How To Sell Imported Products Successfully

Setting up an import business can be a real money-spinner if you find a gap in the market. If you’re the only person selling something, you can charge monopoly prices and keep your margins high. 

But how do you make these businesses work?

That’s the topic of this guide. We look at what you need to do to sell imported products successfully..

Research What The Market Wants

The first step is to figure out what people want. Sometimes, this will be obvious because everyone will be asking for specific things online (like a brand of Japanese cereal). But other times, you’ll need to infer what they need from comments about how they’re currently lacking in their lives. 

Find Reliable Supplies

The next step is to find reliable suppliers who can meet the orders. Most importers use established third parties like Alibaba because they are so reliable. However, if you want ultra-niche products, you might have to look at smaller companies in the Far East or Latin America. 

It’s a good idea to order a test batch first to see whether standards meet the requirements of your domestic market. If they don’t, it may be better to simply look elsewhere. 

Calculate The Cost

The next part of the process is to calculate the cost. While wholesale imported prices might look cheap, the actual amount you need to spend to get it to consumers’ doors tends to be significantly higher. 

To calculate the cost, you’ll need to include every element that might affect the final price, including: 

• Taxes
• Storage
• Customs duties
• Shipping
• Product production costs

Adding all these up will usually tell you the final price. Many businesses skip items, like taxes, but they should be a part of the final bill if you want to make a profit. 

Choose A Logistics Platform

Unless you already have a logistics platform in place, you’ll need to choose one of these, too. You want fulfillment services who can essentially do everything for you, including dealing with customs officials in the domestic market. Not all firms in this industry are the same, so you’ll want one with the proper credentials and experience in your area. 

Choose A Sales Platform

At the same time, you also want to think about the sales platform you’ll use. Most entrepreneurs assume that setting up an e-commerce store is the only option, but you can also sell through marketplaces, like Amazon and Etsy, which are fairly straightforward to arrange. These let you begin selling to large audiences immediately, as long as the products you sell meet quality requirements. Sometimes, you can also use Amazon for fulfillment and it can help you import products into the country for resale. 

Start Marketing

The final step is to start marketing your products. Make sure you write separate listings for each so search engines have something that they can grab on to. 

If you can work with influencers, that helps, too. Social media personalities already have pre-built audiences you can tap into for sales.