Mar
07
How a Trained Corporate Lawyer Became a Successful Dropshipping Business Owner
Numerous of BrandsGateway’s success stories share a similar narrative. Individuals who, before getting into the dropshipping industry, were following a different career path until they realized that they needed a change. Nadia’s story is no different. Her journey with BrandsGateway began when she decided to leave her corporate job and build her own business. Today, Nadia is managing a successful dropshipping business full-time, 7 days a week, while taking care of 3 kids, 2 of them being toddlers.
In this interview, Nadia shares her story - what was the kick that motivated her to take this life-changing step, how did she come across and decide to team up with BrandsGateway, and what is the key to starting and managing a successful dropshipping business.
1. Could you tell us more about yourself and your dropshipping business? Were you pursuing a different career path before this? What made you decide to get into the dropshipping industry in the first place?
I’m a trained lawyer who chose to downshift due to family priorities and too much stress at work. I left my corporate career and never looked back. Before starting my dropshipping business I’ve sold second-hand designer clothing on eBay, which I’ve sourced from thrift stores in my area.
2. From your point of view, how much investment does one need to get started with dropshipping?
Depending on the specifics of the platforms a dropshipper chooses to sell on, the subscription cost might be the only investment needed. In other cases, several thousand euros might be needed at the start of dropshipping to cover management software costs, subscriptions, the timeframe between purchasing the item and receiving payment, etc.
When I found BrandsGateway I was finally able to streamline my dropshipping business and scale it.
3. What would you say are the biggest challenges in the dropshipping business in general?
Finding reliable partners to work with is on top of my list. When I found BrandsGateway I was finally able to streamline my dropshipping business and scale it.
4. Why did you decide to focus specifically on the luxury clothing and accessories niche? What advantages does the luxury fashion industry bring?
Luxury clothing offers great opportunities for profits, due to the good margin levels. I’m confident in the high quality of the items and that the client will most likely like his purchase. Also, luxury items keep their value, generate more buzz, are more liked and searched for and there is less competition than the mall brand market.
5. Where did you get familiar with BrandsGateway and what made you decide that we are the right fit for you? In your opinion, what are some of the most important features to look into when selecting a supplier?
I’m located in Europe and before starting my dropshipping business, I researched extensively and gathered reviews and feedback for several suppliers located in Europe. BrandsGateway was by far the most recommended and I felt confident to start a partnership with you. I’m very happy with my choice. I’ve been using your services for about 9 months and can confirm all the good reviews for BrandsGateway. For this period I received good customer service with regard to the setup of my business, customer issues, returns, item specific, and other business details. All items are authentic, with good descriptions, duly packaged and shipped in time with tracking, returns are processed quickly and payments and refunds are managed without any issues. These are the specifics I’m looking for in a supplier.
I can confirm all the good reviews for BrandsGateway. For this period I received good customer service with regard to the setup of my business, customer issues, returns, item specific, and other business details.
6. How long are you with BrandsGateway? And based on our collaboration so far, how would you describe your experience with us? Are you satisfied with the services we provide?
We started in May so we’ve been using your services for about 9 months now. As I have just said, I’m very happy with the service. The areas I’d recommend BrandsGateway might improve on are the clothing product pictures (some platforms require clothing not to be worn by a model on pictures) and the unification of terms (colors, materials, language used) in the product description database.
7. What are the numbers you are making with BrandsGateway’s inventory per month? What was the highest profit you made selling our products?
Currently, we’re selling just part of the inventory and only on several platforms and we have several hundred to several thousand euros in revenue per month. We’re in the process of launching several more platforms and I’m confident we’ll reach several thousand euro net profit per month and will be selling several hundred items every month. Up until now, our most expensive item sold was a Dolce & Gabbana dress we sold for 1899 EUR. The BrandsGateway price was 458 EUR.
All BrandsGateway's items are authentic, with good descriptions, duly packaged and shipped in time with tracking, returns are processed quickly and payments and refunds are managed without any issues.
8. What are some of the favorite brands and categories of products you mostly order from BrandsGateway? From your experience in the niche of luxury fashion so far, which products do you think are the most demanding, and which are your best sellers?
Interestingly, our most popular BrandsGateway items are sunglasses and frames. More specifically, the higher-end brands. The BrandsGateway price is very, very competitive. As for which brands are most popular, this really depends on the specific market, platform, and audience but I’d say the Dolce & Gabbana items are most popular and liked by users, but not necessarily the most sold.
9. What would be your advice to beginners looking into starting a dropshipping business? Tell us a lesson you have learned when you were first starting in the industry, something that you would like to share with the readers.
I’d say before starting your dropshipping business have a clear plan where to sell your items and the specifics of that platform. Be focused on one type of product at a time and then little by little you can add on other product categories and/or other platforms.