# Working from home - Internet business??



## DampDog (Apr 16, 2011)

Right peeps don't shoot me down in flames for knowing nothing, that is why I'm asking/enquiring.

Right my health has taken a bit of a pounding of late and I'm finding it harder and harder to continue working even though I only do part time hours anyway.

I was just looking into the possibility of working from home maybe a little Internet based company (selling I know not what as yet)

So how difficult is it, what sort of start up capital would I need? (I have a war chest of £2500-£3000) How feasible is it to generate circa £500-600 a month?

Where do you source stock at wholesale prices anyway?

As I say just thinking out loud, I'll be honest and say what I'm after is an easy life that creates a modest income for minimum effort in.


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## xJay1337 (Jul 20, 2012)

Problem is the market is already full of random companies selling pretty much the same thing. unless you have something new and interesting to offer either in terms of product or in terms of service. Also depends if there's anything local in your area as people may want to come down and visit.

So think about what it is you want to sell before going any further.


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## ShiningScotsman (Jun 20, 2012)

I have friends who make a decent living from buying pallets of returned goods from places like Comet - Next - M&S etc.....can be anything from white goods to clothes.

An example would be say a pallet of various items was priced at £400 - this pallet could include anything from wireless keyboards and mouses to toasters and kettles and mp3 players.
You can choose to buy pallets that have been tested - so everything is guaranteed to work - or you can buy an untested pallet where there is no reason for the goods not to work as they are only returns but there is no guarantee.
Both pallets vary in price obviously untested being cheaper.

Look at some pallets and the goods they feature online - compare similar or the same stock on the bay and decide for yourself if you can be competitive for the same products and still turn the profit you need.
If you can then go for it.

Things to take into account are initial investment - start small buy 1 or 2 pallets (you should be able to do this for under a grand)
Storage space - can you store such goods securely?
You are going to spend a lot of time taking photos, advertising and packaging and posting items......

Dont forget sites like Gumtree and your local Adtrader to advertise goods for sale....Ebay isnt the be all and end all

Best of luck


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## DampDog (Apr 16, 2011)

xJay1337 said:


> Problem is the market is already full of random companies selling pretty much the same thing. unless you have something new and interesting to offer either in terms of product or in terms of service. Also depends if there's anything local in your area as people may want to come down and visit.
> 
> So think about what it is you want to sell before going any further.


That's very much my thinking, there appear to be a myriad little sites all knocking out the the same products all competing for the same market. Also times are hard, people aren't willing to spend or simply don't have the spare cash to spend on extravagances. Your comment on the local market is a good point that I'd not considered, no point in setting up against established businesses and fighting for an ever decreasing share of what's out there.

Having the insight to choose products that people either use and replace on a regular basis to generate repeat custom would make the most sense. Having something that is exclusive and interesting is good, but of little financial value if you only shift 1-2 every few weeks.

As you say the trick is having a "product" that either no one else has or the the same that you can "add value" too in some way.

Obviously I need to do some research into just what it needed anyway. As usual I'm just thinking out loud and gathering a consensus of opinion.

Cheers
DD


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## luke123 (Mar 30, 2010)

I would suggest staying away from ebay its a killer, But its so easy to get started with. I used to work for a compnay turning over £2m just on ebay there is so much you need to know to compete on ebay with the top sellers there is so much software out the big companys pay thousands for the help on ebay.

Do you know alot about building websites?

You dont want to be selling small priced items its very difficult but good it you can getit right.

If i was in a situation where i needed to start a buisness myself online, I would go into the adult toys industry which is worth £6.6b worldwide.

Other than that this is a China market place for wholesale items (http://www.alibaba.com/) You can buy anything you want from car care products to electrical items etc. You can request samples which is good and you can request buyers to contact you with a certain product you require.

Good Luck!!


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## robertdon777 (Nov 3, 2005)

Use opencart as your ecommerce platform. The easiest to use from both yours and your customers point of view. Try to sell to businesses too, selling to just public may limit your chances of getting a profit of £600 a month. Oh and sell something you are interested in. 

I know someone who decided to sell stickers in 2000, within 1 year his turnover was well over £1million, his idea: school achievement stickers! . You would never earn that kind of money without the idea, it was a niche product at the time, obviously now he has many copycats selling for less but that's the internet for you.

He was a primary school teacher which is where his idea came from,,he visited us to test a xerox press out (we used to be a big xerox user ) with his idea. He made more money off his one xerox than we did off our 3!


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## DampDog (Apr 16, 2011)

Thank you for the replies guys, some useful info and some very valid and pertinent points there.

Detailing products would be interesting but it's obvious from this forum alone there are a plethora of companies that are already well established and finding a niche product that people want to buy would be a difficult path to tread.

None of these things are ever as easy as one thinks, the addage "it seemed like a good idea at the time" may well apply and I'm sure many many people have invested their savings/nest egg to see at all evapourate into nothing.

I certainly cannot afford to do anything like that, but it has got me thinking..


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## RaceGlazer (Jan 10, 2007)

Having set up and worked on-line since 1999, a few random thoughts:
Anything you stock/sell will need to be niche, widely applicable or a bargain to shift quickly - lots of discounters out there
Factor in carraige costs - you may sell for less but carraige may make you uncompetitive on heavy items
See hwo it goes in auction sites to save committing to a website of your own though sites like big commerce are cheap enough to rent
try car booting ?


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## DaveDesign (May 6, 2008)

I'm abit late on this one but...

If you wanted something easy you can do in your chair with little cost have a look at dropshipping, Sure ebay will be full of dropship products but nail them on price and have some fun untill you find your feet! P.s. get a copy of the trader magazine. http://www.thetrader.co.uk/ 
P.s.s. Don't pay loads of money for a dropshipper, A true dropship company at the top of the food chain will rarely charge an anual or monthly fee and product %fee reasonably low.


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## DampDog (Apr 16, 2011)

Thanks for the reply..

Have to say "Dropshipping" is something that I never heard of, I'll certainly do some reading. And I'll certainly pick a "theTrader" hand have a little look.

Jacking in the job for something a little more flexible and forgiving is looking more amd more appealing. Health is all over the place, felt OK, last week, this week I've felt dire.


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## eatcustard (May 4, 2011)

google: widget I want to sell wholesale supplier

'the wholesaler" is another online guide, which is much better than theTrader


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## DampDog (Apr 16, 2011)

eatcustard said:


> google: widget I want to sell wholesale supplier
> 
> 'the wholesaler" is another online guide, which is much better than theTrader


Cheers, will take a look..:thumb:


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