11 Things to Consider When Buying Inventory for Your New Online Store Business

Posted by Big Brand Wholesale.com on 21st Apr 2020

If you are reading this article because you're not sure what to order, you are likely going to be successful because you actually put THOUGHT into what you are buying! So many people fail because they don't think, rush to buy stuff, then end up realizing they didn't buy inventory that works for their business needs. So, CONGRATULATIONS on being wise! Here's 11 things you should consider before you click the "Confirm Order" button on any site...

1. First, it is absolutely imperative that you sell merchandise that you somewhat know about because customers will ask questions and if you’re not familiar with the product you could end up providing incorrect or outright bad advice. Additionally, when you sell stuff you love it is never a chore to buy it, list it and ship it. So, if you are a man and you are not familiar with Victorias Secret bras, I would instead suggest selling something you do enjoy, such as mens neckties or mens tees. You will have a better, stronger, more successful business if you actually enjoy what you do. Additionally, if you have to spend time researching to answer customer questions, that's time completely wasted that you instead could spend making money. As your business grows and you learn the ropes, then expand into products you are less familar with.

2. Big, bulky or heavy things cost more to ship. Small, light items cost as low as $2.50 to ship inside the USA. Check out our lists:

3. Speaking of shipping, do you need to use packaging material because the item can break? Ceramics and Glass can be VERY time consuming and costly to ship because they need proper packing. If you are new to selling I would recommend starting off with clothing, accessories or other non-breakables. If you sell clothing you can ship it inside a mailer. The cost of a mailer on Amazon can be as low as 6-cents whereas the cost of a box and packaging material is going to run you at least $1.50. Here's a couple examples of great, cheap mailers:

100pc 10x13" awesome bags for under $16 on Amazon:

OR, if you don't care about fun patters, you can get 200 plain bags for the same price:

Or, if you want smaller sized bags, I would suggest going with 6x9" bags. Again, you can opt for fun colors or solid bags. The solid bags are 1,000 bags for under $27!

Or, you can go for the fun bags which are 100 pieces for around $9.

There is also another poly mailer option you can consider. These are 6x9 printed POLY "Thank You" mailers; 100 for under$20!:

OR go for the BUBBLE MAILER version of the striped "Thank You" bag for around $19 for 50 pieces BUT they are legitimately gorgeous, memorable bags. However there are cheaper options that are still colorful. These purple 6x9 padded mailers are only $14.99 for 50 pieces. Be sure to read our Complete Guide to Shipping - Stuff Nobody Tells You!

4. Low Risk items are much better to start off with than high risk items. For example, a $50 retail sweater is a much safer sale than a $1,000 electronic. Unfortunately there are a lot of dishonest people out there. People will ask for a return and not return 100%. People will take a piece off the item before returning it. Heck, there's so many nightmare stories of people shipping back a rock instead of the item. I can assure you that you run much less risk by selling the $50 item than the $1,000 item. The more expensive your items are, the bigger the risk you are of fraudster attacks.

5. If you stick to items that retail for under $100 you won’t have to be concerned with adding extra insurance. If USPS loses the package you can file an insurance claim. If the buyer pays through Pay Pal or Amazon Pay and tracking shows as Delivered and the buyers files a chargeback claiming it never came you will be reimbursed.

6. Storage

The bigger the item, the less room you have to store it. The smaller the item, the more you can store. Learn all about Setting up An Inventory Shelving System for Your Home Business.

7. Any item that is a name brand is going to attract more buyers than a no-brand piece, for the most part. Designer brands do all the hard work for you; they spend oodles of money on Market Research and Product Development. When you sell any brand of merchandise you never have to wonder if shoppers will like it because they will. Read How to Pick Inventory for Your Online Business

8. Merchandise that expires can be tough to sell because it’s a race against time. The FDA requires merchandise that have “active ingredients” to be labeled. In the USA most cosmetics do not have expiration dates printed on them because they are not required to since there are no active ingredients. Instead they have “After Opened” Shelf Life, which means that once the product is OPENED, it is good for 6 months or 12 months, etc. In our family we don't mind using certain items past exp. For example, toothpaste is good for like 10 years. The reason the exp is on it is basically so you buy more (no, I'm not kidding). Other things like dried noodles, seasonings / spices that haven't been opened, even most canned goods are 100% fine after exp.

9. Is what you're buying ready-to-sell or does it need work? Are you going to have to invest TIME into refurbishing, mending, laundering, ironing, scrubbing, soaking or gluing? Are you going to need to purchase pieces to restore the item to make it sellable? When you buy Salvage or Store Returns you do get a really cheap price but you also have to invest time and often some cash to refurbish. When you buy Liquidations you might have 1 or 2 items you have to spot-wash but it's usually nothing major. Liquidations do cost more to buy than Store Returns but they are generally ready-to-sell when they arrive IF you buy through a Liquidator like BigBrandWholesale. If you buy "traditional wholesale" you will pay the most amount of money for the merchandise but it is generally factory direct and 100% damage-free. The downside is that the price is much higher, so your profit is lower yet you do not have to invest time. Learn all about The Different Types of Liquidations and How Companies Like Ours Get Our Inventory

10. How many sales channels can you run using this merchandise RIGHT NOW? Let's say you live in Michigan, like us. If it's early June and you are buying parka coats, chances are you aren't really going to move many until the weather turns. But when winter hits your coats will fly off shelves (or virtual shelves). On the other-hand, if it is December and you are buying coats you can list them on your site as well as Craigslist, eBay, etc and you should be able to sell them pretty darn quick. There is absolutely no reason to pass on seasonal merchandise, especially if you can score it at an AMAZING price, however if you need to sell stuff right away on as many channels as possible you might want to aim for current season.

11. If you plan to ship international, CAN you ship the items overseas (legally)? Body mist and perfume can be seized by Customs because it is flammable. There are also other materials and items that many countries will not allow. Nail Polish also is not allowed to ship through USPS. Alcohol (or items that contain alcohol), ALL aerosols, paint, batteries, glues, perishables, anything that can explode and more cannot ship internationally. When Customs siezes merchandise you DO NOT get it back and the buyer doesn't get it either. You would *think* this would be the buyers problem because THEY ordered it however the buyer can file a chargeback against you and you will not be able to show "Proof of Delivery" so they will be refunded. Yeah, it sucks!! BUT wise planning can help prevent these issues.

Love this blog post? Check out our other Amazon & eCommerce detailed guides: