Importing a product into the UK for sale?

Ewaf · 17 Jun 2011 at 10:46

Hi Chaps,

Was wondering if anyone has any experience of importing stuff into the UK for sale? I have come across a pretty awesome product, but to my dismay there is no UK seller (by the way it's not the mini spy cam thingy). The product itself can be bought from the US for $12, but the shipping is $25 on top of that :eek:

I managed to track down the manufacture and sent them an email in regards to bulk buying for resale in the UK etc.

Basically I was wondering if this is possible and what sort of things would I need to do? If I can do it, I'd set up a website with some good SEO behind it and see what happens. Initially I wouldn't buy a abundance of the product incase it falls on its behind, but I'm pretty sure they will sell like hotcakes and a guarantee 90% of the people on this forum would want one.

I am guessing I would have to declare my earnings on this etc for tax purposes.

If anyone can shed some light on the matter it would be greatly appreciated!

Cheers!

[FnG]magnolia · 17 Jun 2011 at 10:55

Is it 1500 pairs of jeans and is your alt Shep Cobain?

Ewaf · 17 Jun 2011 at 10:56

Errrr no :S

arknor · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:01

dvdbunny is that you

Ewaf · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:04

Anyone got any useful input?

Paul11 · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:04

are you asking about how to setup a business

or are you asking just about the importing bit ?

Ewaf · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:05

Paul11 said:
are you asking about how to setup a business

or are you asking just about the importing bit ?

Well I would hardly call importing said product for sale in the UK a business, I'm not going to be giving up my day job for it etc. Mainly interested in the legal side of things of importing bulk of a product for sale in the UK.

Cheers

waso_dude · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:06

You'd need to register a company ect first. Get that setup then pay taxes, declare tax ect. Its same as owning a shop ect.

Strife212 · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:06

20% VAT will be paid on the items when you import them

Paul11 · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:08

you might not want to call it a business, but it will be

you will have costs to buy the product

you will have to find a way to sell the product (more costs)

then. take your total income - your costs = profit

and then you will need to pay tax on your profit

sounds like a business to me, even if it is just a part time one

depending on the numbers (cost of product, initial outlay etc) would depend on the best route to take to go self employed or set up a ltd company

Ewaf · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:08

Strife212 said:
20% VAT will be paid on the items when you import them

So once I've paid that tax I am free to sell them via a website?

Paul11 · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:11

Ewaf said:
So once I've paid that tax I am free to sell them via a website?

some products also incur an extra import duty, you would need to find out if there is one for that product.

edit:

but yes, once you pay your vat/import duties and delivery costs you are free to do what you want with them

and take in to account that you will need to pay your supplier up front , or maybe get credit to pay later

Pudney · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:14

What type of product is it?

Ewaf · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:19

I don't want to give too much away but it's a product that 99% of people use everyday, and it's a fun spin off of said product. Mostly appeal to younger audiences/teenagers or big kids

I have emailed the supplier asking about buying in bulk for sale in the UK and what options they have. If they say yea you can buy 500 units for so much shipping will be blah blah etc, does the vat automatically get charged when they arrive in the UK? Is there a website where I can calculate the VAT or anything?

Cheers for the enlightenment so far guys !

[FnG]magnolia · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:24

Ewaf said:
I don't want to give too much away but it's a product that 99% of people use everyday, and it's a fun spin off of said product. Mostly appeal to younger audiences/teenagers or big kids

I have emailed the supplier asking about buying in bulk for sale in the UK and what options they have. If they say yea you can buy 500 units for so much shipping will be blah blah etc, does the vat automatically get charged when they arrive in the UK? Is there a website where I can calculate the VAT or anything?

Cheers for the enlightenment so far guys !

Do you have any idea what you're doing? Serious question, not taking the pee.

Ewaf · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:24

No I don't, I thought that was pretty clear hence why I made the topic?

[FnG]magnolia · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:26

Ewaf said:
No I don't, I thought that was pretty clear hence why I made the topic?

Do you think a computer forum is the best place to seek advice for a business that you won't give any details about?

Just use CAB or your solicitor or accountant like everyone else does.

Pudney · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:27

I only ask to give an indication of potential duty, e.g. a toy is around 3.5% import duty from memory (and it is a few years old memory). Worth factoring in when you look at overall cost to you.

Paul11 · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:28

depending on where it is coming from

the courier will send you a note to say that they are holding a package for you and that there is VAT due to pay and that you have to pay them it before they deliver it

this is depending on a few things though, such as where it is from , the size of the items and if they are coming in a box or a container, etc

how big and how expensive (roughly) are each item ?

Ewaf · 17 Jun 2011 at 11:34

The item is pocket sized and doesn't weigh much at all. They will be coming from the US. The price per unit there is about $12.

Do you think a computer forum is the best place to seek advice for a business that you won't give any details about?

I was just looking for advice, I can see 4 utterly retarded questions asked in the first 2 pages..