a sample. Does this sound like a legit response? This is from a 5th year gold supplier for a belt: "Dear Jon ​ Thanks a lot for your fast reply. But I am so sorry that we could not sell 1pc only,because we don't have them ready in stock! We have to make production,and the MOQ is 200pcs. Thanks a lot for your kind understanding!" This is the 2nd time this has happened. I finally find a supplier with the right product at the right price, only to be told they can't send a sample. Or other times they wouldn't budge on their MOQ. But can they really have legitimate reasons for not sending a sample or do I need to stay well clear, even when no other supplier has the same product? Anyone else run into these same problems or am I just being unlucky?

Awesome to hear you're an official product finding pro Jon - at least that is a silver lining! Very weird to hear that you're having trouble with supplier communications, especially since I rarely hear that. There are some products that suppliers just won't budge on, but not a ton. I'm not sure what your product is, but maybe if it's some industrial product they won't budge. For instance, I could see a nail and screw factory that sells to construction companies reluctant to send samples to many people. In a market like that, there are probably other elements at play. Suppliers producing a low-margin, high-volume product may try to weed out anybody who isn't going to order a certain amount per month. I'm not sure of the solution either. I would just email back and forth with suppliers and try to get to the bottom of it. Maybe you can get one of them to tell you why they're not responding often... Other than that, I'm not too sure unfortunately! Be sure to let me know how it goes, we'll get to the bottom of this :-D Hope this helps, Will

So what you are saying is that if the item's price is green in the "completed listings" then it means that item was sold at a good price and i should price my similar products at that price? We are only using it as a gauge to test to see if my product will sell that that price? Thank you for posting this article.

hi will hey just wondering i would like to know what website or supplier that you could recommend me to that will be good for hair and beauty product or even car detailing products thanks....

Yes, you're trying to get a general idea of what prices your product will move at, and how much will move at different prices. That's why there is no "Look at this number" sort of thing, you just have to browse around and understand the prices and what prices are right. That's why the product selection phase can be frustrating for some people, you kind of have to learn how to do it by doing it.

Hey Will Working 90 hours a week leaves me very little time for much else so it has taken quite a while but I got my first shipment from China two days ago. I decided to take a chance and skip the "check out the sample" step. I did that because their Alibaba reputation was excellent, their dealings with me were good, and I would rather risk $800.00 than lose time. I got lucky. The product arrived quickly and it's perfect! Thanks for all your help and I'll keep you posted. Danny

Will, Great Article again! let me ask you this and i am sure you can help me out on it: You mentioned about counterfeit products and their problems on Ebay in another article of yours. I want to avoid selling these products as well. If, for instance, i am importing electronics or any other product that is made by big Manufacturers like Dell, Apple, etc. and sell them online, while they are not fake ones, is this considered to be an issue as term as counterfeit rules? I need your input man. Thanks Shafi

Awesome to hear that Danny, it's always nerve wracking, especially without the samples :) Let me know how selling them turns out for you guys - good luck!

No problem Shafi! Just make sure the products don't have any trademarked brands on it and you should be fine. You can get hit with patents as well, especially in electronics. I'm not sure how to look into that, like I said I try to avoid electronics. One piece of advice if you're going into electronics - you usually want them manufactured in mainland China, and the components from Japan or America. The quality just isn't there on Chinese electronic components. Hope this helps, Will

Will, Thanks for your prompt replies. I don't think there is a good market in electronics for new starters either. I am at the stage of finding several exceptional products that can sell themselves. Found one so far, it is a chincese product, contacted the suppliers, received three quotes on samples and two of them seems reasonable and similar. I think i would go with one of them and order the sample, they are shipping by DHL and I would be able to receive them in 3-5 days. I will give it a shot once i receive it, but i am not sure if it is the right product. I will keep you in the loop. Thanks!

Will Another question has sprung to mind and I thought you might be the man to answer it. You touched upon avoiding branded products in your article. I am not sure if one of the items I am considering would be classified as branded. For example, would a T-shirt with a Harley Davidson motif be classed as branded? Or a whiskey brand depicted on a sign? I would guess not as it isn't an attempt to counterfeit (unless Harley Davidson make T-shirts), but I want to make sure there won't be problems at customs. What's your take on this?

Awesome to hear that Shafi, it seems you're really progressing and learning a lot about importing. If you keep it up, I'm sure you'll be successful with it soon enough. Let me know how the new samples turn out, and more importantly if they sell! I'm working on an importing course now that I think will help you out a lot, I'll be sure to give you a free preview copy to get your thoughts! Hope the new samples are great, Will

Well my first order is on the way. After I placed it, I found another supplier for a lower cost. Still profitable and ok for sales testing. I'm also figuring out how to source multiple different parts from different suppliers and assemble them into a package here. Thanks for the help and guidance so far! I have a question I'd like to ask via email or phone call but not sure the best way to reach you.

Hi Jon, Yes, any trademarked brand can give you trouble. If you use the Harley Davidson logo, or even the look and feel of their brand, they could take legal action against you. Most of the time you just get a cease and desist, and you'll end up with a ton of product you can only throw in the trash. You shouldn't have any trouble at customs, as they don't know if you're authorized to use the brand, or constitute what intellectual property infringement would be. That's for the courts to decide. Hope this helps, Will

It could definitely be worse! Usually when you find a cheaper supplier, you're getting closer to the actual factory that makes that specific product. If you can find the original factory, it will pay you dividends for years to come. You'll get lower prices, higher quality, more options and flexibility, and quicker response times. Keep hunting! You can email me at will (at) startupbros.com - I usually answer all emails within a day or two. Talk to you soon!

Hi Will, Your website has been very helpful for me and I used your guidelines as much as i can. I have recently received a sample from a supplier and I was able to sell it on, which was a good start I guess. I asked the supplier for a bigger order and it was going well until he told me the shipping price for UPS (which was huge), I asked if we could do the shipping with another company, but he won't agree to any other.. what shall i do? bite the bullet and pay the price? or just leave? Hope you can help. Thanks James

Hi Will, Great article, I have been looking at starting my own business for a while and this has given me a kick start. Do you have an idea of the taxes I would have to pay living in the UK? Would these taxes make this idea not profitable? Also do you have any other general tips for importing into the UK? Cheers

Awesome to hear that James, glad to help! It depends on what your product is, how much money you're looking to put into it, and some other things. If you're just looking to do 50 iPhone cases or something like that, then UPS is probably the best. If you're looking to do 50 sets of weights, then UPS definitely won't work. The only way to bring those costs down are to ship over sea freight. There are a few ways to do this, but it would be a lot to talk about in these comments. Hopefully I can do a post on those soon. Hope this helps, Will

Glad you liked the article Jacob! Unfortunately, the UK makes it very difficult to import. When you bring it into the country, you get hit by VAT tax at 20% and importing taxes at 15%. If you manage to make money after that slaughter, they then tax that money another 30-50%+. I might have it slightly wrong, but the UK has a very bad tax system. If you go through these comments, there was somebody who found out and shared a way to get around some of the taxes. It's possible to make money importing in the UK, it's just more difficult. Don't forget the real reason for these ridiculous taxes is to control people - they don't want people easily importing products from overseas. That's a problem when you're starting out, but once you're experienced and know the loopholes, it becomes advantageous. Good luck, Will

Thanks for the advice Will, that's helped me decide to steer clear of anything with a brand name on it. I just want to add to your reply to Jacob above; True that you have to pay 20% VAT on all imported items to the UK, however, import taxes (duty) depends on the product and is usually around 5% or less. You have to find the code for the product and this will give you the duty to pay. Lots of people are importing stuff from China into the UK and making tons of cash and I'm hoping to be one of them!

Thanks for the added information Jon, I didn't know that! Combine that info with the info somewhere else in these comments on how to avoid VAT taxes, and you'll have turned the taxes into an advantage against domestic competitors :)

Hi Jon/Will Any idea of how to find out these codes? I have seen general items that are low on tax e.g books, however no where to find the codes/tax rate of a specific product.

Not a clue - hopefully Jon will see this!

Jacob, try this link https://www.gov.uk/starting-to-import. Lots of essential info here. Look for the 'commodity code' link.

Awesome - thanks for the help Jon!

Cheers will have a look now. Thanks for your help guys

Hey! I have a question, you say to start with a few products but how can I make it so that I only pay one shipping price to get them here? Is there a way I can fill a pellet first then pay one flat fee to get them here?

Yes! You can work with companies on the ground in China to take in all of your orders, organize them all on a pallet, and ship them to you. I believe they're called shipping brokers or consolidators, but I may be wrong (about to go to sleep!). Anyways, yes you can do it. It's a little more complex for just a short comment, but I will go in depth with this in my upcoming course I'm working on. I'll be sure to give you a free copy for your help with this great question. Hope this helps, Will

Hi again Will Just a quick question, you said about not putting your current email onto Alibaba as you would receive endless spam messages. Does the same apply to putting your address or mobile number? Probably a stupid question I know, just wanted to double check. Thanks

Hi Jacob, That's a good question. For some reason, I've never had any issues with that. You would think they would mail you a catalog or something, but I've never been mailed anything I didn't request. Surprisingly! Good to ask though, better safe than sorry... Will

Yeh thought I had better play it safe. Thanks again

Hi Jon/Will Sorry to ask another question. I have been looking around on Google and the website you suggested, and im not sure which licenses I would need to get. Im only just starting so will only be small time. Cheers

I assume you're not looking to import missile launchers or plutonium or something, so you won't need a licence. You're looking for the commodity code relevant to the product you are interested in. Look through the trade tariff to find your product. For example, garden umbrellas have the code 66 01 10000. Clicking on the code will show that there is a duty to pay of 4.7%. I don't know how to be any clearer than that! **Info relevant to UK only**

Thanks Jon, I did think that it was strange to get a license given the products and amount of products that I will be importing.

Brilliant - you rock Jon! I would have never known any of this :)

Will, Thanks for all of the good advice. I, currently, am looking at a specific product to sell. I received information from the seller on alibaba that the price of each item is $10, however, the shipping will be $23.50 per item in a carton of 9 pieces at 10kg (57*34*73CM). So, I am looking at the total cost of each item at $33.50. First question, is that a reasonable shipping price? They ship DHL out of Guangzhou and I looked up the shipping rates and I got a totally different quote (it was actually a lot higher than the quote from the seller). Next, most of the items sold on eBay are between $30 and $60. When you say that you want at least a 100% margin, are you factoring in shipping costs? I feel I can sell the items for between $50 and $60 on eBay/Amazon/Etsy. Since the margin has come down quite a bit due to shipping costs, is this something that you would suggest that I proceed with? Your response would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for your time.

I'm not sure what will would say, but if this is your first order, I'd say go for it. Sounds like it must be a heavier or larger item. You can work the margin a bit on larger future orders. The important part is getting it and verifying the viability of selling it. Recently, I discovered there were regulations I was unaware of. The registration was outside my price range currently so I'll have to revisit that item further down the road. Good luck and let us now how it goes!

Hi Curtis, Yes, shipping is often the largest expense in the import/export business. That shipping price sounds about right. Suppliers often get bulk discounts with DHL/UPS, so it's normal for you to see that price drop. Of course, still pay with PayPal or Escrow to be safe. Your net margin needs to be 50%, which is a 100% markup from your total cost of goods sold. So yes, always include your shipping prices. Your products will become marginally cheaper once you start buying in bulk, so I wouldn't dismiss the product all together. But, some items won't work. For instance Bubble-Wrap has ridiculous margins until you calculate the shipping costs. Hope this helps, Will

Completely agree with this advice! How did you end up finding out about the regulations? I get that question often, but never know where to send people. Any advice?

Will, Lol it was through the very scientific process of receiving an email from DHL at the port of entry in LA. It, unfortunately, stopped this shipment cold because its about 90 days and $2500 to go through all the registration. I at least now know what has to be done when I revisit this product down the road. At this point I think it'll be a $175 loss. Not near enough to break me. I'm working on figuring out how to find this info Will. I have an idea but don't want to post it until I'm sure as neither one of us wants to hear the screaming and whining that I was wrong. Lol I'll keep you updated. Now, a side note. I'll make the money back shortly. Over the weekend, my father and I wandered into a local membership warehouse store and I spotted something on the shelf that seemed cheap to me. So, using an app on my iPhone, I scanned the barcode and it cross referenced it on Amazon. Turns out that on Amazon, it was selling for about $27.76. The store had the product for $12.99. I checked ebay and saw sales records recently for an even higher price. So I bought a pile of them and just sent them off to Fulfillment By Amazon for my first experience with them. Not a huge gain but a good start. Cheers.

Hi all, I came cross an expert named Importexport. I was wondering if anyone purchased his ebook and think it is worth the money. It seems there are other safer sources to find real manufacturers than Alibaba. Let me know your opinion please! Thank you

I've never heard of it. I haven't found Alibaba to be problematic so far.

Well sorry to hear you took a loss on that product, but $175 isn't too bad. I'm sure you can turn that knowledge into more than $175 :) Awesome to hear about that product you found. I also see products like that sometimes, and wonder "How in the hell?". Way to jump on the opportunity rather than playing the "what if" game. It goes to show you that there is opportunity everywhere if you know how to see and act on it - even when doing some weekend shopping with your dad :) Definitely let me know if you figure out that regulatory issue, and keep me updated on your business! Will

I haven't heard of it Gan, but like CEBenz said - it isn't too tough. We have a post here that might help - https://startupbros.com/how-to-avoid-scams-middle-men-and-fraud-on-alibaba/ Most of the things you need to know about Alibaba are in this article. There are a few tricks I have up my sleeve that I'm going to reveal in the importing course I'm working on, but you can get by just fine with the information above and in the article I linked to. Hope this helps, Will

Will, as many have said before me, thank you! Your blog has been an essential part of my "kill time at work" bookmark collection and your Chinese importer articles are definitely a highlight. As a huge fan of the Craigslist arbitrage/hustle I feel like this could really take my side-cash to the next step. Now just to figure out which product... laptops on CL to prospective students?

Hi Jacob, I import into the UK on a regular basis. The things to watch out for are VAT charges applied to anything with a value over GBP32.00 and then duty will also be applied. You need to check the customs and revenue web site to see what % the items you are looking at will be classed at. If you are VAT registered then you can claim back the VAT every quarter when you do your VAT return. So you just need to watch these few things and make sure the extra charges don't tip you over the edge and make it too expensive to compete with. Cheers Jim

Curtis, If you look at a freight consolidator like "we deliver the world" you can actually use them to give you a quote to collect the product and deliver it to you. The get prices from all the big guys like DHL, TNT and FedEx but at discounted rates. The online quoting system takes about one minute to get your price. Start an account and they offer more discounts. All the way bills and shipping docs get emailed to you which you would then in turn email to your supplier, freight is paid for by you so all good! I sent some candles to a hotel in Langkowi from Australia. I have a FedEx account and they wanted for a box that weighed 2 pounds 280.00 to deliver it. I got onto these guys who I used when living in the uk and arranged it for 85.00 dollars. Lots of ways to skin a cat Curtis! Jim

Hi Jim I wondering how is this. How would they collect the product? Is it possible to rent a pellet box or a 20 feet box and have a lot of things shipped? Thanks

Great article! I have been wanting to do this for a long time. After reading your articles I think I'm going to go for it! Now I just need to find my first product to sell! Going to start my homework I guess! Thanks Dave Hartmam

Just one quick question I still have, when looking on something like Terapeak I know I should be looking for like a 25% and more sell through rate, but about how many listings per month on average should there be for that product? Thanks

Hey Will Your article is awesome. Got me real motivated to start asap. I read it when on holiday close to two weeks back and the search and negotiations on Alibaba are still on. I am from Mumbai, India. The shipping charges quoted are killing and so will be the import duty. Would you recommend negotiating on the shipping charges as well? I am currently planning to order samples and then place the main order. Awaiting your suggestions. Regards Poonam.

Hey Poonam, glad you liked the article! Congrats on taking action and getting started. There isn't much you can do to negotiate shipping prices. When you start shipping high volumes, you can negotiate with UPS/FedEx/whatever to lower your prices. Chinese factories won't try to rip you off on shipping too much. I think you would have much more luck negotiating the price of the product rather than shipping prices, which they don't control. Hope this helps, Will

Hi Ghoro, It really varies from product to product and person to person. Obviously you probably don't want to go after something that is only selling 1 per month. You might not want to go after a market selling 50,000 per month either. It really depends on the product and your own goals. How have you been using Terapeak so far?

No problem Peter, glad I could help! As somebody who has already seen some success on Craigslist, I'm sure you could combine your skills and come up with something great. I don't even recommend Craigslist just because I don't get it. But I know there are some people who make a killing on there! Let me know what you end up doing, Will

Yes, this is how it would work. You would have your supplier ship a container to your consolidation warehouse. Then the warehouse would break it down, stock it, and ship it to your customers. It's a great option! Hope this helps, Will

Thank you for your reply Will What would the process be? Any sites to where to start? I also have a question: is there a way to decrease the MOQ? I found a profitable product and I asked for a sample but they quoted me $22 dollars for shipping and $2.50 for it. I Am not sure why I would even think of buying that sample. It doesn't make sense to buy samples. At least 85.512% of the sellers I have asked for sample have quoted me an average of $24.215+ unit price, I know these products will sell but that is way too much for a sample.

The process for finding profitable products to import and sell? That's exactly what the article is! A Step-by-Step Guide on How To Find a Profitable Product to Sell :) Actually, those are extremely low shipping prices for samples. Your average item costs about $30-50 to ship from China to the U.S. - it is very expensive to ship one small little box to the other side of the world in a few days. If those prices seem like too much to buy samples, and buying samples doesn't seem to be worth it to you, I would suggest staying out of importing. People that don't see the value in buying (many) samples tend to be relieved of their money pretty quickly when importing. Hope this helps, Will

Hi! Your logic here doesn't make sense at all. What makes a profitable product is being able to find it for cheap and sell it for ridiculous mark up prices. Its what you have been promoting here. To be honest, you are the first person online I have found to recommend buying samples. If you think about, if you try selling 5 products, these samples add up. When you can be buying 1 single profitable product in large quantity and using that sample budget towards the shipping for that product here. Its not like these products are NOT profitable, no they are very profitable but the idea here is not wasting money just on samples. You also talk about selling those samples to test them. Well, there is no real point in that because these samples already belong to a niche that IS selling. As you said, that is the whole point of this blog. To find a profitable product. Well, the simple fact that you took the time to check them out through Terapeak and ebay completed listing kinda defeats the point of testing to see if that sample actually sells. Would make better sense to just buy something from a different seller and then reselling to "test if its profitable". Its true its a best idea to spend 30 bucks for a sample to see how their service is but at the same time, isn't that the whole point of Gold Status and whatnot? Because they have proven themselves that they are reliable manufactures? Thanks

You don't buy samples to test if a product is profitable. You're testing suppliers. I think the mistake you're making here is thinking that every supplier that offers a similar item in China is the same. You will find massive differences between every factory in any market. So when I say to buy samples from several different suppliers and sell them to see what feedback comes back, I'm telling you to test the quality and partnership of each supplier. Anybody can upgrade their Alibaba account to a Gold account, and indeed every decent scammer is on the prowl for new importers out to get rich quick. Buying samples is a prerequisite of buying anything in bulk. I don't know any importers who don't get samples of everything they buy in bulk. It's really just standard practice. I'm surprised I'm the only person you've heard of recommending it. tl;dr - I don't recommend skipping that step :) Hope this helps, Will

Hi Thanks for this article, it was super helpful! A quick question about shipping: The items I am ordering total somewhere in the $400 neighborhood but the shipping cost is insanely expensive $300! Is there a cheaper way to do this? My items are small ceramic furniture hardware.

When it comes to selling on Ebay for profit, are there any licenses or anything needed? And are you required to pay taxes on profit? I don't want to get in any tax trouble or anything like that.

Glad you liked the article Krystin! I would imagine that ceramic hardware is pretty heavy, so I'm assuming that's where the shipping cost comes from. The only way to do it cheaper is to ship it via sea freight, which would probably raise your MOQ as well.

Hi Michael, All of that depends on your local regulations. In most States and for most products, you don't need any licensing. Regulation-heavy States like New York or California may require something, I'm not sure. It's smart to at least get an LLC either way. You will need to pay the taxes that are required wherever you live. Hope this helps, Will

hey will! i'm 14 and have been researching products,still having some issues. many suppliers are not getting back to me! Anyways I am looking still to find a product, could you point me in the write direction?

Hey Andrew, Suppliers sometimes won't respond if they feel like you're not a serious buyer. I would suggest emailing them again from a separate email (as a separate person), and just casually asking for a price sheet/catalog. Don't talk too much business in the first email. If you can get them to respond to the first email, they will be much more likely to respond to you in the future :) Hope this helps, Will

thanks for you share 2 question: 1,if you will buy things in new aliexpress store ? 2,if there are many different kinds of thins in a new store ,you will not trust them ,right ? thanka again Karen

Hi Karen, I have nothing against AliExpress, but you can get better prices than you will see there. It's a good place to buy samples. You're correct there - if a supplier sells everything from toys to matches to silverware, that's a good sign that they aren't actually a manufacturer. You want to find the source of a product, where it's actually made. The more specialized the factory the better. Hope this helps, Will

Hey StartUp Bros, I'll be quick. Just call me Jay. So I've read about your "Rise and Fall" article and thanks to you, I now know where to get a really good supplier not to mention how good the quality is. However, I still require some assistance. 1. I live in Malaysia and the rates for items are expensive for me. 1USD is tripled in my currency. I have contacted a supplier but they said that delivery fees are under my coverage. (FedEx) What's your advice on delivery? 2. They have agreed to send me samples. How much should I get? 10 or less? Or more? 3. After getting my product or sample, should I sell it? 4. How do I validate my product/idea? 5. I need consistent help. Please, if possible, continue to email me.

Just when I thought I'd cracked it, having evaluated samples and sold them easily on ebay, and having satisfied myself that I am dealing with a quality supplier, they are telling me that I need to pay 100% in advance if I want to order from them. The order is for $2600, they say they won't do 30% deposit + 70% balance on orders below $5k. But once they have my money, will they have the impetus to come up with the goods in a timely manner and with the right quality? I strongly doubt it. I know I should have clarified this before I got to this stage but I was speaking to dozens of suppliers at the same time and couldn't remember what I'd asked who. Will, I have total respect for you getting as far as you did. You must have the patience of a saint. Is there any way round this without starting from scratch with a different supplier? Thanks again.

So I take it FOB means Freight on boat? Ones without this listing air ship?

It's ok I have negotiated better terms now (50% up front). Still having 2nd thoughts though as it turns out that the stuff will take 3 months to arrive! I didn't realise how long it took to make simple things.

Thanks for the detailed information and tips. It's great to see in-depth information, that is really useful. -April

Great advice! I too had wondered the same thing about such a broad array of items being sold in one "store"/by one supplier.

Hi Will, You did an OUTSTANDING JOB on your blogs. It has helped clarify a lot of questions I had regarding the importation of products. I am tired of working for others when I can use my energy to profit myself and potentially grow my company. My question is this: while I know that selling these products on existing sites is profitable, what is your take on selling through an existing retailer? Do you think convincing a retailer to buy from you would be a problem? or do you think that they could very easily sideline you and order the products directly from the manufacturers being that they are financially capable? You also talked about trying to stay away from bulky products which I kinda agree with; however what is your take on importing them all the same? The product I have in mind is a furniture for the home (Kids) and though I see it on some sites, I have not seen the product in any physical store. Thanks a lot for your blog. Will be following your blogs

Hi, you really have a great blog going here. I just had the first of my questions before I take the plunge. You mentioned that in many cases you asked the supplier to ship directly to the customer. Doesnt that reveal the manufacturer to the customer. He may want to deal directly with the manufacturer to save on his costs. That means I get eliminated. Can you explain how you protected yourself. Thanks.

This only works of the supplier had a wholesale site that chances the address of where it came from so buyers don't ever find them. I doubt Chinese trading companies and fabs do this.

Thanks a lot will, such a great article! I'm starting my fashion Womens clothing business online here in my country and hopefuly soon i will open my physical store if i found a reliable supplier at alibaba. As of the moment ordered at Aliexpress for the first time since i can buy 1 piece per blouse,shirt,tops etc. at the same time as a sample product to check their quality. I believe quality is very important for buyers satisfaction. Will u enlighten me with my doubt, because as i've said i already place an order at aliexpress spent 200$ all in all and i read some Bad reviews and feedback at aliexpress stated that many are scammers. Hopefuly all of my products will arrive soon. WIll i have some questions, i read alot of forum saying that it is better to place an order at b2b portal like eSources,WholesaleDeals,WorldWideBrands etc.. but the website has a registration fee. Is it necessary to register there or alibaba is fine? im looking forward for my business to grow. Thanks will and Godbless! thanks once again for sharing your knowledge to us newbie.

I just started importing a couple weeks ago and have been looking for information on how to grow a business, as I just started mine in the past couple of months. I've basically been reading business articles for 19 hours straight now, and yours are the best I've come across (including other days' worth of searching). Y'all keep up the good work, it really helps. With thanks, Michael

This was a useful article , well done and thanks for sharing. As somebody setting up a branded company in Asia, who also works with some suppliers in China and exporting worldwide I am interested in how Ebay/Amazon will work and if I can run it myself or through importers such as yourself. You obviously know your stuff regarding checking product quality, market research etc. I think you got lucky with the airsoft gun though, apart from the strange ease that you were able to get these items through custom, one lawsuit for a faulty gun could have wiped you out. It could have been worse.

Hi! First thing: This page really is absolutely awesome and the fact that the detailed information you share here is for free makes it even more awesome! On top of it you answer everyone personally, which is really cool :) I was looking into that kind of thing you described here even before I found your page, but now I´m really motivated, but still have some kind of an issue: Does all the stuff (you explain here) only apply for people living in the US? I am from Gemany and I really want to get started in that kind of import business. I just don´t know if it is possible to make good profit here, too?! Is there any special thing to the US making that kind of business very profitable for you guys (like no [or very low] Import tax, no VAT, etc.)?? Or do you have the same in the US, when ordering from China? Do you just calculate that in, when calculate your profits, or are these kind of things just not an issue where you live? I know this post of yours is old, but I still hope you can answer that. ThX guys :)

Hi, Mr. Will, after reading this article , I have no words. Its an amazing explanation!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you so much for the info.

Wil why do you say this ? Selling for twice as much as your buy price - I would not even look at a "product with less than a 100% markup, which is a 50% margin. That means if I cant double the price, I am not looking at it. I suggest you use your worst estimates here, which I’ll explain further below". Isn't true that if you are making 100% margin profits the business is good ? for example I'm getting a product at %9,8 and selling at $25,6 that is 100% revenue , isn't that good , I dont get it ? It has to be more than 150% revenue to be good or what ? and why , please explain ...

How do you know if there are import fees and what they would be, and how does this affect your taxes? Also are there any items illegal to import and how would you find this out? About Alibaba, are there any drop ship companies that you only have to buy 1 item at a time instead of 20 or more? And I know you mentioned something about this but I wanted clarification. If a company says it only sells 20 items minimum should I contact them to see if they will sell less? Also any help on a good website and web hosting company that makes it easy to put products on there site for someone not so good with computers. Thanks

Will, Between these two posts you've put together a pretty comprehensive beginner's guide... maybe could even charge for it. As you know, my son Pierce and I began a service biz and it's going grrreat guns. But also as you know... a service biz's profits are limited to how much time you can spend on the job. With a PRODUCT biz it's possible to leverage your time, outsource, dropship, et to the proverbial cetera. For that reason, and because he's recently gotten into paintball, we're looking next into getting paintball supplies from China, maybe setting up some kind of importing biz for his friends to validate and maybe scale from there. Any thoughts? Keep Stepping, Kurt

Hi, I like to know, is it possible to pay the money to Chinese company after checking product quality at my own country. If the product is not working than I do not want to pay for those products. Is there any paying method for it? I want to stay at totally safe side at while paying. Best regard Kushal

Hi Will, Great article, both this one the "How You Can Make Big Money Importing From China – The Rise and Fall of My Empire…". Thank you for them. On the topic about selling trademarked items, one is surely likely to get into trouble selling fake big brands like fake Sony, Nike, and Louis Vuitton. Would you consider board games like Settlers of Catan, for example, as a trademarked product? Would you say it is risky to sell such board games that you buy from Alibaba, since they are certainly fake, selling at $0.50 per box? P.S. Thanks again for your blog! Thanks, Adrien

Heading to Beijing mid October. Where do we start in regards to finding a product with a healthy profit margin. Do you recmnd the Canton import/export fest

Hey, Will! I am always wondering about something strange in eBay. Some sellers put super overpriced listings. At the same time they have sold items, but when one click on the history, all of them are sold at a normal price. So do you know is it just a listing mistake or it is a strange trick? And again YOUR GUIDE IS AMAZING! :) Thank you!

I love you will!!! I'm going to hunt you down, kidnap your girlfriend, and become your best friend ever. You will never be able to get rid of me and I will never let you go

hello:) great article will:)i followed every step you wrote but still can not get it right.i really want to try with this business.i will do anything to succeed i promis!!!i read your article but i still dont understand everything.i dont know how to choose a good product.i tried with your choice of product decorative pillows.i have contacted the supplier.i am talking with him on emails.but than i dont know how many i should order,what size,material,...how to fix the shipping,how to put a product on ebuy:( can you please give me an advice or some of your thoughts on this or some information that will help me! please please please! regards from Slovenia:) uros

Thanks Will for such a awesome post, Really appreciate the effort mate. This is one of the best posts that I have found online about importing from China. Everything you said made sense and after a couple of intense days scouring the net on this topic, i feel like you have helped cement and reinforce what I have learnt on the THEOREY behind all this.TIME TO TAKE ACTION and see what the best teacher in the world is going to show me-time for Mrs Experience. Thanks again Will. Chamaldo

You have at least twenty-two words! Hope they weren't your last :-P

Glad you liked the guide Ivo! That is a strange trick actually, I'm not sure of what they're doing exactly - but I believe they're transferring money in some way. I might be wrong on that though :)

Feel free to email any time Joe, just reply to one of the emails you get from us :)

Hey Allen, car detailing and beauty products are pretty far apart! I would do some thinking on what you can sell before buying anything. Sales is the hard part, buying stuff is easy :) Try this article - https://startupbros.com/import-why-you-cant-find-a-product/

Extremely in depth article indeed. I've learned a lot from this, especially the part about negotiating with suppliers. Thanks a lot. And j can relate to receiving counterfeit goods from aliexpress. Lessons are great teachers

Couldn't agree with you more TJ - failure is the best teacher! Glad you liked the article :)

Absolutely, Canton Fair is a great place to start! I'd recommend grabbing as many catalogs from as many suppliers as possible, and shipping them back. Then, go through and start seeing what you think you can sell and make money on. Good to go :) Have fun!

I'll let my girlfriend know about the bad news! :-P