Mini importation business
Tips to Make Money in NigeriaHome | Small business | ( 4 ) | Subscribe Posted by Felix Okoli on Tuesday May 20, 2014 at 18:1:31:
Mini importation business is a sort of business that involves importing products from abroad in smaller quantity and with a smaller capital unlike huge importers from abroad. It involves buying and importing those items that are readily needed in Nigeria from abroad and on a small scale.You no longer need to have big money to import a container or have to pay for air ticket just to travel abroad for import business because you can actually be doing this while you are in Nigeria. All you basically need is an internet connection and the ability to pay online. You don't even have to have a huge capital to start as you can start with as little as N50,00 or even less.With the introduction of internationally accepted online payment cards like Mastercard and Visa into the Nigerian market and internet services, you can actually make money doing mini importation business in Nigeria.What to import
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You can import anything but it's good to stick to those things that are mostly needed, scarce or just light in weight since you'll be shipping it by air. Just take a look around you and see what products are mostly needed. Things like fashion accessories, jewelleries, mobile phones, tablets, laptops, accessories, solar panels, tech products and so on. Anything that Nigerians need and would be willing to pay for it, those are the kinds of things you can import. Don't import those things that already have major importers in Nigeria or those things that cost cheaper in Nigeria than what it would cost for you to buy and import it. You have to consider the purchase cost and shipping cost.What it involves
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You would be able to do this online using the internet by first of all getting a payment card from your bank, connecting to the internet and then choosing a shopping website to buy from. It is profitable to buy from Chinese and US websites like Aliexpress, Alibaba, Amazon and eBay. Some of them offer direct shipping to Nigeria while you can as well get a shipping agent to ship it to you after placing your order.
Costs associated with importing the products will include the purchase cost, the shipping cost and then any other costs such as custom clearing costs where necessary. You should be able to calculate your total costs on the items imported so as to place a suitable selling price on your products.Tracking your order
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After you have purchased an item or group of items online and it has shipped to Nigeria, you will be able to track it online using the tracking order given to you by the seller. This will help you to know the status of your order and be able to estimate when it will be shipped to you. Some orders are delivered directly to your house while others can be delivered to the nearest post office which will inform you when you have a parcel to collect.
How long does it take?
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Since the items you are going to buy online at foreign websites would have to be shipped to Nigeria, it normally takes about 5 to 60 working days depending on the courier you have chosen to deliver it to you after you have made the payment. How do I make payment
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When placing orders for items online at a shopping website, you will need to provide you card details such as the card number, name of cardholder, expiry date, CVV code and any other relevant detail of the Mastercard or Visa. You will need to ensure that you card has been activated by your bank for online use. You can make use of a Naira or USD card. Most USD cards come already activated while Naira cards would need to be first activate before you'd be able to use it for online payments. I've made payment with both my Naira and Dollar Visa/Mastercard cards. I recommend you just open a separate bank account for this business so that you'd be able to use it to know if it is profitable or not. It should be the same account you use in making expenses as well as receiving or depositing payments you received. You would get a Visa or Mastercard from your can attached to this account and then activate it for online use so as to make payments on the internet. When you buy things online, it will reflect in your account and same also when you pay for shipping cost to Nigeria.
Cost of doing mini importation business:
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When you start doing this business, you would need to consider some costs which are a regular part of your business in order to know where to set your selling price.Cost associated with this involve purchase cost, shipping cost, currency exchange cost, custom duty cost(if it arises). Other smaller costs would include warehousing costs and marketing costs.How to do it
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1. Get a Visa or Mastercard from your bank. It can be a Naira card and tell them to activate it for online payment for foreign websites2. Decide on the kind of products you want to be buying e.g. clothes, sneakers, jewelleries, computers, phones, memory cards, accessories e.t.c. Focus on non-heavy items since it saves cost3. Go to an online shopping website where you want to buy things e.g. Amazon.com, eBay.com or Aliexpress.com4. Open a buyer's account if you have not already done so.5. Check to see their shipping destinations. If the website offers direct shipping to Nigeria, just buy the items, pay and proceed to step 10, else go to step 66. Get a Mail forwarding service available in the country of the foreign shopping website. They will give you a shipping address that is supported by your shopping website.7. Buy the item(s) you want to buy and ship to your mail forwarding address8. When they receive your items, they will ship it to you in Nigeria9. Your account will be charged for international shipping to Nigeria from your forwarding service provider. 10. Item(s) you purchased will be finally shipped to your doorstep in Nigeria or nearest post office. It can take as little as 5 days if you choose to ship fast.11. Calculate your total costs and add some profit to arrive at your selling price. Sell it to people that need them.Repeat the process and keep growing your money. It is that easy.I prefer shopping on websites like Amazon.com, eBay.com and Aliexpress.comTips:
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- Don't buy and import anything that is prohibited by the Nigerian custom service. See https://www.customs.gov.ng/ProhibitionList/import.php
- Take advantage of free shipping and shopping discounts
Comments:
Re: Mini importation business Posted by Hadiza haruna on Thursday May 22, 2014 at 5:10:11: Thank u for this information..is importation business as easy as u just described?Am really interested in it and i will need your guidance.
Re: Mini importation business Posted by Felix Okoli on Thursday May 22, 2014 at 5:10:11: Well, it's not too hard since you would be doing most of the work on the internet. You can ask me any questions you want.
Re: Mini importation business Reply by dorcas on Tuesday August 26, 2014 at 20:29:4: Please concerning this mini importation business, does the Nigerian customs service support it? To know if am at risk of anything
Re: Mini importation business Reply by Felix Okoli on Tuesday August 26, 2014 at 20:29:4: Ofcourse, as long as you are not importing guns and bombs.
Re: Mini importation business Reply by Aliyu Babatunde on Thursday September 11, 2014 at 17:52:50: Hi thanks for the information. May i ask; what it takes to get a mail forwarding service, incase there is no direct shipment as u mention in item 6 of your instruction?
Re: Mini importation business Reply by Felix Okoli on Thursday September 11, 2014 at 17:52:50: There are many online US agents that offer the service and I recommend MyUS because I've used them.You can pay them using a Visa, Mastercard or even Paypal.
Re: Mini importation business Reply by onyedikachukwu on Wednesday February 4, 2015 at 21:19:36: pls can i make payment with verve card
Re: Mini importation business Reply by Felix Okoli on Wednesday February 4, 2015 at 21:19:36: You can only use Verve card for local payments in Nigeria and not for foreign payments
Re: Mini importation business Reply by efe on Friday July 24, 2015 at 2:7:0: can i make use of my visa card the one i use in witdrwing money from the atm here in nigeria
Re: Mini importation business Reply by Felix Okoli on Friday July 24, 2015 at 2:7:0: Yes you can. Visa cards work worldwide anywhere Visa is accepted.