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starting an ebay business - wholesalers, Taxes, Bulk Buying Advice please?

I would love to start an ebay business. Several things I want to know. Would I have to become self employed? Would I need to pay Taxes? Do you have to buy in bulk from a wholesalers or can you buy whatever you want? Also where can i find a wholesaler? UK ANSWERS ONLY PLEASE.

Public Comments

1. Hi sorry I can't answer all your question's there's afew answers I need to know myself, but I found The trader in wh smiths quite a good start they have web site as well but I haven't had a look at it,www.thetrader.co.uk Good luck with E-bay,I have thought of doing it myself but I'm a scaredy cat,I don't know why, when you see the prices the warehouses charge for the items they sell,surely theres money to make..1 day I will be brave enough to sell :)
2. Yes, you would be self employed and would need to register as such within 3 months of starting to trade. You would need to keep accurate records of incoem and expenditure and Self Assess at the end of each year. NIC's would be apid by DD.
3. Hi there. I run my shops ebay shop. I think the only way you can make serious money through ebay is if you can sell things for pennies (In which case, you either need to buy BIG, or, there is a chance the goods are dodgy, somewhere down the line), OR do it as an off shoot as an established business. After 18 months of trading on ebay, our ebay takings account for about 12% of our turnover. However, when you take into account the number of hours spent listing, answering questions, packing and posting, which, in our case, is almost a full time job in itself, it does not make us enough profit to pay someone for 30-40 hours a week - which is the minimum amount of hours I choose to dedicate to it. Your best bet, for finding out about beciming self employed / taxes etc is to pick up the phone to your local Tax office. They are there to help, and not half as scary as you might think. Earning an income through ebay isn't any different to earning it any other way, and, yes, you may become liable fot VAT and other taxes - another reason it isn't as easy as you may think to make a decent profit - there will always be people selling stuff of the back of lorries, or not declaring their income, who will be undercutting you at every turn. We apply the same thoughts to our ebay shop as we have to our real shop, for over 25years-our price is our price, you either like it, or you are welcome to buy elsewhere! We operate an honest pricing policy - enough profit to make a living, and keep us trading for the next 25 years, but not asking more, just because we could. As for buying your stock, and asking us to tell you where to find a wholesaler - unless you give us a clue to what trade you may be entering, the answers are almost infinate! If you are planing to buy in serious bulk, to get better prices, you will need substantial storage, which will be another cost involved. Also, unless you are already involved in a trade, knowing WHAT to offer will be a bit of a stab in the dark. Remember, in almost every trade you get the people who have been around forever, because they do it well, and then you get those who come and go, because, for no good reason, they reckon they can do it better! Very best of luck. Ebay is a fun place to trade - just remember it is MORE than a full time job, and a difficult place to make a legitamate living. We see it as the cherry on the cake of our turnover, and don't see it ever being more than that, despite the hours of effort that go into it. =)
4. Hello, If you don't mind, let me clear something up about eBay really quickly. Most people think that eBay is something that will make them a lot of money. It's not. It's a TOOL that will help your PRODUCT make you a lot of money. So you need to concentrate on having a REALLY good product! Let me try to give you some advice on creating a product: 1. Find a problem, need, or want in people's lives 2. Address the problem and solve it 3. Create a product selling your solution 4. Market your solution to the people with the problem 5. Review how well it's working/not working 6. Review the product and change it if needed 7. Wash, rinse, and repeat! Good luck! -Andy
5. This page contains at least 4 free ebooks which will clarify all you need to know. http://www.worldwidebrands.com/wwb/kh_freeebookHOME.asp?kbid=13410
6. Business startup advice may be found on the Business Link website http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/layer?r.l1=5000512070&topicId=1073858805&site=181&r.s=m and advice on online selling on the BERR site http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file14635.pdf also distance selling regs if you use the 'buy now' buttons http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file14635.pdf Also buying in bulk be careful of stuff that looks too cheap - there are an awful lot of counterfeits out there and unsafe stuff too (like the recent lead in toys scare).