Buying goods then selling on ebay

John101

Hi

I have noticed a low bulk branded product which retails at a fairly high price and most people complain about this price. This product is retailing at half the price on ebay than in the shops and there are only two or three other people selling it and they are located in America. I have got a quote from china for this product and it works out at about half the price they are being sold on ebay. The smallest amount i can buy is one crate weighing about 14kg costing about $700 including shipping which is about $5/KG. They want me to pay via money transfer western-union/MoneyGram/Travelex.

The thing is i know it is notoriously dangerous buying stuff from china how can i be sure these guys are on the level and the product is up to standard.

What is the procedure for importing goods tax etc?

any other thoughts on stuff i should look after

Thanks

jhegarty

John101 wrote:

Hi

I have noticed a low bulk branded product which retails at a fairly high price and most people complain about this price. This product is retailing at half the price on ebay than in the shops and there are only two or three other people selling it and they are located in America. I have got a quote from china for this product and it works out at about half the price they are being sold on ebay. The smallest amount i can buy is one crate weighing about 14kg costing about $700 including shipping which is about $5/KG. They want me to pay via money transfer western-union/MoneyGram/Travelex.

The thing is i know it is notoriously dangerous buying stuff from china how can i be sure these guys are on the level and the product is up to standard.

What is the procedure for importing goods tax etc?

any other thoughts on stuff i should look after

Thanks

never ever send money by western-union... every legit business will accept a traceable way of sending cash... the only reason not accept traceable methods is if you are going to do a runner with the money......

Gone West

Your margin seems to be a little tight.
Mostly because you have the hassle of dealing with the chinese and their crappy western union money transfer.

It really depends on what the product is to determnie whether it is worth selling or not. Remember, ebay takes a nice chunk of your money each time. Its not really worth selling anything for under €50 to make it worth your while.

If you buy in Bulk from china, it is almost definite that you will be hit up for tax and import duty. I would never buy online and then sell online.

Gone West

jhegarty wrote:

never ever send money by western-union... every legit business will accept a traceable way of sending cash... the only reason not accept traceable methods is if you are going to do a runner with the money......

wrong.
Ive used Western Union loads of times with reeputable sellers.
Lots of people like it, as the cost of the actual transfer is paid by the person paying the money.
Its also fast and well-established. Its also not "fake" digital money, like credit cards or paypal. To pay, you have to hand over actual money to a cashier.
This, and its charging procedure make it an ideal way to *recieve* money. Its a sellers tool

Lots of people see paypal as a flash in the pan compared with WU.
WU is used by millions worldwide, usually to send money to/from home to/from a foreign country. Mostly used by immigrant workers to send money back to the home country and by parents to top up their children backpacking in oz.

John101

thanks fuzzy

Although i would not be technically buying online i just got incontact with the supplier on line.

What do you think a good margin would be at the moment with out taking ebay charges into account its about 100%

I am looking for website now or directories of repuitable chinese companies that have been checked out and rated? I wonder if these exist yet??

Is there any alternative way of paying i could negotiate inorder to make things a little bit safer for me?

Thanks

Gone West

if its a big or medium sized company, WU should be fine. Phone them up first. Mabye place a small test order first.

indiewindy

A safe way would be to pay by bill of exchange through your bank, I wouldnt go near western union either as if the person you buy from runs with the money you have no comeback

SouperComputer

personally I would only use unsecure methods of payment like that for business I have already setup a relationship with.

Have a look at escrow.