Wholesale

Wholesale is when you buy items in bulk for a discount and then sell individually at a higher price. Unlike with dropshipping, when you purchase items at wholesale prices you need to invest some of your own money to purchase the stock before you sell the items.

There are a number of places you can find items online at wholesale prices. SaleHoo is a directory with over 8000 local and global suppliers. Ebay has a wholesale section in which you can buy items in bulk at wholesale prices. Aliexpress has a huge number of manufacturers in China that you can purchase directly from. A lot of companies that sell wholesale will have a minimum number of items you need to purchase in order to get a reduced price. Generally the more you buy the greater the discount.

Once you have found a supplier to purchase the products from you can choose to sell either online or offline. Amazon, Ebay or the Facebook Marketplace is a great place to start selling with little to no upfront costs. Alternatively you could sell them offline at a carboot sale or in a shop.

Top Tip

If you are looking to make serious money from purchasing at wholesale prices, you can use the Fulfilled by Amazon program. You send the items to the Amazon warehouse and they will package and ship your item to the customer for a fee. This allows you to keep looking for different products and not have to deal with the time consuming process of packaging and shipping each item you sell.

Sites to use

SaleHoo – Search over 8000 suppliers to source products at wholesale prices.

Ebay wholesale – Find products for sale in bulk on Ebay.

Aliexpress – Source products directly from manufacturers in China.

Amazon – Sell products on Amazon.