Home-based e-business - an option for the self-employed?

Drop-shipping

Another possibility is to use drop-shippers i.e. order from wholesale companies who will drop-ship to your customers. The advantage of this approach would be that there is no stock to carry and thus no financial risk of unsold inventory. However, the suppliers normally charge a high price for drop-shipping and thus the profit margins would be lower. Moreover, unless the drop-shipper agrees to use the merchant's own company logo, there is a chance that they may steal the customer. Many users have also complained of a high entry fee charged by drop-shippers and have even been scammed in the process.