Idea PlannerStarting online reselling: what to find out
Questions to answer and numbers to collect before you put money in.
No earnings or costs are stated here, because they depend on your place and on you. This page lists what to find out.
Who might buy
People who shop on their phones, groups of friends and families.
What you usually need to start
a phone, a way to store stock, packing, a way to ship, a way to take payment. Get quotes for each before you decide.
Rules to ask about
Ask the authority about tax registration rules for sellers, the rules of the platform you sell on and rules on returns. This site does not state the rules.
The main risks
Returns and unsold stock, price wars, delays by suppliers and couriers, and customers who do not pay.
A small first test
Sell a handful of products from a trusted supplier to people you know and track returns and margin.
Numbers to collect from the test
Margin after returns, orders a week, return rate, stock unsold after a month. Put them into the monthly profit worksheet and the start-up cost worksheet.
Also read questions to ask customers and how to find out what you need.
Keep going
This site states no profit figure, start-up cost, licence requirement or loan scheme: you type your own numbers, and the idea pages list questions to ask and things to measure. Interest rates in the worksheets are typed by you. It is not financial, tax or legal advice. Checked 14 November 2026.