Individual export business refers to individuals such as housewives, students, and office workers who engage in export business.
The export business is also popular as a side job because it allows individuals to earn enough money.
Some people are working on their personal export business in their spare time, while others are working on it as their main job.
In the past, starting an export business required exhibiting at trade shows and traveling to the field for business negotiations, which was not something that could be undertaken by an individual.
However, in modern times, it is now possible to easily communicate with other countries via the Internet, which eliminates the hassle and expense, making it possible for anyone to start an export business.
Nowadays, it is possible to start an export business with less than 10,000 yen , so even individuals can easily take up the challenge.
Here we will explain how to start a personal export business and how to make money
Please refer to this article if you are thinking of starting an export business on your own or if you want to earn money through export business as a side job.
Related: Comparison and recommendations of Amazon export tools
What is personal export business?
As mentioned above, an individual export business is an export business carried out by individuals such as office workers and housewives.
In addition, export business is a business that sells Japanese products overseas and makes profit from the difference between the purchase price and the selling price.
The main sales channels for personal export business include US Amazon , European Amazon , Australian Amazon
Many beginners imagine starting with the export business from US Amazon, and gradually expanding their sales channels once they are able to earn a stable income.
Demand for Japanese products overseas is extremely high, and Japan ranks 4th in the world export rankings.
can be said to be a trading powerhouse as it exports to various countries
How to start a personal export business
You don't need any special permission to start a personal export business, so if you want to start one, you can start it today.
However, there are some products that cannot pass through customs, products that cannot be shipped overseas, and products that are prohibited from being sold by the sales destination, so you should be careful about the products you handle.
To start a personal export business, first decide on a sales channel and prepare the necessary items for the export business.
First, decide on the “sales location”
Even though it is an individual export business, there are various sales channels, so first you need to decide which platform you will use for export sales.
We will explain the characteristics of the main sales channels for personal export business, so you can choose the one that suits you.
- US Amazon
- europe amazon
- australia amazon
- eBay
- online shop
US Amazon
Amazon in the US is the first sales channel that many new exporters choose, and it is the market with the largest number of Japanese sellers.
The best reason for the large number of Japanese sellers is that the market size is overwhelming compared to other sales channels, so products are very easy to sell.
There are many export agents, and there is a lot of know-how on Amazon export and US sales, so if you have any questions, you can easily find them by searching online.
europe amazon
Among the European Amazons the UK and German Amazons have the second largest market size after the US.
However, because the VAT (value added tax) is complicated, there are few entrants, making it an easy market to earn money.
As long as you have sufficient knowledge about VAT, there should be no problem.
If you have an account in one of the European Amazon countries, you can sell in any country, which instantly expands your sales channels.
australia amazon
Amazon Australia is a very new marketplace, having only been established in December 2017.
As a result, there are very few people entering the area, making it a little-known spot.
Another big advantage is that there is almost no time difference with Japan, so communication can be done smoothly
Although tax registration seems to be a bit of a barrier, it is not a major hurdle.
eBay
eBay is one of the world's largest auction sites, and is a global site with participation from approximately 200 countries.
When you think that you can sell Japanese products to these 200 countries, you will understand how amazing it is.
The advantage of eBay export compared to Amazon export is that it is easier to do direct transactions
This increases your chances of interacting directly with your customers and having them become repeat customers.
online shop
This is a method of building your own online shop and doing personal export sales.
Please note that this process is much more difficult than exporting to Amazon or eBay, so it is not recommended for beginners.
I tend to think that if I set up my own online shop, I wouldn't have to pay any fees, so I would be able to make more money than selling on Amazon or eBay.
If you start an online shop without any knowledge or experience, you will only be wasting your time and money.
Therefore, if you want to start an online shop as a personal export business, we recommend that you try exporting to Amazon or eBay first.
Necessary preparations to start a personal export business
Next, let's take a look at the preparations necessary to start a personal export business.
The following are the things you need to start a personal export business.
- Seller account for sale
- computer
- credit card
- overseas bank account
Seller account for sale
You must obtain a seller account separate from the buyer account at the place of sale
In the case of Amazon, the process is almost the same as when registering as a seller on Amazon Japan, so it should be easy to register.
Please note that when registering an account, you will need a credit card to pay fees and a bank account to receive sales proceeds, so it will be smoother if you prepare them in advance.
computer
Set up your internet environment and prepare your computer
In the personal export business, you can do all the work as long as you have a computer, so the advantage is that you can work from anywhere, whether it's at home or at a cafe.
If you are purchasing a new product, you can choose either Mac or Windows, but if you have already decided which tool you want to use, you should check in advance whether the tool can be used with either.
credit card
Prepare a credit card to purchase items and a credit card to pay the vendor's fees.
There is no problem if you use the same credit card as for purchasing, but it is useful to have several credit cards for different purposes.
At the very least, keep credit cards you use for personal purposes separate from credit cards you use for business.
overseas bank account
For example, when exporting to America and selling on Amazon, the proceeds will be transferred in dollars, so you will need a bank account that can receive dollars.
However, in order to open a bank account overseas, you need to go to the country and it is not easy to do so.
What you want to use is something called an overseas account rental service
Particularly famous overseas account rental services such as Payoneer and World First allow you to receive money in a variety of currencies.
Furthermore, you can easily transfer the received currency to your Japanese account with low fees.
Therefore, many individual export business practitioners use Payoneer and World First to receive sales proceeds.
English skills required for personal export business
In the personal export business, it is absolutely necessary to communicate with customers in English.
However, in reality, you can easily deal with this by using translation sites, so there is no problem even if you can't read, write, or speak English.
Of course, it's better to be able to speak English, but don't worry, it's possible to earn money even if you can't speak English at all.
Google Translate , which is free and has sufficient functionality .
There are some free translation services and some paid ones, but basically there is no problem with the free ones.
The performance is sufficient and there is a function that allows you to translate each page, so I would like to use it until I get used to it.
Things to keep in mind when doing personal export business
In order to earn stable income through personal export business, be sure to keep these points in mind.
The following are things you should be especially careful about when doing personal export business.
- Legal matters
- money order
- Return rate
Legal matters
In personal export business, laws often come into play .
Whether you can export or not depends on the laws of Japan as well as the laws of the country of sale, so you need to have a thorough understanding of the laws of both countries.
In the worst case, if you are in trouble with the law, you may not only have your account suspended, but you may also be subject to fines or imprisonment.
Even if the person did not have any malicious intent, a crime is still a crime, so if you commit the crime once, you may not be able to sell it again in the future.
Please be careful about legal matters.
money order
Since personal export business is a business dealing with overseas, foreign exchange is inseparable.
The idea of foreign exchange is that when ``1 dollar = 100 yen'', it means ``if you spend 100 yen, you can buy 1 dollar'', or ``by selling 1 dollar, you will get 100 yen back''.
In other words, when the value of your country's currency is high, you can purchase products cheaply from overseas.
When the value of your country's currency is low, it becomes more expensive to buy from overseas .
Personal export business is always at the mercy of exchange rate fluctuations, so even if today's dollar = 110 yen, tomorrow it may be 1 dollar = 100 yen.
Return rate
Personal export business basically involves selling Japanese products overseas.
Japanese products are known around the world for their high quality and performance, and they are rarely defective or inferior.
Therefore, the benefit is that the complaint rate is low and inspection time is almost non-existent.
However, in the United States and European countries, ``services that accept free returns'' are popular, and there is a custom of returning items if you don't like them.
Therefore, even if the product is not defective, the return rate is extremely high .
If it's a small item, it won't hurt too much, but if it's a large item, shipping costs are a big cost, so it will be a big hit.
It is no exaggeration to say that the return rate for overseas sales is over 10%.
It is important to keep in mind that the return rate is 10% and keep selling without getting discouraged.
lastly
We explained how to start a personal export business and how to make money, as well as important points to note when selling exports.
It is a business that anyone can start as long as they have the knowledge, so it is recommended as a side job for office workers, housewives, and students.
In particular, study the law thoroughly and keep it in mind before starting your export business.
Related: Explaining the methods and benefits of selling on US Amazon [US Amazon export]
