I do hope i am posting in the right place. I'm katie and i have a daughter who is 4 i'm at home recently because i'm studying and i'm just finishing my last year at college then take the leap to uni!

For the past year, infact almost two years now i have searched endlessly about selling online and starting up a website. I watched a friend set up her own site and it's given me the courage to try it myself. Why i didn't start last year i'm not sure. Just scared everything will go wrong and i really have no idea where to start.

Anyhow i've looked around and got a few ideas of what i want to sell it's mostly clothing and childrens items. I did sell lingerie on ebay i bought wholesale from america and it seemed to do pretty well until i had one blip then was banished from ebay! LOL. Couldn't believe it but to be honest the fees had started to go up quite a lot but i wish i had started a little lingerie selling website then i might have actually got somewhere.

I've just got a few questions is it best to buy wholesale within the UK or worldwide? Is it better contacting a manufacturer or should that be left for when you are more established? Do you need any types of insurance? Also how does the licensing work? do you need any sort of permission to sell certain items? I'm so scared of getting in trouble! Do you need re-sell rights? How do you register your 'business' do you give it a while to see how it goes or is that breaking the law?

Sorry for all the questions just want to have a good idea before i start anything.

Thanks all,
Kate.

Anyhow i've looked around and got a few ideas of what i want to sell it's mostly clothing and childrens items. I did sell lingerie on ebay i bought wholesale from america and it seemed to do pretty well until i had one blip then was banished from ebay! LOL. Couldn't believe it but to be honest the fees had started to go up quite a lot but i wish i had started a little lingerie selling website then i might have actually got somewhere.
If you already know this market well there is nothing stopping you from continueing with this.
]I've just got a few questions is it best to buy wholesale within the UK or worldwide?
If you buy worldwide you have import duties to pay etc, but you should already know this if you were importing from states for lingerie
Is it better contacting a manufacturer or should that be left for when you are more established?
Manufacturers will have minimum order levels and may want trade references etc, you will probably have to go through wholesalers at first.
Do you need any types of insurance?
You will need product liability insurance
Also how does the licensing work?
Your manufacturer will already have the license, si always make sure they have!
do you need any sort of permission to sell certain items?
You will have to go into more detail here??
I'm so scared of getting in trouble! Do you need re-sell rights? How do you register your 'business' do you give it a while to see how it goes or is that breaking the law?
again not sure what you mean here? you will be registering with inland revenue as a soletrader at first this you must do for tax purposes and national insurance etc.You cannot give it a while.You do have 3 months to register but this doe snot mean you have 3 months to see how it goes.You would still have to register but this would apply to ebay sellers also.

I hope I answered everything for you??

Then you need to do your research also.childrens clothing is a very competitive market so you will need to see what is out there already and you need to find your niche

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Childrens Fancy Dress Costumes and Fairtrade Clothes
Childrens Costumes and Dancewear

If you are a sole trader, you don't need to "register your business", you just register yourself as a sole trader with the Inland Revenue and put the details of the source of your income on your tax return. There is no need to register each "business" individually as "you" are the business. This will only change if you decide to become incorporated e.g. a Ltd co, in which case the business becomes a separate entity to yourself.

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Lawrence

Hey thanks a lot that's a great help! Any recommendations where to get the insurance from?? Also i meant if you were to buy a certain brand. The lingerie i sold on ebay was leg avenue...If i was to sell it on a website would i need permission from them? OR re-sell rights? Hope i'm making sense! Im not sure about import taxes unless they were included in the price when i bought it in bulk? Opps

If you're allowed to sell it on eBay. then you can sell it on your website. Usually, if anything, the manufacturers/suppliers will not let you sell on eBay but are fine with you selling on a website. I've never heard of the opposite situation. Some suppliers don't like internet sales of any description and will insist on a B&M store, though these suppliers seem to be less prevalent nowadays.

If you're buying stock from a legitimate UK wholesaler then you can sell it, there is no need for "re-sell" rights, that's the purpose of the wholesaler selling it to you in the first place. If you're importing brand name goods, then the manufacturer may get their knickers in a twist due to you not sourcing from their authorised UK suppliers, but if you're dealing with those sorts of products you should check with the manufacturers first.

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Lawrence

Hi
as for insurance if you go to the business links website there is a link to accreditated brokers.I am sorry but it is really a case of going through them!Its not something even business links will recommend.Just google business links and you should find the site
As for legs avenue, if you were already being supplied and allowed to sell on ebay I agree with Lawrence in that you shouldn't have any problems with a website.I would try and source other brands though too so you have a variety on offer.

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Childrens Fancy Dress Costumes and Fairtrade Clothes
Childrens Costumes and Dancewear

Yeah i've tried contacting a few other websites about lingerie etc. Just going to take it slow and work hard and see if it takes off! Thanks for the advice