by Ariful | Apr 15, 2022 | E-Commerce
Store Subscription Fees
Since you might not have decided yet to acquire a store subscription, and which type of subscription you select can influence many of your additional expenses, we will start by outlining store subscription prices.
Store subscriptions are discretionary, however, they empower sellers to access a certain allotment of free listings monthly, together with assorted benefits, discounts, and perks based upon the subscription level.
Below are the specifics of each store subscription plan.
Starter subscription from $4.95
According to eBay, the Starter store subscription supplies “discounts and tools for occasional sellers”.
This plan comprises 250 complimentary fixed price/auction listings monthly, discounts on services, a 10% final value fee for items of all types, and other entry-level perks.
Basic subscription from $21.95
The Basic store subscription provides “discounts and tools for growing businesses”.
This plan comprises 350 complimentary fixed price listings monthly, 250 free auction listings for collectibles and fashion monthly, a free subscription to eBay’s Terapeak Research tool, a 4 percent to 9.15% final value fee for most items, and more.
Premium subscription from $59.95
The Premium store subscription supplies “bigger discounts designed for bigger businesses”.
This plan comprises 1,000 complimentary fixed price listings monthly, 500 free auction listings for collectibles and fashion each month, a free subscription to eBay’s Terapeak Research tool, a 4 percent to 9.15% final value fee for most items and more.
Anchor subscription from $299.95
The Anchor store subscription is suited for “lower fees and dedicated support for volume sellers.”
This plan comprises 10,000 complimentary fixed price listings monthly, 1,000 free auction listings for collectibles and fashion each month, a free subscription to eBay’s Terapeak Research tool, a 4 percent to 9.15% final value fee for most items and more.
Enterprise subscription from $2,999.95
Last, the Enterprise store subscription has “the best rates and dedicated service for the largest retailers”.
This plan comprises 100,000 complimentary fixed price listings monthly, 2,500 free auction listings for collectibles and fashion each month, a free subscription to eBay’s Terapeak Research tool, a 4 percent to 9.15% final value fee for most items and more.
To find out more about eBay store subscriptions, browse eBay’s full breakdown of each plan. Also note that some of these features are changing by April 1, 2021 (for example, free listing allotments will be increasing for some store subscription tiers).
Insertion Fees
Outside of any discretionary upgrade costs or store subscriptions, there are two special considerations regarding the cost to sell on eBay: an insertion fee and the final value fee.
Unless you sign up for a store subscription, you will receive 200 zero-insertion fee fixed-price or auction listings monthly. (Note: by April 1, 2021, this allotment will increase to 250).
If you subscribe to a store subscription, your monthly insertion fee fixed price and auction listings allotment will be outlined above for each plan level.
When you exceed your monthly allotment, your insertion fees will be as follows for most item categories:
- Non-subscribers: $0.35 per auction listing or fixed price
- Subscribers to a Starter store: $0.30 per auction listing or fixed price
- Subscribers to a Basic store: $0.25 per auction listing or fixed price
- Subscribers to a Premium store: $0.10 per auction listing or fixed price
- Subscribers to an Anchor store: $0.05 per auction listing or fixed price
- Subscribers to an Enterprise store: $0.05 per auction listing or fixed price
Important note: insertion fees are per category or per listing. Thus, if you are selling one item but list it in two different categories, you will pay two insertion fees if you have exceeded your free monthly allotment. Insertion fees are nonrefundable.
Learn more about eBay insertion fees here.
Final Value Fees
When your item sells, you will also pay a final value fee on it. This cost is a specific percentage of the item’s price (including handling and shipping charges) + $0.30, and it is based upon the category in which it’s listed.
If you are a store subscriber, you will get additional information regarding your final value fees in our descriptions of each subscription level previously, and on eBay’s store webpage.
For the breakdown of final value fees, visit eBay’s chart of fees.
by Ariful | Dec 31, 2020 | E-Commerce
What is VAT?
To begin with, VAT which stands for Value Added Tax is a type of sales tax that is applied on goods and services you buy and sell throughout the UK and the EU. VAT is fundamentally comprised of two components: the Threshold and the Rate.
The threshold denotes when the company is required to be registered for VAT and is given by a figure of the company’s turnover. The rate denotes the percentage of tax to be added to the goods or services that the company sells.
You will need to remember that the rates and thresholds for VAT registration differ for each country in Europe, which I will explain further a bit later. For the UK the current VAT rate is 20%.
For example, if you are selling a product for £150 + VAT this then totals to £180. As it currently stands, the VAT threshold in the UK is £84,000. As a UK business you are liable to register for VAT when you are expecting to meet or exceed this mark in incoming sales per year.
If your company is VAT registered, you must charge VAT on your products or services. The benefit of this is that you can claim back the VAT that you have paid on expenses for your business.
As a VAT registered business you will need to report the amount of VAT that you have charged and the amount you have paid for products or services. You must declare this to HMRC through your quarterly VAT returns.
VAT for Amazon Sellers: How does VAT differ within EU countries?
Each country has particular rules and regulations that must be followed to avoid any penalty fees or in the worst case, by having your Amazon sellers account closed.
So if you are an Amazon seller in the UK wanting to expand to selling on Amazon EU or if you are already selling on these platforms, the following information is useful to know.
Fiscal Representation and Additional requirements
Here is where the process of VAT registration and submission can get slightly technical. You might have heard of the term Fiscal Representation, this is where a local entity (usually a local accountant) or acting body represents foreign traders for their VAT filings to that countries Tax Office. From the list of countries that we work with, France, Spain, Italy, Poland and The Netherlands all require Fiscal Representation.
For some other countries, further legal documentation may be required for example in Spain you would need to appoint a Power of Attorney to approve your legal documents which will then require a Hague Apostille Stamp.
How is VAT Calculated?
Each country within the EU has different taxation laws, where you will need to submit your declaration of VAT to the Tax Office on a monthly or quarterly basis. For the UK, you will need to declare your VAT to HMRC at least quarterly.
There are two main elements to VAT:
- Input Tax – VAT that is charged by your supplier when your goods are imported into the country.
- Output Tax – VAT that you would charge your customers when they purchase your products or services.
Disclaimer: This will differ depending on your business model and the number of revenues your company brings in.
VAT for Overseas Amazon FBA Sellers (Non-UK, EU)
If your business is based in the UK, you are not liable to register for VAT until your annual sales turnover exceeds the UK threshold of £84,000.
However, to benefit your business by being able to claim back on VAT for goods and services that you buy and sell, you can voluntarily register for VAT before you exceed the VAT threshold.
If you are an international corporation based in the EU and are looking to sell with Amazon FBA UK, which includes storing your products here in the UK, then you will need to immediately register for VAT.
This is an action you must take regardless of what your company turnover is.
Now, this is important… If your business is not based in the UK, you need a VAT number from day one of storing your products within the UK. This can be any number of products stored anywhere within the UK.
Regardless of whether you have imported your products or purchased them from a supplier in the UK, you will still need to register for VAT with HMRC regardless of whether you meet the threshold of £84,000 in sales turnover.
In some circumstances, your products may be eligible to be VAT exempt. You can check an up-to-date list of exempt products on the HMRC website.
VAT for Overseas Amazon FBA Sellers (non-UK, non-EU)
If you are an international corporation based outside of the UK and EU, you will immediately need to register for VAT from the day of your first sale or from the first day that you began to store your products in the UK. This rule applies regardless of what your annual turnover is or whether your annual turnover meets the threshold.
How our team at Sterlinx help you and your business
So as you may have gathered from reading this post, VAT can get quite complicated depending on where your business is based, who you are selling to and where you are storing your products.
At Sterlinx Global, we can assist you in making this process as smooth and as easy as possible. We specialise in Amazon Accounting for UK and Europe.
If you are an Amazon FBA Seller and would like further information regarding VAT within the UK and EU, get in touch and book a consultation with one of our highly trained specialists today.
by Ariful | Aug 20, 2020 | Business
TITLE: 5 Ways Sterlinx Can Help You Scale Your Business Into the UK and Europe
Whether you’re a startup business that wants to get a head start in the industry, a medium-sized enterprise that wishes to expand your business, or an established corporation that aspires to reach out to an even bigger market, Sterlinx can help you in countless ways.
Why is business expansion crucial?
While there’s nothing wrong with having a self-sustaining business that’s keeping you passionate and inspired with your job, the limitations of selling only to a select market can impede your company from growing.
Catering to the same people doesn’t ensure that they will be repurchasing your products for the next few years.
After all, once they acquire the product that you offer, they may no longer be considered repeat customers. Moreover, customer satisfaction cannot be guaranteed to all of them.
Where can I expand my business?
Business expansion is every entrepreneur’s goal. Most business owners aim to expand their business in Europe – the home to one of the biggest E-Commerce markets.
Unfortunately, not many of them have access to the right resources nor do they know where to find the most suited professionals for them to consult regarding their expansion in Europe.
Fortunately, Sterlinx is the first of its kind – we give entrepreneurs the opportunity to expand their business in the UK and Europe – and we do so efficiently, effectively, and affordably.
So how exactly can Sterlinx guide you into becoming more successful? Here are 5 ways:
1. Sterlinx registers your business for you.
Business expansion may sound intimidating especially if you’re targeting a specific market in unfamiliar territory. What’s even more intimidating is the fact that more well-known companies have already built a strong presence in Europe.
With Sterlinx, your company is registered as a UK-based company; an address based in Liverpool, England is provided to you. You can then use this new business address wherever you want it – whether it’s for marketing purposes like calling cards, letterheads, or brochures.
Once you sign up with Sterlinx, you’re also given a unique telephone number with a universal prefix of +44.
This service that Sterlinx provides allows you to gain a head start from other established companies as you’re showing your customers that your business is prestigious and professional.
2. We ensure that your customers are happy.
Customer satisfaction is vital to every business – and Sterlinx values your customers as though they’re our own.
With our Call Centre Service, we guarantee that any problem your customers may have regarding their purchase is addressed, resolved, and taken care of.
We ensure that anyone who’s in need of our Call Centre Service is attended to – even you. Our 24/7 Technical Support Team is available to you should you have any queries regarding our service.
Any issue with your business is sorted out, and we ensure that your business will run smoothly and that it remains that way.
3. Your warehousing problems are taken care of.
A common dilemma that business owners face is they don’t have the right resources to aid them in their products and how they can store them.
Sterlinx is the solution to a company’s warehousing problem as we store, ship, and deliver your customers’ ordered products for you.
Once your customer orders a product from you, our state-of-the-art AI technology will intelligently locate the ordered product for your customer.
Our Fulfilment Team will then pack, ship and deliver the items right at your customer’s doorstep – and we make sure that all of them receive their orders on time.
4. We ensure that your business is safe.
One of the biggest problems that entrepreneurs encounter is that they’re not very familiar with European law.
Sterlinx addresses the demand for business owners to learn everything that goes on in Europe and UK as well as the documents that they need to prepare and submit to the government.
Sterlinx’s legal experts together with our Amazon Accountants will register, trademark, and protect your business to ensure that you operate within the European borders legally and freely.
Should you have any problem regarding your business or if you wish to know more about European law, our knowledgeable and experienced lawyers will assist you – any time, any day.
5. We value vacations – go ahead and have one!
Vacations – everybody wants to take one. But when you’re running a business, it can be difficult, especially when you know that you have to delegate the tasks to someone else.
We understand your need to be able to monitor your business even when you’re away from it.
Sterlinx provides you with a mobile application and a web portal for you to check on your business. Any document, letter, or mail addressed to your company will be forwarded to you through those platforms.
We will notify you of everything you need to know – because we know how important your business is to you – it is to us as well.
How can I start my business expansion?
Business expansion is no longer as intimidating nor as difficult as it used to be. If you wish to scale your business like never before, sign up with Sterlinx now.
by Ariful | Aug 13, 2020 | Business
TITLE: How Sterlinx Helped a Fashion Designer Scale His Business Without Breaking the Bank
Steve is a fashion designer who recently completed his degree in fashion design. He then decided to launch a startup business. The designs were so good that he started getting a lot of sales and his business started growing really well. He hired a team of customer support executives to help out the customers with various types of services such as taking mail orders and dealing with after-sales support. But the cost of his operations went up, making it drastically difficult for him to sustain the business itself.
The cost of running an in-house team of the customer support team was rather costly and less manageable. He funds all of this while also having to carry out a lot of other work in growing his business.
Moreover, whenever a member of staff would leave, it would always become tedious to recruit a new person, train them, and make them represent the brand image that he wanted them to; this caused unnecessary delays and loss of precious time which could have been spent on better and more productive things.
After all, he was risking the reputation of his brand image to a wide range of customers.
Steve tried to find a solution and guidance to help him rescue his failing business. He then found out about the award-winning Sterlinx Virtual Customer Support Service. Initially, Steve only wanted to avail the Customer Support Service for his business, but Sterlinx offered him so much more.
Not only did Sterlinx give him a professional business address in Liverpool, England but Sterlinx also provided Steve with a team of dedicated and highly-skilled customer support executives who would take care of the presale, inbound sales, and aftersale inquiries of his customers.
Sterlinx’s unique and innovative services boosted Steve’s sales as his satisfied customers came back and ordered from him again and again. Not only that but Steve was also offered numerous and feasible B2B contracts over the phone – from the Customer Support Service itself.
To become as successful as Steve, allow Sterlinx to run your sales, customer service, and technical support. Whether it is over the phone, through emails, or through your CRM systems, we can handle it all professionally, diligently, and within your budget.
We will be at your own cost hiring an in-house team of staff. With us, you pay no holidays, no sick leaves, and no recruitment fees. There is also no lack of advisors.
We can facilitate a 24/7 call center system depending on how you want it in order to accurately suit your business needs while you can focus on growing your business.
Any problem that your business may have, Sterlinx can and will solve it for you.
Whether it is about your products, customers, or warehousing problems, we are here to find the perfect solution for it to keep your business running smoothly. We will also help you grow your E-Commerce business into a more successful one – now and in the years to come. Get in touch with us now.
by Ariful | Aug 12, 2020 | E-Commerce
Starting an E-Commerce Business Guidelines
Given the modern and constantly-updating technology and resources that we have, it’s no surprise that shopping is now digitized as well. Many have opted in starting an e-commerce business. Back then, only a few platforms were available on the internet for business owners and entrepreneurs to sell their products and services on. Because of this, it was only natural and understandable to have only a few customers to cater to.
But nowadays, Amazon’s growing market will not be seeing a decline in the future. On the contrary, the E-Commerce market utilizes the availability of various platforms to shop online – and most prefer to shop there now instead of physically going to a brick-and-mortar establishment.
It’s no surprise that a number of entrepreneurs and business owners are utilizing the availability of platforms like Amazon and eBay to reach out to their target market. But having several competitors also means having a more difficult time selling your products too.
So where exactly do you start if you wish to sell online – the proper way? Here are a few guidelines.
1. Know your niche
This is the most basic step – knowing what to sell. However, selling a product that’s already widely available makes it hard for your products to be more visible as your competitors may be ahead already.
If you wish to stand out as an E-Commerce business, offer unique and creative products and services that your customers may demand or need. Moreover, make sure that you offer something that’s made or built out of passion and hard work.
2. Find the right platform
The next thing you should focus on is your E-Commerce platform. While social media platforms are easy-to-use websites, other platforms like Amazon and eBay would make your products more visible; both of these websites have the most number of visitors — Amazon being the first.
To further boost your online presence as a company, maximise Amazon’s cataloguing system and make sure that your products are placed in the right categories.
3. Keep your customers happy
Customer satisfaction is vital to every organisation. There’s no point in having the best products if your customers are not happy with your services. Always attend to them and resolve their problems should they have any.
If they’re enquiring or asking about a product, guarantee that their concerns are addressed and attended to. Most importantly, make sure that your satisfied customers leave favourable reviews and feedback; this E-Commerce platform feature enhances your reputation as a company as people are more likely to buy from you when they know that your customers are valued.
4. Introduce yourself as a prestigious company
Having a reputable business is no longer as time-consuming as it used to be. A professional business presence can help you gain the reputation your business deserves.
A prestigious business address in the UK and a telephone number with a universal prefix allows anyone to call you from anywhere in the world. You can use this address as your official business address with mail delivery services available through mobile app and web portal.
You can use your UK-based business address as your office address and you are free to put it on your website, calling cards, brochures, and anywhere else you want your business to be seen. Customers are more likely to buy from you once they realise that your business is registered in the UK as it’s more prestigious.
There may be a lot of competition now that E-Commerce has been on the rise, but an advantage you have is a professional business address, Amazon Accountants, and telephone number.
