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Tips For Starting A Mini Importation Business In Nigeria

by Samuel Moore

September 25, 2020 1

The mini importation business in Nigeria involves buying and selling of goods. The goods are purchased from other countries and then resold by the business owner for profit. As an SME in Nigeria considering the mini importation business, below are tips on how to go about yours and start making profit.

1. Register your business

The first action step should be to register your business with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). Getting your business registered will boost your credibility before your customers as no one wants to go into business with someone that’s not trustworthy. If registering your business by yourself poses some challenges, you can always engage the services of companies that carry out such tasks for companies and organisations.

2. Choose your import portal

Import portals refer to sites you can purchase your products from. Be Careful not to fall victim of fraudulent websites acting as real portals. You also want to avoid settling for sites with pricey products; this will cost you a lot with little profit to fall back on at the end of the day.

Before you settle for any import portal, take out time to carefully carry out all necessary research about the site. To further help with this, carefully go through the reviews of others alongside the ratings of such website.

For ratings, you would do best to go for a website with at least a 90% rating. While for reviews, a website with nothing less than a 4-star will be your best bet. There are several import sites out there; however, some of the most popular include Alibaba, AliExpress, 1688, amongst several others. Once you’ve settled for a site, you can then go ahead to create an account with your site.

3. Run a product search

Your selected site has a wide range of products to choose from, this can be quite overwhelming if you don’t have an idea of what you want in the first place. This is why you need to know your target audience and what product(s) best suits their needs. Below is a list of things to consider when choosing your products.

• Your market and their needs

Whichever area you choose to carry out your business from goes a long way in selecting your products. Carry out market research to know what products are selling well in your current market. Also consider the need of your market, knowing what they need will help you select the right products.

Demand for specific product changes with time, it is, therefore, essential to keep up with the market trend.

• Product review

Product reviews are always listed at the bottom of each product; reading the reviews will help you know what people are saying about the product. This enables you to decide on whether or not it’s something you’ll go for. In addition to the reviews, also find out everything about the seller, terms and conditions, costs, guarantee, and every other vital information.

• Research every formality involved

Certain goods might have been termed as illegal in your local market; you won’t know this if you don’t carry out your research. This research also involves certain formalities such as tax, quantity limitations, laid down laws, amongst others. Knowing how all this work will save you unnecessary stress. To make things easier, you can hire the services of a legal practitioner.

4. Pay for selected products

Once you select your product, the next step in the mini importation business is to make payment. Majority of these sites have user-friendly measures put in place to make the payment process easier for buyers. You don’t have to go through any rigorous exercise to make payment; you can do this right from the comfort of your home and make payment to anywhere in the world.

Suppliers make use of different payment channels, so your payment will be made based on the supplier’s preference. Most of these top sites also have an escrow service set up to protect buyers from risks. Also, if the goods delivered to you are different from what you ordered, you can always fill a dispute form which will lead to a refund.

5. Choose your delivery method

There are two ways your goods can be delivered to you:

• Free shipping: This option is suitable for those who aren’t in a hurry to have their goods delivered. It helps you save costs, albeit slow. Goods delivered with this take between 20 to 30 days to be delivered.

• Premium delivery: This is way faster than logistics companies carry out free shipping and deliveries. Goods delivered with this take about 3 to 5 working days.

6. Market and sell your goods

This is the only way you can get your products out there to prospective buyers and make your money back. Several marketing strategies and platforms exist out there; all you have to do is carry out your research and find one that works for you. Mini importation is one very lucrative business that can be carried out with ease; all you need to do is follow the steps carefully, and you are sure on your way to earning cool money.