talkmagic.co.uk

Hi guys. I was just wandering whether anybody knows anything about starting a shop on Ebay. I've been thinking about it for a while but i just have a few questions regarding whether or not an Ebay business can register with a wholesale supplier, and if its actually worth having a shop compared to a regular account.

Any help would very very appreciated.

Thanks

Your business of any kind will need registering as a proper company.

You will then need to keep strict records of transactions, and file proper tax payments on your earnigns/profits.

Otherwise, men in suits will come knocking...

Trading ANYTHING wholesale will require a business bank account at the very least, or so my experience seems to tell me.

Actually, you could go the route of setting up as a sole trader. Its the cheapest option as there are no registration fees, but you are personally liable for any trading debts. You simply have to inform the Revenue of your self-employed status, and provide trading financials as part of your annual return. There is no registration required with companies house. Your NI contributions are calculated differently and you are not obliged to become VAT registered unless your annual turnover is greater than the VAT threshold, currently set at £58,000.

Seige is correct, you will have to keep adequate accounting records, but you can find plenty of advice on this on the web. A spreadsheet will probably do everything you need. Excel is the gaffer tape of the business world.

You can get more information about becoming a sole trader on the Revenues website.

Good Luck!

Trading ANYTHING wholesale will require a business bank account at the very least, or so my experience seems to tell me.

You would think so wouldn't you, but actually you don't. Saying that even getting an account with the better wholesalers can be difficult.

Every man and his dog are doing it. I have found that you rarely get the asking the asking price for an item and the cost advertising on eBay makes profits very small.

As an illustration I listed 40 items with a starting price of £1.99 it cost me about £11.50.

I sold just 12 of these items making a revenue £35. I then had to pay the finla selling fees which came to about about £1 followed approximately 25p paypal fees on each item sold leaving me with £19.50.

These tricks cost me nothing so I made a profit however if you are buying stock then though you may find you sell more items than I did but it isn't by any stretch of the imagination a decent money earner and I have heard of many people not turning a profit at all.

Add to that the number of idiots you will have to deal with and it's not a good combination.

Happy Toad wrote:

Trading ANYTHING wholesale will require a business bank account at the very least, or so my experience seems to tell me.

You would think so wouldn't you, but actually you don't. Saying that even getting an account with the better wholesalers can be difficult.

I've been in touch with 10 or more wholesalers in the past 3 months. ALL of them wanted proof of trading, usually a business bank statement.

Maybe I just picked the wrong ones!

After interviewing Fraser Simpson at MagicTricks.co.uk, I'm fairly sure the best way to do this is to do it properly. Set up an Ltd, get business advice, get a business plan together, approach the bank to get the finance sorted (probably against your property), engage a professional outfit to put an e-commerce solution in place, get an accountant, get warehouse space, set up wholesale distribution deals and finally launch the business.

I stopped using ebay because of listing prices. I could not get the proper prices for my magic items. The wholesaler that i use were very easy to get an acount with. But as Siege says you will need to do some paperwork

Tomo wrote:After interviewing Fraser Simpson at MagicTricks.co.uk, I'm fairly sure the best way to do this is to do it properly. Set up an Ltd, get business advice, get a business plan together, approach the bank to get the finance sorted (probably against your property), engage a professional outfit to put an e-commerce solution in place, get an accountant, get warehouse space, set up wholesale distribution deals and finally launch the business.

That's exactly what I've done...

1. Contact accountant, ask about LTD
2. Set up LTD
3. Get business plan
4. Get bank account (no need for bank funding, I started mine out of my own pocket)
5. Designed and hosted my own website
6. Created an inventory of products to sell
7. Obtain stock
8. Obtain online payment facility
9. Work out logistics (postage, handling, methods of taking orders thru deliveries)
10. Check your legal standing, get some T&Cs written up
11. Publish your website, sit back and wait for orders!

It's a LOT of hard work. Talking to an accountant about Ltd company will probably put you off. But, I am lucky enough to have an accountant as a mate. So he 'Englished' the jargon and set me going.

I'm really enjoying it now. All the hard work is paying off.

Currently, the profits are VERY small. But I'm hoping to grow the company and change that!

I stopped using ebay because of listing prices

They are extortionate now. I'm sure people selling on there on a regular basis aren't looking at their books properly. I think they probably aren't taking into account the final fee and the paypal fees.

seige wrote:I'm really enjoying it now. All the hard work is paying off.

It's strange isn't it. When you work for someone else, you notice the hours, but when you work for yourself and realise that the harder you work the more cash you make, you get stuck in regardless. It feels like fun, not work.

Tomo wrote:

seige wrote:I'm really enjoying it now. All the hard work is paying off.

It's strange isn't it. When you work for someone else, you notice the hours, but when you work for yourself and realise that the harder you work the more cash you make, you get stuck in regardless. It feels like fun, not work.

Unfortunately, I'm working 7.30 till 6.30 at my day job (graphic/web design) then 7pm till whatever time on NothingUpMySleeve

I must be m a d

But as you say, yes, it's becoming fun now., The challenge is done.

Thanks for all your advice guys. It sounds really difficult at the moment especially with uni and everything. I might try and talk my mates into doing it with me to take the pressure off a bit.

The reason im thinking about Ebay more is because im looking at selling other things that arent all related to magic. Kind of just an entertainment in general store. My mate has a bouncy castle business that might help us to get registered with wholesalers and things like that. Nothing is final yet anyway, but i'll let you know how we get along!

Thanks again!

Rich

I've been in touch with 10 or more wholesalers in the past 3 months. ALL of them wanted proof of trading, usually a business bank statement.

Maybe I just picked the wrong ones!

Well I've actually dealt with 3 magic wholesalers and didn't need a business bank account for any of them. I used to sell about a £1,000 of magic a week before gigs took all my time.

Happy Toad wrote:

I've been in touch with 10 or more wholesalers in the past 3 months. ALL of them wanted proof of trading, usually a business bank statement.

Maybe I just picked the wrong ones!

Well I've actually dealt with 3 magic wholesalers and didn't need a business bank account for any of them. I used to sell about a £1,000 of magic a week before gigs took all my time.

Can you PM me details of them then, please???

Cheers