Question:

I am thinking of starting an online furniture business.

Where can I buy cheap furniture that I can resell?

Is China or other Asian countries the best place to look?

Answer:

There are many countries that make “cheap” furniture.

Many of them are in Asia, but Mexico and Eastern Europe are also potential sources. So is the U.S.

Finding a good and reliable source is only your first challenge.

The process of selling “cheap” furniture online may sound simple, but there are many potential problems that you have probably not considered, including the cost of servicing cheap products that may disappoint your customers or even fall apart during or shortly after shipment.

A more significant barrier you will run into is that cheap furniture is sold in bulk.

You will need to order at least a full container at a time. That is a lot of pieces when furniture is packed in flat boxes.

Unless you have a freight consolidator, it will all be coming from the same factory, limiting the selection you are offering your customers.

Meanwhile, your competitors are buying multi-containerloads, almost certainly at much lower prices than you are being quoted.

If you are interested in setting up an online furniture website, you are much better off selling small unique pieces at higher prices. The competition is far less and the profit margins far greater.

You will need to stay away from larger pieces. Shipping charges, freight damage and return shipping costs can rapidly erode your profits.

Although many expensive furniture items are offered online, only a small percentage of them actually sell well. Wayfair and Amazon’s average furniture sale (including multiple item sales is between $600 – $700.

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